Tourism in the NEK

Vermont Business Magazine, Aug 01, 2004 by Edelstein, Art

They call it "little Moab" and it's beginning to bring significant tourism dollars to the East Burke area of the Northeast Kingdom. What the aficionados of mountain biking already know, and what others are beginning to learn, is that Kingdom Trails has put together a 100-mile mountain bike system in and around East Burke that rivals the best the US has to offer.

Moab, in Utah, is a mountain biking Mecca, but of late the word is out that in Vermont there are some "awesome" trails near the ski area.

Mountain biking, or off road biking, has in recent years become very popular. These bikes are sturdier, with shock absorbers and bigger tires, than conventional road bikes. What makes this sport a tourist attraction are interesting, attractive and challenging trail systems and this puts East Burke at the pinnacle of the sport.

According to Newark resident Dan Davis of kingdomtrails.com, his non-profit organization has developed a very popular trail system.

"It's a network of single and double tracks and we share VAST tracks and logging roads. They all are signed and maps have been developed. In winter we will have 22 km of groomed crosscountry trails."

Kingdom Trails has over 1,000 members who come from all of New England and Canada for day rides and weekend adventures. They pay a $20 annual membership fee and can purchase a summer or a four-season pass. The trails, which cost $6 per day to ride for non-members, are attracting tourists to East Burke and surrounding towns.

"We are filling up the B&Bs in the area," said Davis.

"There is a benefit to the local economy most definitely," agreed George Willy at the Village Inn in East Burke. "We notice that a good percentage of our guests are here to mountain bike."

Visitors come from as far away as Colorado and Florida, and other states, but also from Burlington and Stowe, New England and a few from Canada. Willy called our northern neighbor "an untapped market."

According to Willy, "The reports from bikers say these trails are the best they have ridden on and business increases every year because of it."

He likes the mountain biking industry because "it doesn't need to make snow or buy power for chair lifts, its low overhead."

Willy said those who come here to bike find it "a cheap vacation." His business has received a late spring and fall boost primarily from the biker trade.

The whole area is getting a financial lift from the mountain biking, said Willy. His guests eat at local restaurants and spend money buying gear and gas at nearby convenience stores.

"We would feel the loss if mountain biking didn't exist here," he admitted.

"There's anywhere between 100 to 250 riders on any day on the weekend," said Jake Urban at East Burke Sports, a nearby cycle shop.

Urban knows mountain biking is pulling in tourism here.

"Five years ago on a Saturday afternoon you could have lunch in the middle of the road," he quipped. "Nobody came into town and winter was much bigger. Now the summer overtakes the winter and it's due to mountain biking."

Urban said the sport provides local employment, with the trail association and for biking guides.

"Indirectly," he said, "it employs a lot of people at the restaurants and shops in town."

"I've seen a tremendous increase in out of state cars from Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Quebec," said Lorie Vincent at the Northeast Kingdom RMP in Barton. She said tourism is heating up here. "They aren't just passing through, they are staying in the area."

The Kingdom is fairly unknown but has great potential in the outdoor tourism market, said Vincent. For example, "Canadians are interested in cycling, kayaking arid hiking. They are strong in these sports."

She also points to skiing, snowshoeing, and snowmobiling as strong winter tourism activities the Kingdom excels in.

"The sense I get is a lot more interest in the area, more hits on our web site," said Vincent.

"Tourism is happening," agreed Art Sanborn Town Administrator in Lyndonville. Part of the slow growth here in tourism, he admitted, was directly attributable to the area's location away from an airport with commercial flights or any direct bus service.

However, he noted, "people are discovering serene and attractive places to look at and we have that. We don't have destination resorts, but Jay Peak is working at that."

Sanborn points to golf courses in St Johnsbury, Orleans and Newport, attracting visitors. Road bicycling, he predicted, will become popular here as tourists discover the low-traffic Kingdom roads. To emphasize this point the Northeast Vermont Development Association and TravelTheKingdom.com recently published a new cycling map, "Cycling The Northeast Kingdom."

According to Sanborn, the big tourism moneymaker here remains snowmobiling. This sport, he said, has emerged as the big winter sport as riders purchase gas, overnight stays and meals.

"When you see a $30,000 Yukon pulling eight snowmobiles all worth $4,000 each, that is $60,000 and they are going to spend some money," he observed. "They have disposable and discretionary income to spend and are spending real good money."