A soggy camping trip created the template for every major hiking trail in America

James P. Taylor’s Rainy Day Vision Creates Vermont’s Long Trail

A rainy day in 1909 changed American hiking forever. James P. Taylor, stuck in his tent on Stratton Mountain, dreamed up something bold – a trail running the full length of Vermont’s Green Mountains.

As assistant headmaster at Vermont Academy, Taylor often led students on hikes but found few paths to the state’s highest peaks. So in 1910, he gathered 23 supporters with just $100 and founded the Green Mountain Club.

For the next 20 years, volunteers cut and cleared until they finished America’s first long-distance hiking trail in 1930. The 272-mile Long Trail soon inspired something even bigger – the Appalachian Trail.

Today, you can stand where this vision began at Stratton Mountain’s historic fire tower.

A Rainy Day on Stratton Mountain Changed Hiking Forever

James Taylor sat in his tent on Stratton Mountain in 1909, listening to rain hit the canvas. The Vermont Academy teacher felt frustrated by the lack of good trails for his student trips.

As the storm continued, Taylor sketched his big idea: a footpath running the whole length of Vermont’s Green Mountains.

This rainy day brainstorm led to America’s first long-distance hiking trail, stretching 272 miles from Massachusetts to Canada.

Vermont’s Elite Gathered at a Burlington Hotel

Taylor needed help to make his mountain dream real.

On March 11, 1910, he brought together twenty-three important Vermonters at the Van Ness Hotel in Burlington.

The group included lawyers, businessmen, and outdoor lovers who shared Taylor’s passion for Vermont’s mountains. With just $100 in their bank account, they started the Green Mountain Club.

Their goal was clear: “make the Vermont mountains play a larger part in the life of the people.

Scouts Mapped the First Trail Section

Work began on October 1, 1910, when club volunteers headed into the woods to find the first route.

They focused on linking Mount Mansfield’s Summit House hotel to Nebraska Notch, marking possible paths through thick forest.

The team looked for natural features for trail markers and stayed away from areas that might wash out. They used compasses and hand-drawn maps to plan a route with nice views, water access, and walkable terrain.

Volunteers Cleared the First 29 Miles

By fall 1911, Green Mountain Club members cut and cleared the first big section of trail. This 29-mile stretch ran from Camel’s Hump north to Smugglers Notch.

Volunteers used axes, saws, and other hand tools to remove brush and fallen trees. They stacked stones to mark the path on open ridges and built simple log bridges over streams.

This section gave hikers their first taste of what would become the Long Trail.

Local Woodsmen Brought Their Skills to the Project

The club hired professional woodsmen to handle harder sections. These local experts knew how to build trails that would survive harsh Vermont winters.

They made water channels to stop erosion, built sturdy bridges through wet areas, and put up basic shelters along the route.

Their knowledge of local land helped as the trail pushed through remote areas where maps were often wrong or missing. The club paid them small wages from their tight budget.

Side Trails Connected Mountain Communities

As the main trail took shape, volunteers built side trails linking to nearby towns and roads. These access points let day hikers enjoy parts of the Long Trail without walking the whole route.

The club also built simple three-sided shelters about a day’s walk apart, giving hikers places to sleep safe from weather.

Local towns began to see the trail as helpful, with some shops serving the growing number of hikers.

Rugged Northern Sections Tested Trail Builders

The northern parts of Vermont created the biggest problems. Trail crews faced thick spruce forests, steep land, and few roads for access.

Volunteers sometimes camped for weeks in remote areas, slowly cutting trail through wilderness. Bogs and beaver ponds forced them to build raised walkways from local wood.

Winter weather limited work to a short season, and spring mud made upkeep hard. Still, the club moved forward, section by section.

The Canadian Border Became the Final Goal

By the mid-1920s, most of the trail existed, but gaps remained near the Canadian border. The Green Mountain Club started fundraising to pay for this final push.

They got college students for summer trail crews and worked with the U.S. Forest Service, which now managed much of the land. The northernmost sections needed more shelters since towns were far apart.

Club members checked several possible routes before picking the final path to the border.

The Last Link Completed a 20-Year Dream

In 1930, volunteers cut the final link near the Canadian border, finishing the 272-mile footpath. The achievement came exactly twenty years after the club formed.

A small celebration marked the event, with some original founders hiking to the spot where the last mark was painted on a tree.

The finished Long Trail ran the entire length of Vermont, following the main ridge of the Green Mountains and crossing all the state’s highest peaks.

America’s First Long-Distance Trail Inspired Others

The Long Trail caught the eye of Benton MacKaye, a forester and nature lover. He hiked parts of the trail and saw how it connected communities to nature.

This experience shaped his 1921 plan for the Appalachian Trail, which would eventually stretch 2,190 miles from Georgia to Maine.

The two trails share 100 miles of path in southern Vermont, with the Long Trail going north while the AT turns east toward New Hampshire. Taylor’s rainy day idea sparked a national movement of long-distance trails.

The Green Mountain Club Still Maintains Taylor’s Legacy

Today, the Green Mountain Club continues the work Taylor started, maintaining the Long Trail with many of the same methods used a century ago.

The trail sees thousands of hikers each year, from day-trippers to “end-to-enders” who walk the entire route. Trail shelters built in the 1920s and 1930s still stand, though many have been rebuilt.

Club membership has grown from the original twenty-three to more than 10,000.

Taylor’s vision of connecting people to Vermont’s mountains lives on, with the trail he imagined now a beloved part of New England’s outdoor heritage.

Visiting Appalachian National Scenic Trail, Vermont

You can hike Vermont’s Long Trail for free, where James P. Taylor first imagined America’s long-distance hiking trail system after taking shelter on Stratton Mountain in 1909.

The new Rothberg-Birdwhistell Visitor Center at 4711 Waterbury-Stowe Road opened in January 2025 with maps and guides. You’ll need bear canisters in Green Mountain National Forest areas.

Multiple road crossings let you tackle day hikes or sections, and Green Mountain Club headquarters offers personalized trail recommendations.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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