The Trail

The Farmington Valley Greenway is a 26-mile multi-use trail running through five towns of Central Connecticut with connections to many more miles of walking and biking trails. It is a ten-foot wide, wheelchair accessible trail designed for walking, jogging, biking, inline skating and other activities, including travel to work and school. Motorized vehicles are not allowed. The towns of Farmington, Avon, Simsbury, East Granby and Suffield administer the sections of the trail within their borders with the help of a coordinating committee and many dedicated volunteers. A spur trail, the Farmington River Trail, is substantially completed and follows abandoned rail beds from Farmington through Unionville, Burlington, Collinsville and Canton and then back to the main trail in Simsbury.

Most of the trail is being built along abandoned rail corridors providing a green belt of native plants and trees to screen neighboring areas and enhance trail enjoyment. Along the way are historic buildings, canal locks, town paths, iron bridges, stone arches, and other artifacts that provide a rich cultural background for the trail experience.

Trail activities vary according to the type of trail surface in each area, with more miles scheduled to be paved in the current year.

The Canal

The story of the Farmington Valley Greenway starts in the early 1800's with what became known as "the canal craze". While the Erie Canal was being built in New York State, to be completed in 1825, Connecticut farmers and entrepreneurs dreamed of an 87-mile water route from New Haven to Northampton, Massachusetts, passing through the Farmington Valley and bypassing the difficult and expensive route through Hartford. Ground was broken for the canal in 1825 and the first canal boat sailed for Northampton in 1828. Costly maintenance and natural hazards (freezing & floods) limited the profitability of the canal; nevertheless it stimulated the valley's economy as a carrier of freight and passengers.

The Railroad

It was inevitable that faster and more economical transportation would take over this trade, and the Farmington Canal Railroad did just that in 1848, acquiring the right-of-way as well as the potential profits. While the railroad followed the canal route in most places, it deviated significantly in Farmington where, in order to placate concerned citizens, the railroad left the canal bed and crossed the Farmington River west of the village, proceeding north until it rejoined the canal in Avon, north of the spot where a stone aqueduct carried the canal across the river. This location spared Farmington village the smoke and soot associated with steam locomotives, but required that a horse-drawn coach be used to carry students to and from Miss Porters' School in the village. The old coach can still be seen in its own building on the grounds of the school. The route also carried the train through the campus of Avon Old Farms School where Theodate Riddle, designed and built a redstone station in the 1920's for the use of the students. Used for faculty housing today, the little station still greets travelers on the edge of the right-of-way.

As the industrial revolution transformed Connecticut, the Canal Railroad continued to provide a vital service to the region's economy. Industries small and large appeared along the line. In Simsbury, the Ensign-Bickford Munitions Company was a major railroad customer.

Rails to Trails

The Canal Railroad became, in its turn, a relic of the past. As trucks and automobiles took over freight and passenger service, portions of the line were abandoned. The active use of the railroad north of Plainville ended in 1988 and several developments led to the current transformation of the railroad right-of-way into a multi-use trail and greenway. Congress provided funding through the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991 (ISTEA) and the Farmington Valley Trails Council was formed to promote and support the conversion. Six town governments cooperated in the creation of the trail development committee and in providing the 20% of funds not supplied by ISTEA. The first sections of the Farmington Valley Greenway were paved in Simsbury and Farmington beginning in 1994. The years 1999 and 2001 saw much of the trail completed from Farmington to the Massachusetts border. As the railroad abandons use of the rails south of Farmington, it is expected that the Farmington Valley Greenway and the Farmington River Trail will be joined to trails already paved in Cheshire and Hamden with eventual continuation further south, completing the Farmington Canal Heritage Greenway.

The Farmington Valley Greenway and the Farmington River Trail are part of the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail which, when complete, will stretch 87 miles from New Haven to Northampton. The Farmington Canal Heritage Trail has been designated a Community Millennium Trail under the federal Millennium Trails Initiative based upon its special value to the communities it serves. Eventually, our trail will link to the East Coast Greenway.

The Farmington Valley Trails Council

In 1992, a group of concerned citizens led by Preston Reed of Farmington founded the Farmington Valley Trails Council (FVTC) to increase public support and awareness of Rails-to-Trails projects and to work with local governments to facilitate their completion. As a non-profit corporation, the Trails Council also works with towns and local groups to install signboards, benches, landscaping and other amenities on the trails.

Mission

The purpose of the FVTC is to promote public awareness of the rails-to-trails concept and the Farmington Valley Greenway, while working with local municipalities to support the conversion of abandoned rail beds and canal towpaths into one of the premier contiguous multi-use trails in America.

What We Do:

• Education of individuals in the safe and responsible use of the trail, and the recreational benefits of a multi-use trail system.
• Promotion of the development and maintenance of these systems.
• Promotion of the conversion of railroad rights of way and public support in this endeavor.
• Raising funds for trail construction and enhancements.
• Building alliances with municipalities and community organizations to further goals consistent with our mission.
• Providing information and events of interest to our membership and the general public.
• Maintaining an “Adopt-A-Trail” program.

To date the FVTC has been instrumental in the advocacy and subsequent reclamation of former rail beds, and the building and paving of the trails themselves. The FVTC helped to create sustainable public support of the Farmington Valley Greenway.

It is now possible with the latest construction completed on the Farmington Valley Greenway to bike on a paved trail from Unionville to Simsbury.

The council meets often with the towns in the Farmington Valley that are still at work designing and building the trails. This liaison provides two important functions: it lets municipalities know that there is a helpful, focused organization that has the goal of getting the trails finished, as well as providing our membership with a voice in local government.

The FVTC created a network of volunteers to walk the assigned trail section once per week, or more often when needed. Trail maintainers move sticks, stones, and vegetation off the trail surface. They pick up and carry out litter on and within sight of the trail and trim vegetation. Volunteers act as “Trail Ambassador” in discussing trail use with users and with abutting land owners. They carry copies of the map/trail guidelines and show or give them to trail users when appropriate. They also observe and report serious or repeated trail abuse or violation of town ordinances in the trail corridor, and report unsafe or unstable trail conditions.

We have made many recent enhancements such as the signboards at Brickyard Road, Sperry Park and Route10/315; landscaping improvements at many areas; mile markers; a drinking fountain; and numerous benches.