The Northwest Vermont Rail-Trail Council
cordially invites you to the Official Opening
of the Sheldon Junction Bridge

Thursday, October 24, 2002
2:30 - 3:30 pm
Severance Road, off Route 105
Sheldon Junction, VT

In 1984, a train derailment caused the bridge
at Sheldon Junction, VT to be closed.

Join Lt. Governor Douglas Racine in
being the first Trail users to cross the
restored bridge on foot or on your bicycle.

Light refreshments will be served.
Parking available at Sheldon Casino, Casino Rd.
 (1/4 mile north & west via Route 105)

Further info:
Northwest Vermont Regional Planning Commission
802-524-5958

Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail
(Central Vermont Rail-Trail)

Northwest Vermont Rail Trail Council
c/o Northwest Regional Planning Commission
7 Lake St., #201, St. Albans VT 05478
802-524-5958

St. Albans to Richford - 26.2 miles - Open for public use

Hiking Trail Bicycle Trail Cross-Country Skiing Snowmobiling Horse Trail Handicapped Access

Historic Railroad Mileage Chart

Mileage Station or crossing
0.0 St. Albans
1.0 No. Main St.
1.2 Sheldon Rd.
2.7 Sholan
3.1 Robinsons
4.4 Greens Corners
8.7 Sheldon Springs
9.4 McLeod
10.3 Sheldon Junction
10.5 Fair Grounds
12.6 North Sheldon
12.9 Spooners
13.7 River Side Camp
14.6 South Franklin
15.1 Beatty
17.1 Burt
17.8 Enosburg Falls
20.1 Brooks
20.5 North Enosburg
21.5 Sampsonville
22.3 Kendall
23.0 East Berkshire
23.8 Brown House
24.3 Nutting Bridge
25.0 Ladds
26.8 Hardwood Hill
27.5 Richford

Bold face indicates Station
Light face indicates highway crossing
Italic face indicates point beyond the end of trail.

From the Central Vermont Railway public timetable for the Richford Branch effective June 15, 1924.

The preceding railroad mileage chart also serves as a table of contents for the supplementary rail-trail information and associated pictures that has been collected by the Webmaster. 

Trail Facilities Guide

A printed trail facilities guide has been published in June of 1999 and copies are available at local business firms along the trail. Copies can also be requested through the Publications Clearinghouse of the Lake Champlain Bikeways Web Site. Note that this guide includes the official mileage chart, detailed maps of the trail, a description of the scenery to be enjoyed in each section of the trail, the listings of various services and facilities available along the trail, as well as side trips that might be taken.  

Note that the Spring 2002 issue of the newsletter notes that this trail guide has been updated. The new guide will be available at sign-in boxes along the trail next spring, or call Cynthia at 802-933-8851. 

Northwestern Vermont Rail Trail Council

The Northwestern Vermont Rail Trail Council is the local coordinating agency for the Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail. As such, it holds business meetings from time to time. Newsletters will be posted below upon receipt, while meeting notices and the minutes thereof will be posted on the Council's Web Page upon receipt. Note that these meeting minutes often carry trail news that is not available elsewhere!

Newspaper Articles & TV Shows about the Rail-trail

Sheldon Bridge Study

The engineering study of the alternatives for replacing the missing Missisquoi River bridge span at Sheldon Junction. This study includes the relocation and appropriate modification of a suitable historic highway bridge, a prefabricated multi-modal trail span, and the construction of a new railroad span identical to the existing spans. 

Friends of the Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail

The Council needs your help to make the Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail a premier national example of a community-based recreation path. The Vermont Agency of Transportation funded the trail's construction. However, ongoing maintenance and trail improvements are the responsibility of local communities, the Rail Trail Council, and everyone who supports or uses the trail.

Trail Ambassador Program

By becoming a Trail Ambassador, you can help to ensure that the Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail continues to be a friendly and inviting resource for all trail users and a good neighbor to adjacent businesses and homeowners. Trail Ambassadors act as vital links in the neighborhood-to-Council connection. They promote trail safety and relay information between the Northwest Vermont Rail Trail Council and trail users.


  Public Transit Service 

Bus Station Greyhound Lines provides intercity bus service to St. Albans from Montreal and Burlington on a daily basis, with connecting service on a State-wide and nationwide basis. Summary timetables and fares are available at the Official Greyhound Lines Web Site, while the detailed timetable can be found at the Vermont Transit Web Site. Note that Vermont Transit accepts bicycles in boxes on a space available basis.

Train Station Amtrak operates the Vermonter between St. Albans and Washington DC via White River Junction VT and Springfield MA on a daily basis. This train includes a baggage car with special racks for bikes and skis, that will accept unboxed bikes and skis by advance reservation at all stops except Claremont, NH. Amtrak also accepts bikes and skis in boxes on a nationwide basis at selected stations as checked baggage. Note that DVARP Web Site has the Vermonter schedule, all other Amtrak Schedules, and many commuter train schedules in the traditional timetable format. 

Bus Stop Northwest Vermont Public Transit Network operates a local transit service within St. Albans, and also makes three round trips on the highway that parallels the trail to Richford. A second bus serves Grand Isle County, Swanton, and Georgia. A bike rack will be installed on these busses in the near future, but the operator will accommodate a couple of bikes in the rear of the bus during the interim period. Note that this bus presumably operates on weekdays only!

Island Runner is a Seasonal ferry operated by Vermont State Parks (Formerly Burton Island Ferry) between:

Other Local Services

Yellow Pages Each location map on this Web Site is a link to a map on the Mapblast Web Site which in turn contains a link to a Business Directory of the surrounding area.

Books about the trail:

A 27 mile section of the Trail from St Albans (Route 7 & 105) to Richford  is described in section 29 of  the Official Rails-to-Trails Conservancy New England Guidebook by Cynthia Mascott published in 2000 by Globe Pequot Press. This trail listing contains a photograph, historical description, trail head directions and parking, a trail map, trail details, a local trail manager contact, and much more. 

This trail is described in Great Rail Trails of the Northeast by Craig Della Penna. The information includes a historical background of the trail as well as a detailed description keyed to bicycle odometer readings from the author's in person trip down the trail. This book is currently out of print, but copies are still available in many bookstores.

Railroad abandonment data

Item From To Year RR Miles
382 St. Albans Sheldon Jct 1990 CV 9.4
394 Sheldon Jct Richford 1992 CV 17.4

Directory of rail abandonments 1848-1994 in the book Lost Railroads of New England, 2nd Ed. by Ronald Dale Karr, published by Branch Line Press in 1996.

Federal Funding Summary

Project Name Year City County Federal $ Local $ Total $
Central Vermont Rail Trail 1993 N/A N/A $320,000 $80,000 $400,000

This list is drawn on April 16, 2000 from a database maintained by the National Transportation Enhancements Clearinghouse.  Direct questions to NTEC at 1-888-388-NTEC or by email to [email protected].

1895 County Atlas - showing railroads [very slow loading]:


Sign images are from the Manual of Traffic Signs by Richard C. Moeur.

Updated on October 14, 2002 by Kenyon F. Karl <[email protected]>.
  Unintentional errors are likely!

Click for Saint Albans, Vermont Forecast

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