Find the top rated trails in Staunton, whether you're looking an easy walking path or a long bike trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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The Chessie Nature Trail travels through breathtaking rural Virginia countryside, following mile markers left behind by the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad that ran this route. Dont be surprised if you...
The Virginia Blue Ridge Railway Trail offers a quintessential rail-trail experience in central Virginia, midway between Lynchburg and Charlottesville (less than an hour’s drive from each). The trail...
The enhanced bike-ped trail snakes alongside the John W. Warner Parkway for 1.6 miles, from East Rio Road down to McIntire Park. It mostly lies on the route of the old Southern Railway. Points of...
The West Fork Trail is a pleasant 22-mile trail that snakes its way through a remote mountain setting and follows the West Fork River for most of its route. The soothing rumble of the river...
With funds from the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation the Delfosse Trail was built by Nelson County on the property of a local winery. The 5.5-mile loop is open to hikers and mountain...
The Chessie Nature Trail travels through breathtaking rural Virginia countryside, following mile markers left behind by the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad that ran this route. Dont be surprised if you...
Located in the Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area of the Monongahela National Forest—a hotspot for mountain biking and rock climbing—the Lumberjack Trail offers a scenic hike on an old...
The Virginia Blue Ridge Railway Trail offers a quintessential rail-trail experience in central Virginia, midway between Lynchburg and Charlottesville (less than an hour’s drive from each). The trail...
Located in the Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area of the Monongahela National Forest—a hotspot for mountain biking and rock climbing—the Seneca Creek Trail is a scenic feast of streams, meadows,...
The Tea Creek Area Trails system consists of 12 trails totaling 44 miles, many of which follow old logging railroad corridors. The trails are found in the Marlinton Ranger District within Monongahela...
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The scenic East Fork Trail follows the East Fork of the Greenbrier River through hemlock stands and pine plantations and past many small waterfalls, extending 8 miles from the Island Campground in...
The Stone Camp Run Trail follows an old railroad corridor through a deep hollow on Middle Mountain in the Monongahela National Forest's Laurel Fork North Wilderness. The scenic trail crosses the...
West Virginia's beautiful Greenbrier River Trail is one of America's premier rail-trails and popular with bicyclists, hikers, walkers and cross-country skiers. Most of the trail runs along the...
Waterfalls, river views, rugged rock formations, vibrant fall foliage and delicate flowers in the spring: These are the sights that put the “scenic” in Jackson River Scenic Trail. The serene...
West Virginia's Monongahela National Forest offers a wide variety of trails for day or multi-day hikes of varying levels of difficulty, including several trails built on former logging railroad...
The enhanced bike-ped trail snakes alongside the John W. Warner Parkway for 1.6 miles, from East Rio Road down to McIntire Park. It mostly lies on the route of the old Southern Railway. Points of...
The James River Foot Bridge carries the Appalachian Trail over the James River in Snowden, Virginia, approximately 20 miles northwest of Lynchburg. The bridge was built on the piers of a demolished...
Widney Park Rail-Trail is located in the quiet West Virginia community of Durbin. The old railroad town has a charming Main Street with welcoming shops and restaurants and the rail-trail is located...
The Virginia Blue Ridge Railway Trail offers a quintessential rail-trail experience in central Virginia, midway between Lynchburg and Charlottesville (less than an hour’s drive from each). The trail...
The enhanced bike-ped trail snakes alongside the John W. Warner Parkway for 1.6 miles, from East Rio Road down to McIntire Park. It mostly lies on the route of the old Southern Railway. Points of...
The Tea Creek Area Trails system consists of 12 trails totaling 44 miles, many of which follow old logging railroad corridors. The trails are found in the Marlinton Ranger District within Monongahela...
With funds from the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation the Delfosse Trail was built by Nelson County on the property of a local winery. The 5.5-mile loop is open to hikers and mountain...
The Chessie Nature Trail travels through breathtaking rural Virginia countryside, following mile markers left behind by the Chesapeake & Ohio Railroad that ran this route. Dont be surprised if you...
Waterfalls, river views, rugged rock formations, vibrant fall foliage and delicate flowers in the spring: These are the sights that put the “scenic” in Jackson River Scenic Trail. The serene...
The scenic East Fork Trail follows the East Fork of the Greenbrier River through hemlock stands and pine plantations and past many small waterfalls, extending 8 miles from the Island Campground in...
The West Fork Trail is a pleasant 22-mile trail that snakes its way through a remote mountain setting and follows the West Fork River for most of its route. The soothing rumble of the river...
The Stone Camp Run Trail follows an old railroad corridor through a deep hollow on Middle Mountain in the Monongahela National Forest's Laurel Fork North Wilderness. The scenic trail crosses the...
Located in the Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area of the Monongahela National Forest—a hotspot for mountain biking and rock climbing—the Seneca Creek Trail is a scenic feast of streams, meadows,...
Located in the Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area of the Monongahela National Forest—a hotspot for mountain biking and rock climbing—the Lumberjack Trail offers a scenic hike on an old...
The James River Foot Bridge carries the Appalachian Trail over the James River in Snowden, Virginia, approximately 20 miles northwest of Lynchburg. The bridge was built on the piers of a demolished...
Widney Park Rail-Trail is located in the quiet West Virginia community of Durbin. The old railroad town has a charming Main Street with welcoming shops and restaurants and the rail-trail is located...
