After roughly two years of work, the Green Mountain Club (GMC) recently opened a new section of the Long Trail that they say provides a better hiking experience on Belvidere Mountain.
Built over the past two years by GMC’s professional trail crews and volunteers, the new 0.9-mile route switchbacks through hardwood forest up Belvidere Mountain in Eden, Vermont.
The trail replaces the old section of trail north of Route 118 that was steep and heavily eroded.
Club officials said the new route was designed to withstand erosion and provide a more enjoyable experience.
For day hikers hiking from the trailhead parking lot on Route 118, the trek up 3,344-foot Belvidere Mountain is a 6-mile roundtrip hike with 2,240 feet of vertical gain. The 70-foot fire tower at the summit provides sweeping views of the area.
According to GMC officials, large-scale trail relocations like this one require careful coordination of private and public land boundaries, bear and bat habitat, permitting, challenging terrain, and construction logistics. For this project, crews combined mechanized equipment with labor-intensive hand construction, including using a mini excavator to cut the new route to accelerate construction timelines, save money, and reduce physical demands on workers.
“The historic Long Trail is a Vermont treasure, but due to its age, much of it follows steep, unsustainable grades that are increasingly vulnerable to major storms, flooding, or overuse,” said GMC’s Director of Field Programs Keegan Tierney. “The new section of Long Trail north of Route 118 works with the landscape and applies sustainable design guidelines, which will reduce potential for erosion and increase the trail’s longevity.”
The Belvidere trail relocation also moves 0.25 miles of Long Trail from a private landholding to the public Long Trail State Forest, advancing GMC’s long-standing goal of permanently protecting the Long Trail corridor. The project was funded by the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation; a state Recreation Facilities Grant; and private donations from supporters of the Green Mountain Club.
Hikers can experience the new route of the Long Trail by hiking north from the parking lot on Route 118 in Eden. After about 0.2 miles, the trail bears west onto the new route for about 0.9 miles. After continuing another 1.8 miles to reach Belvidere Saddle, hikers can head east on the Forester’s Trail for 0.2 miles to the Belvidere summit. The hike is considered difficult.
