The Delaware and Hudson Rail Trail is a 19.8-mile (31.9 km) rail trail built along an abandoned Delaware & Hudson Railway (D&H) corridor between West Rupert and Castleton, Vermont. The trail runs in two disconnected segments, separated by a short section that leaves the state for neighboring New York State before returning to Vermont. The trail is a state park and is managed by the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation.[1]
The former corridor was the D&H's Washington Branch, whose trains were known locally as the “Slate Picker”. The D&H Washington Branch ran from Eagle Bridge, New York, to Castleton, Vermont. D&H abandoned the Eagle Bridge-Salem, New York section in 1980 and sold the railbed to Ron Crowd with a grant from the Urban Development Corporation.[2]
The Poultney-Castleton, Vermont and Rupert, Vermont-Granville, New York segments were sold to the Vermont Agency of Transportation and subsequently converted to the D&H rail trail.[2]
The Salem, New York-West Rupert, Vermont and West Pawlet, Vermont-Granville, New York segments were sold to the New York State Department of Transportation. A rail trail was slated by the state, but were halted at the government level, resulting in several sections reverting to local property owners.[citation needed]
