St. Albans, Vermont - September 4, 2008
Rush hour traffic on Route 7 in St. Albans means enough hustle and bustle to fry most anyone's nerves, which is why this roadside escape is so darn appealing.
"You can just enjoy the surroundings and not be bothered by traffic," explains Cynthia Scott, Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail Coordinator.
The 26-mile-long Missisquoi Valley Rail Trail is a biker's paradise, where the sounds of traffic are replaced by Mother Nature.
"You get wooded areas, you get farmland, you get open fields, wetlands. It's absolutely beautiful at all times of the year," Scott says.
There are a handful of these bike trails in Vermont; abandoned rail tracks turned bike paths.
"This was the Central Vermont Railroad and it delivered milk between Richford and St. Albans," Scott says.
The trail winds and twists its way through forests and farmlands, giving riders a taste of just about every landscape Vermont has to offer.
Gail and Carrie St. Pierre have been riding here for the past 14 years.
"I do it mostly to save gas and mileage. I don't drive my car in the summer at all," Carrie St. Pierre says.
The two sisters ride a combined 30 to 40 miles a day.
"It's a good seven-course meal. I like that. 25 miles a day," Gail St. Pierre says.
And they have seen just about every critter you can imagine.
"The squirrels are huge!! And the frogs, they're unbelievable. They could kill you if they wanted to. And the snakes!" Gail St. Pierre says.
The trail also crosses over the Missisquoi River offering riders a bird's eye view of life in the water.
"It's beautiful. It's Vermont at its best," says Jeff Moreau St. Albans
Jay Peak towers over the trail-- a dramatic backdrop that riders can set their sights upon, as they pedal their way north.
"I think people are attracted to rail trails because they're not too steep. They're relatively flat. The maximum grade on the Missisquoi is 3 percent," Scott explains.
A perfect way to spend a couple hours...
"You just get out and think about your day or listen to the radio and relax. It's good," Moreau says.
And it's an escape that's less than an hour away from Burlington.
Click here for more information on rail trails in Vermont and on visiting the St. Albans area.
Keagan Harsha - WCAX News
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