VA Medical Center wooded paths - White River Junction, VT

Quick Facts:
Easy to moderate incline, estimated 2 mi round trip, elevation 700 ft. at highest point.

Highlights:
Wide paths, close to urban area.

Directions:
These trails are easily accessible from the rear-most parking lots at the VA Hospital in Hartford, VT. I didn't run into any problems parking in the patient/visitor lots which are set in front of the Hospital closer to N. Hartland Road, but I did notice some security vehicles stalking the area, just FYI. You can also access these trails at the junction of Allison Run and Jennifer Lane, and possibly park near the metal gated road to the Water Tower.

From I-89, take exit 1 onto I 91N. Then take exit 11 off of I 91N into White River Junction. Take the left fork at the end of the exit ramp, and take a left onto North Hartland Road. About .5 mi up on the right is the VA Hospital.

To get to the trails, I suggest walking the perimeter of the lots until you reach either the "deliveries" sign (which will lead you first on a paved walkway before coming upon one opening), or an area which has trailers and resembles somewhat of a construction area (which will at first seem like a dirt road, but then soon teeter off into a wide path).

Alternative access at Jennifer Lane/Allison Run (purple maker on the map): taking a right onto Allison lane from the VA Cutoff Road, there will be a metal gate on the right where it turns into Jennifer Lane. A glance beyond the gate will announce the presence of a huge water tank that sits near the VA water tower. I imagine it would be okay to park there (so long as the gate wasn't blocked); to the left of the gate is another entrance to these wooded trails.

Details:
Despite the fact that I've been searching online for a few days trying to find out about these trails, I still have no history to give about them. I do know that the section closest to the Hospital is on Government land, but going over a berm with a sign indicating that information will take you to what I assume is Town-owned land. There are more trails over the berm and they seem to go behind some neighborhoods and deeper into the woods. There were quite a few ATV tracks evident, as well as traces of mountain bike use, so its a safe bet to watch out for such things while enjoying this hike.

I doubt there is more than 2 - 2.5 mi of total trails back there, but it is still a diamond in the rough! I only found out about it after staying at the Super 8 across from the hospital and being so restless within my motel confines that I decided to tackle an urban hike of the abundant parking lots surrounding me, including those of the VA Hospital. I was pretty much dancing through the woods like a lovestruck elf when I came upon these trails in the midst of so much pavement!