The Wright’s Mountain Devil’s Den Trail in Bradford, Vermont, was recently named a National Recreation Trail on the National Park Services list. Wright’s is one of 19 new national recreation trails in 17 states approved by the US Department of the Interior as part of the 50th-anniversary celebration of the National Trails System. The distinction highlights publicly accessible trails, and Wright’s joins five other trails in Vermont with the designation, including the Cross Vermont Trail, Long Trail, Island Line Trail, Robert Frost Interpretive Trail, and Stowe Recreation Path.

The 218-acre Wright’s Mountain area was purchased from Sylvia Appleton in 1993 with funds raised by the Bradford Conservation Commission. In April 2004, Bradford acquired the 60-acre Devil’s Den tract and added it into one conservation management plan with Wright’s Mountain. Through a conservation-restriction agreement with the Upper Valley Land Trust, the area will always be conserved as wildlife habitat and forest land, while also being open to the public for recreation and education.

The BCC’s Wright’s Mountain Stewardship Committee is responsible for all trail maintenance and construction. The group is assisted by students from Oxbow High School and River Bend Career and Technical Center. The Upper Valley Land Trust monitors the trails.