Explore the best rated trails in Pembroke, VA, whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Lewis McManus Memorial Honor Trail and Murray Run Greenway . With more than 23 trails covering 229 miles you're bound to find a perfect trail for you. Click on any trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
Great signageWell maintained trails Stay at the Inn at Foster Falls for the full experience
We rode 20 miles (10 miles each direction), starting at the Bennington St parking lot. Note that there are no facilities right at that lovely parking area, but there is restroom at Golden Park, just to the east. It was an enjoyable ride! I’d do it again! All along the Roanoke River. Multiple river crossings, usually with a 90 degree turn at each end of the bridge. We went by several City parks, and stopped at an ice cream and burger place on the east end of Wasena Park for ice cream on the way back. There is a well marked detour around Wasena Park for construction. There are several places along the trail where other trails intersect. The signage was great to keep us on track. The only place we got confused was just past Black Dog Salvage (we were heading west) and after crossing the river on Memorial Ave, it took us a minute, and a slight detour, to realize that the trail goes left at Wasena Ave, and loops around to go under Memorial Ave. The signs are there, but not quite big enough to get our attention at the right moment. We turned around at Tidy Services. TrailLink shows the trail ending at Bridge Street. We rode over 3 more miles on paved and marked trail.
It's a 4 mainly because of the creosote / diesel odors as we went around the rail yard. The trail itself is super. all paved. very little root bumps. well maintained.
Good for walks, runs, and bike rides. Pretty sunny, with a few shaded sections. Usually not crowded!
Not too strenuous but still a fun place to get outside and connect with nature!
We love the Jackson River Trail and ride it several times a year - yesterday was the first for this year. The trail extension was delayed by a terrible mudslide, but has now been beautifully completed two+ miles north into Bath County. I wish Bath County would complete the trail all the way into Hot Springs! It would rival the Creeper Trail for sure. This trail is the best maintained trail we've ridden. There had been inches of rain the day before but there were no puddles, no debris - the trail was completely clear. The Parks and Recreation guys of Covington keep it nicely mowed and the restrooms are amazingly clean. We highly recommend this rail trail. And if you want a great place to eat afterward, try Trani's Grille! Great food!
My wife and I rode this trail 4/15/2025. Great surface, very scenic and NOT busy during the week. Signage was great as we're trailheads
I took my gravel bike on this trail and won’t do it again. There’s large stones and branches. I had to carry my bike over several downed trees and several big wash outs. A beautiful ride next to the creek for sure. A great place to hike I’d say. Please don’t think of this as a rail to trail flat ride, it is not.
The rest of the right of way is planned to become a rail trail. The future Craig Botetourt Scenic Trail will be 26 miles from New Castle to Eagle Rock.
Accessed trail at Booker Falls. Great ride with beautiful views of the New River. Saw several deer and interesting to see the damage from the hurricane.
Most of this trail consists of a wide grassy median with two narrow gravel ruts on either side. This is great for bicycles but recumbent trikes, or anything with more than two wheels, will be forced to ride with at least one wheel up on the grass making for a slow rough ride. I rode almost the entire trail over two days on my trike, from mile marker 25 to 77, and it is a beautiful trail -- for bicycles. Short sections that are in full shade in deep forest are pure crushed stone, no grass. This makes it clear that when the trail was originally constructed it did not have a grassy median; the grassy median is due to bad maintenance. Politicians love to attend ribbon cutting ceremonies for new infrastructure, and the press will cover new stuff, but who ever read about politicians attending a ceremony to celebrate routine annual maintenance? Build and neglect.
My wife and I rode the Jackson River Scenic Trail over two days in late summer, Intervale to Smith Bridge the first day and Smith Bridge to the end on the second. We thoroughly enjoyed this trail. The trail was shady, scenic and peaceful. It is one of the widest, flattest and smoothest rail-trails I've ever been on, perfect for kids or casual riders who don't like incessant bumps or grinding grades. The trail is well equipped with picnic areas and restrooms. (No interpretive signage however; it would be a nice upgrade to showcase the human and natural history of the area.) Two of the best sights are located just off the trail. A small sign will direct you to a suspension footbridge over the river. It's well worth the detour to bounce over the bridge. (A sign warns you not to bounce, but just walking across the thing sets it into motion!) Just below the Smith Bridge parking area is the decommissioned Smith Bridge, open to foot traffic only. It offers big views of the river. A couple of caveats: 1) While the trail traces the river for most of its length, there are no places to get wet directly on the trail. A public access area just off the trail at Smith Bridge has a shallow area perfect for getting wet. 2) The lower portion of the trail is located a few miles from a huge paper mill. Depending on weather conditions, you may smell it.
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