President Chester A. Arthur Nature Trail
Created in partnership with the Vermont Division for Historic Preservation, the students of Fairfield Elementary School with the assistance of the Franklin-Grand Isle Country Forester laid out the President Chester A. Arthur Nature Trail. The nature trail explores the woods to the south of the reconstructed boyhood home through the transitional forest that was an open pasture at the time Arthur lived here. Aspen, birch, sugar maple, red maple, red oak, and hemlock trees populate the forest. Interspersed are stone remnants of walls created by farmers clearing their fields and stumps of harvested timber. A boardwalk allows access over the seeps of groundwater that naturally accumulates at the surface of the earth. Treasure boxes are placed along the trail; please leave your own non-living treasure such as a poem, observation, or unique items found along the trail.
The Nature Trail consists of an Upper Loop and a Lower Loop. Each loop is about a half mile in length, both ending up in the same place behind the building. The Lower Loop is an easy walk and the Upper Loop is a more moderate walk.