Velomont trail network expands

The first completed multi-day segment of the Velomont Trail,
a 38-mile loop in Rochester and Pittsfield is complete

By Katy Savage

For Angus McCusker, a vision he had eight years ago is coming true. His plan to build a 485-mile mountain bike trail, extending from the top of the state to the bottom, broke ground in Rochester in mid-May 2021.

A majority of the trail segments between Rochester and Pittsfield are now complete, including the 38-mile Heart of the Greens Loop — the first completed multi-day segment of the Velomont Trail.

There are two more segments left to complete in the Rochester area. A new 1-mile segment will be constructed this summer in Braintree, while trail segments connecting Pittsfield, South Pond, Killington and Mendon could start as early as 2025.

So far, it’s cost about $851,000 to build 33 miles of trail. Once complete, the project will involve hundreds of acres of state and federal land, connect 23 of the 28 Vermont Mountain Bike Association chapters, and connect 27 communities. The trail will stretch from Massachusetts in the south to Canada in the north. And a total of 30 new huts and five hostels are planned for construction along the trail. It will cross about 210 miles of private land and provide an opportunity to conserve 84,000 acres surrounding the trail. 

The trail will provide a unique insight into Vermont’s terrain and cross into towns, potentially boosting local businesses, leaders in the mountain bike community believe.

McCusker thought of the idea around 2016, realizing there was a need.

“The majority of trail networks in Vermont are loops — you can’t really travel,” he said.

McCusker grew up just over the Vermont border in Massachusetts. He came to Vermont to attend Stratton Mountain School, where he was a competitive ski racer.

McCusker calls himself a late-bloomer when it comes to mountain biking. He started biking to cross train for skiing. 

“I got into mountain biking because you’ve got to do something in the summer,” he said.

McCusker rode the length of Vermont in high school, biking about 200 miles on the road from Canada to the Massachusetts border. 

McCusker has a unique and authoritative understanding of Vermont’s communities because of his job. He has worked for the state for the past decade mapping with GIS software, which has allowed him to travel extensively. McCusker is also part of Vermont’s 251 Club — a club for members who have the goal of visiting all off Vermont’s towns and cities. 

He has also lived in the southern, northern and central parts of Vermont.  “It’s handy to have that understanding of the terrain and the communities and find a way to bring that together in a way that makes sense,” McCusker said.  

The Velomont Trail Collective was officially formed in 2019.

While the Velomont is underway, RJ Thompson, the director of the Vermont Huts Association, holds a similar ambition to build a network of huts throughout the state.

The Vermont Huts Association has 15 huts now. The vision of the Velomont is to have a Vermont Hut every 10-15 miles apart so users of all abilities can traverse the 485-mile trail as one, long multi-day trip or by breaking it up into chunks over a longer period of time.  

“We started out of necessity,” Thompson said. “There wasn’t a nonprofit in Vermont that was focused on backcountry huts.”

Thompson and McCusker quickly joined forces.

“From the get-go we knew we wanted to create a partnership to make sure if there were these new locations popping up we could put up a hut that made sense,” Thompson said.

Each hut is about 512 square feet and costs $125,000 to $250,000 to build. The accessible huts can usually sleep up to 10 people.

Each hut is slightly different, but they are all off-grid with no plumbing. Each has mattresses, a propane stovetop, a kitchenette and a wood stove.

“It’s worth noting that not all 15 huts are along the Velomont corridor, and Vermont Huts will also develop structures outside of the Velomont. However, for the short- and medium-term, the Velomont is definitely our primary area of focus due to the strong partnerships we’ve formed over the years,” Thompson said.

No new huts along the Velomont Trail will be constructed this year, but Vermont Huts will begin renovation work on a hostel, with private and shared bunk rooms, located in Randolph.

“The Randolph hostel will create a new launch pad for folks visiting the area for any reason, but it’ll be geared toward visitors seeking outdoor recreation opportunities,” Thompson said.

Thompson is hoping to construct two new accessible huts in 2025. One is currently working its way through permitting at the federal level, and, if successful, would be located along the conceptual location of the future Velomont Trail near South Pond in Marlboro.

The other hut is a historic reconstruction project in Waterbury’s backcountry. 

“I think the progress is incredible,” Thompson said. “But it’s not just Velomont Trail and Vermont Huts making it happen. There are countless volunteers, partners, and land managers at the federal, state, municipal, and private levels who’ve brought the collective project this far.”

The Catamount Trail Association (which maintains the 300-mile backcountry ski trail that runs from Massachusetts to Quebec) has helped identify segments of  trail that could be improved for year-round use and has provided resources, access, and contacts to improve the trail tread. Vermont Adaptive has offered expertise regarding adaptive-friendly trail sections as well as meaningful input to help make sure huts are not just ADA accessible but “ADA awesome,” Thompson said.

For Thompson, the Velomont Trail is exciting because it’s led by people who simply like the outdoors. 

“That’s what’s cool, it’s not any kind of top down directive, it’s bottom up and that’s what I think makes it one of the more compelling projects in Vermont,” he said.

The Vermont Mountain Bike Association and its chapters are also working to connect trail networks.

Nick Bennette became the new president of the Vermont Mountain Bike Association in March 2021, after moving to Vermont from Washington state. He said he was drawn to the role because of the Velomont.

“It’s a legacy project — that’s what really stuck with me,” he said. 

When he first heard of it however, “it was awe and a little bit of shock knowing what the project is — how is this going to be tenable?” Bennette remembers thinking. 

Bennette, who has ridden extensively in other states, sees the potential of bringing a project like the Velomont to Vermont.

He said the Velomont could be one of the top trails in the nation.

“It could elevate the state’s profile,” he said.

Bennette, a former independent consultant, sold his house in Washington when the pandemic hit and lived in a van for several months with his wife and son, visiting national parks.

Bennette and his family were drawn to Vermont to be close to his parents-in-law. He just bought a house in Waterbury.

“We knew we wanted to be in a place that was more connected to nature,” he said. “Things fell into place.”

Bennette compared Vermont to Washington. The networks here are much smaller, but both states have a lot of mountain bikers.

“Vermont has that committed group, which gives us a community, a voice,” he said. “Mountain biking feels like it’s well-established within communities.”

McCusker hopes to have most of the Velomont done in the next five years. But completing it is rooted in community.

“It’s an ambitious project and it takes time to make sure we do it right,” McCusker said. “It’s truly a grassroots effort. All the local networks and community members are really guiding us through this.”