Celebrating the new East End Park

The sign for the long-awaited East End Park in Woodstock, Vermont, greets the community on Monday. (Gareth Henderson Photo)

A decade of work to transform Woodstock's East End into a new park by the Ottauquechee River has come to fruition. 

On Monday, volunteers who made the project happen welcomed the public to a grand opening for the park and also for the new Ottauquechee River Trail, which offers public access to the scenic waterway.

The park area, running alongside the river at Woodstock's East End, has an amphitheater with stone work by Olde World Masonry, with a labyrinth just below it created by Toby Bartles. Just a couple more elements are being completed at the other end: a slide for kids to enjoy, and also a rock scramble, being made by stone mason Dan Snow,  which will offer a rock climbing experience at the site. 

This blending of scenic beauty and fun is a world apart from the East End's earlier days, when it was used as a snow dump in the winter and was an overgrown eyesore the rest of the year. The community coalesced around this project and was led by Sustainable Woodstock's East End Action Group. Joby Thompson, a member of that very group, was part of discussions in 2009, when the park was just an idea. 

Joby Thompson (center) shows Townsend Belisle and his daughter, Devi, plans for the slide and rock scramble at the East End Park in Woodstock, Vermont. (Gareth Henderson Photo)

"It's a dream come true, after 10 years of hard labor and many processes," Thompson said Monday, standing next to the labyrinth named in her honor. 

Barbara Barry and Mary MacVey were also there along the way, with Thompson and many other volunteers, through numerous work days of clearing brush where the park now stands. 

"What it was before was a waste of a gorgeous view," Barry said, highlighting the river’s grandeur. "Now it's a great place for events and for the kids to run around." 

MacVey said it may still be an undiscovered space for some, who are used to driving by the area. But based on Monday's steady turnout, that is changing. 

"Our new entrance makes a huge announcement, that you have arrived," she said. 

Part of the amphitheater at the new East End Park in Woodstock, Vermont, is shown. (Gareth Henderson Photo)

The East End Park sign — created by Jeff Sass, Jim Dow and Art Garges — stands at the entrance by Route 4 and is topped with a railroad bell, donated by Polly Bigham. From 1875 to 1933, the park and adjacent land was the terminus and turnabout for the train that ran the 14-mile line from White River Junction to Woodstock. Also adding to the site's history, is a stunning view across the river of Billings Farm land, part of the legacy of conservation here. Sustainable Woodstock Director Michael Caduto called it a "nexus" of Woodstock land use history. 

"It's just a fantastic collaborative project for the good of the people in Woodstock and the people who visit here," Caduto said of the park, noting all project funds were privately raised. He also said it's rare to have a trail which offers such great access to a river. 

Windsor County Sen. Dick McCormack, who joined Monday's crowd, agreed and said a river offers something special to the place. 

"It's something people want to share," he said. 

Jack Rossi, a local architect and longtime member of the East End Action Group, was enjoying this moment. 

"It's really exciting and rewarding to see it come to fruition." 

— Gareth Henderson