lower section

West River Trail Improvements
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West River Trail Improvements

Conservation 11 Youth Crew L to R back row: Henderson Ramirez, Beth Maguire, Hannah Chitambar, Nate Keeney Front: Altanai Winston, Ellen Holmes (crew leader), Chris Wu (assistant crew leader)

Conservation 11 Youth Crew
L to R back row: Henderson Ramirez, Beth Maguire, Hannah Chitambar, Nate Keeney
Front: Altanai Winston, Ellen Holmes (crew leader), Chris Wu (assistant crew leader)

A huge thanks to local volunteers and the Vermont Youth Conservation Corps (VYCC) for the many trail improvements accomplished in June and July.

On June 15. a small, but dedicated team of volunteers worked hard to clear stumps that had come up in the new section of trail . They also improved drainage from the bridge up to the Fox Farm Road right-of-way. Thanks to Jason Cooper and Diana and Hank Lange.

From June 30-July 11, 2014, the VYCC crew completed many projects and did a terrific job while here for 2 weeks . They replaced two drainage culverts on the trail adjacent to the Riverstone Preserve, which stood up very well to the torrential downpour we had a few days later. The crew was very happy to get to see how the work they did on the culverts would perform in such an extreme condition. They also cleared a lot of the knotweed from the bank of the river, completed a new section of trail on the Riverstone Preserve that includes a 30′ raised walk over a chronically wet section and demolished an old shed that was falling down. Thanks so much to the VYCC crew for doing an excellent job to improve the West River Trail.

Thanks to Jason Cooper for the work reports and for all his good work to improve the lower section of the West River Trail. Take a run, walk or ride on the trail soon and check out all the improvements!

Public Invited to Trail Talk for I-91 Brattleboro Bridge Project
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Public Invited to Trail Talk for I-91 Brattleboro Bridge Project

wrt trail talk 10The PCL+FIGG Team will conduct the next on-site “trail talk” for the Public on Saturday, March 8, 2014. These trail talks will discuss the status of the I-91 Brattleboro Bridge Project and allow the public to ask questions. The talks will originate at the West River Trail near the marina. The trail talk will be led by Caleb Linn, Project Manager for PCL (lead contractor), and Garrett Hoffman, Design Manager for FIGG (bridge designer).
Interested participants should meet the PCL+FIGG Team at the West River Trail trailhead on Saturday, March 8, 2014, at 8 a.m. and the talk will begin at 8:15 a.m. Participants will walk the trail to the I-91 bridge site, so please wear appropriate clothing and footwear.
The project’s website features up-to-date information about the project, construction photos, and live traffic cameras. If you would like additional information, or would like to be added to the email distribution list for all project updates, please contact Cindy Cook, Public Relations Officer, Adamant Accord, Inc. at ccook@adamantaccord.com.

Successful Trail Work day, Sunday, November 3!
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Successful Trail Work day, Sunday, November 3!

The day started out brisk, cold and gray, but the sun came out and warmed us up nicely–perfect for working on the trail! We had a great group of 15 volunteers! The chainsaw group cut up and moved several fallen trees off the trail (including some on the new Riverstone Preserve property); the culvert clearing group dug and ditched and cleared the culverts of fallen leaves, allowing the water to flow through them again; the ATV group traveled the length of the trail, trimming the tops of the new mile marker posts, putting up some signage and collecting small piles of trash; and the loppers and trimmers cleared trails on the Riverstone Preserve. We were happy to welcome Amy Enochs, a staff from the Greenwood School and 4 of her students, Willie, Thomas, Dale and Zachary. We also appreciated the help of Jim Ethier, Tim Tyrrell, Steve Shriner, Joan Weir, Malcolm Moore, Marcia Steckler, and Kathleen White. Peter Yost co-coordinated the day’s work with Jason Cooper-thank you Peter and Jason! And Peter’s daughter, May, did a great job driving the ATV. Thank you to all who came out. A lot was accomplished and we received great feedback about the trail from many happy trail users!

A Dry and Clean Trail
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A Dry and Clean Trail

We had a successful work day on Saturday, May 11. Lots of trash and debris cleared off  the trail and drainage work done.  The lower section of the West River Trail is now noticeably drier and cleaner!  Many thanks to the hardy and wonderful volunteers – Jason Cooper, Vicki Myers, Paul Link, Mary Steiner, John Frechette, Thomas Wagner, Trever & Mike Kipp.

Report of the Friends of the West River Trail Annual Meeting
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Report of the Friends of the West River Trail Annual Meeting

Greg Meulmans, Glenn Annis & Bill Badger (photo by Chrissy Blaylock)
Kathleen & Lester with the old Santa Fe RR bell that was donated (photo by Chrissy Blaylock)
A little friend of the WRT, blowing a toy train whistle (photo by Chrissy Blaylock)
RR buff carrying a very old WRT mile post sign (signpost will be used as a model for smaller signposts to be put along the trail) (photo by Chrissy Blaylock)
RR buff carrying a very old WRT mile post sign (signpost will be used as a model for smaller signposts to be put along the trail) (photo by Chrissy Blaylock)
Thayer, Porter C. (Porter Charlie), 1882-1972

The Friends of the West River Trail Annual Meeting on February 12 at the Depot was a treat!
Having never been to the renovated South Londonderry Depot, I was curious to see it. I also wanted to meet more of our fellow Friends of the West River Trail from further north. Lester, Alex, Jason and I, from the Lower Section, traveled together. Upon arrival, we found a cozily lit open room with new, exposed post and beam construction. There was a display of Railroad memorabilia, a FWRT display, a table full of delectable looking h’or-doeuvres, and friendly faces. After a little socializing, a brief informal meeting was called to order by Fred Haartman, the president. Sherry Crossman reported on interesting updates from the upper section, the lower section gang added our news, and a quick election of officers ensued. At 6 PM, more people arrived for nibbling and schmoozing. At the tolling of the old train bell, our attention was directed to hear about the beautiful old RR bell and meet William Peele, who along with his wife Agnes, generously donated the bell to the FWRT Depot for safe keeping. We then took seats and watched the 7 ½ minute video of the West River Trail, presented by its creator, Tim Lawrence. This upbeat, fun journey on the trail with Tim and his Siberian Husky, shows viewers where to park at the various trail accesses and what type of conditions to expect. This video can be found on our FWRT Facebook page and You Tube. We will get it on the website ASAP!
The Annual Meeting event was fun, informative, and affirming for all. FWRT and friends are a good group of folks with a great mission and an ever improving product—the Trail! We hope to get the upper section folks down here this spring for a picnic and hike on the lower section.
NEWS from the Upper Section: a long planned pedestrian bridge over the river near the Winhall Campground will SOON be a reality! It will be built across the old RR bridge abutments within the next year or so!
Submitted by Kathleen White, Lower section steering committee