New Hampshire's longest rail trail taking shape

Paying homage to the past, organizers of New Hampshire's longest rail
trail have marked the efforts of two counties and the route that spans
them with their own "golden spike."
In 1996, the state acquired 60 miles of the Northern Railroad, one of
the longest surviving rail corridors in New Hampshire when it stopped
carrying passengers and freight by the early 1970s. The goal was to
convert the route into a recreation trail.
Since then, volunteers have worked to remove old rail ties, clean up
the area and help secure grants and donations to resurface the route
for year-round use. Today, 46 of the 60-mile Northern Rail Trail have
been completed in western and central New Hampshire, including an
8.3-mile chunk recently finished near where Grafton and Merrimack
counties meet. That's where organizers had a spike ceremony at the end
of July, in remembrance of the completion of the first
transcontinental railroad at Promontory Summit, Utah, in 1869.
"It's a great thing," said Carol Cantor of New London, as she headed
to try out of the newer trail in Danbury on her mountain bike. "It's
great for people who are afraid to drive in traffic and don't like
hills. It's hard to find a place to ride without hills around New
Hampshire." She added that she likes to bring guests who are not
seasoned bike riders to the trail.
In addition to bicyclists and hikers, the flat, year-round trail can
be used by horseback riders, cross-country skiers, snowmobilers and
dog sleds. The trail passes through Lebanon, Enfield, Canaan, Orange,
Grafton, Danbury, Wilmot, Andover, Franklin and Boscawen.
The Danbury section also was used recently by a group of disabled
veterans as part of a summer sports clinic. They operated specially
designed cycles that feature a drive train powered by the arms rather
than the legs. Ralph Marche from the Boston VA Healthcare System, one
of the sponsors, said the trail was chosen because of its beauty,
bike-friendly surface, wide expanse and flat surface.
Also, a "Firecracker 5K" run was held along a section of trail in
nearby Andover on July 4th. Schools have used the trail for lessons
about nature and health programs emphasizing walking on the trail to
combat obesity have been developed.
"I have a great love and appreciation for this trail now that I am a
father. I take my 3-year-old daughter, parents and family on it as
often as possible," said Mike Loomis, who formally worked on
strategies to promote active living for a community health network,
with emphasis on the trail. He's currently a board member of the
nonprofit Friends of the Northern Rail Trail group in Merrimack
County. There's a similar group in Grafton County.
Board member Charles Martin of the Merrimack County group, who's also
president of the New Hampshire Rail Trails Coalition, has written a
book about the state's rail trails. He said he's seen some beautifully
engineered rail trails in other states, "but the scenery doesn't
compare to what we have here."
Visitors can see a variety of views — many river crossings, lakes,
mountains and forests.
A few rail depots can still be seen, as well as old rail markers
showing the distance to Boston and White River Junction, Vt.
The trail is described on the national Rails-to-Trails Conservancy on
its TrailLink.com website. The organization says there are more than
1,600 preserved rail trails spanning more than 19,800 miles in the
country and growing. It lists the longest rail trail in the country in
Missouri's Katy Trail State Park, at 225 miles.
In New Hampshire, plans are to work on finishing a two-mile section
this fall from Franklin to the site of the Daniel Webster Farm, and
eventually finish the section farthest south.
Bob Ward, head of the Friends of the Northern Trail group in Merrimack
County, said some bed and breakfasts and country inns along the route
are starting to promote the use of the rail trail. "We're seeing that
as a direct benefit for tourism," he said.
In addition to finishing the entire trail, a future goal is to connect
it to other trails that would go all the way to the Massachusetts
line, resulting in 110 miles of continuous trail. It would be called
the Granite State Rail Trail.
"Can you imagine what it would be like to bike that kind of distance
and be off road all the way?" Martin said.