West Virginia's Monongahela National Forest offers a wide variety of trails for day or multi-day hikes of varying levels of difficulty, including several trails built on former logging railroad...
West Virginia's beautiful Greenbrier River Trail is one of America's premier rail-trails and popular with bicyclists, hikers, walkers and cross-country skiers. Most of the trail runs along the...
On a beautiful bike ride along the Jackson River, we encountered walkers, bikers, fishermen, runners, and folks on horses decked in pink riding for The Cure. We clocked 27.1 miles out and back starting at the Intervale parking lot; riding on a wide, hard packed crushed stone tread way. And, we saw a Bald Eagle! Thanks to Alleghany County and The Alleghany Foundation for implementing and maintaining this trail. It's a gem!
I had a very good ride on the "new" section (from the Smith Bridge Trailhead northward) and my GPS read it as 6.5 miles. It's 3.5 miles from Smith Bridge to the Natural Well trailhead, and then another 3 miles to the terminus. I get 7.2 miles for the old section, so I make the total length as 13.7 miles. Some report it as longer. The confusion may be due to the old railroad mileposts, which don't correspond to the miles on the trail.
The new section has the same smooth surface as the old section. I think it's the best surface of any of the rail-trails in Virginia. The average grade on the new section is about 0.3%, so it's barely noticeable. The scenery is excellent. The trail follows the Jackson up until the last half mile or so, where the Jackson curves west to the dam and the trail continues north along Cedar Creek.
There are two picnic tables at the northern terminus, which is a nice spot although there are better views along the way. These are the only picnic tables or benches on the new section at present. There are some surfaced areas near the small trestles that suggest that tables or benches may be added later. There's a porta-potty at the Natural Well trailhead.
I did encounter an obnoxious beagle a couple of miles north of the Smith Bridge trailhead. I need some James Bond style accessories on my bike for these situations. Other than that, it was a great ride. Allegheny County has done a great job on the trail. I hope they add some tables and benches on the new section, and perhaps come up with a better trail map and mile markers.
We were very happy with this ride! Great trail for families with young children. Our 12-year old had fun and we were able to easily pull our daughter along in a bicycle trailer since the path is a nice smooth surface the entire way. Very scenic, saw lots of wildlife, and was able to stop and let the kids play in the river at the end!
We rode the trail today starting in Buena Vista. There was one locked gate that required us to hand our bikes over the cattle fence and several farm gates that were passable. At one location, there were about a dozen cows and a donkey that were "on" the trail, making passage difficult. Along this stretch of the trail, cattle are grazed and there were multiple places with fresh cow dung.
My wife and I rode this trail on June 25, 2017. We started in Marlinton and rode north for about 10 miles before turning back. What we liked about the trail:
Beautiful scenery
Lots of wildlife. Deer, rabbits, groundhogs
Ample shade
Sharp's Tunnel is impressively creepy to ride through
What we didn't like:
The trail is becoming overgrown. In many places, it looked like a rutted country road, with weeds growing in the middle and encroaching on the narrow path. There was only about 16 inches per path. There was a fallen tree across the trail near the tunnel. You had to get off your bike to squeeze under. It looked as if maintenance is seldom done on the trail. It could use a good mowing and new layer of crushed grave.
I started in Lexington, first of all parking is very limited at this end and I didn't see any signs for parking. The first few miles are very nice with scenic views of the Maury River. Then I came upon a gate which you had to go through because the trail extends on private property. There was a cow lying next to the gate on the other side which made it impossible to open. On top of that there were other cows or steers lying on the trail and it was full of manure so I headed back. Doubt if I would do this trail again.
They have just completed another 10 miles of trail this spring. The best I can tell, it's now a bit over 17 miles long. It a quite wide and seems to be a very well-maintained trail. There is no more than a 1% grade on any part of the trail so it's suitable for families. Much of it follows the Jackson Rive and it's it has cool breezes of air coming off the water on a hot days. It appears they are still currently expanding the trail into the city of Covington. They have added bathrooms and a nice picnic shelter near the Intervale Trail Head in the city. However the upper end of the trail beyond the Smith Bridge Trail head has recently been completed and lacks facilities. Although there are plans to add them in the future. Most of the trail is well shaded by the trees in the summer and appears to drain nicely following rain. It's worth the trip to for the scenery alone!
Tried to ride this trail on 5/31/17 starting in Durbin. Had a nice chat with a local while gearing up. First quarter mile was good, then the overgrowth started. Further I rode, the worse it got. At around mile 7 it really was out of control, but I rode on. Around mile 8 there was a blowdown to climb over. The growth was seat high at this point. About mile 9 it was a single track ride and could not see the trail, just a path in the "grass". I turned around as I like to see what I'm riding into, and could not. A big disappointment. It was not worth the drive to get there. Don't bother. Ride the Allegheny Highlands Trail in Elkins instead!
My son and I rode this trail over 5 days in July 2001 from Caldwell to Cass. He was 9 at the time. We packed most everything on my bike and camped when we were tired, dished when we felt like it and took side trips along the way to Watoga SP and Marlonton. We ultimately rode over 1100 miles an made memories to last a lifetime. Great trail! We got to see deer, bear and one rattlesnake lying on the trail so please remember: this is truly wilderness. Plan accordingly.
Just getting back on my bicycle and wanted a non-hilly ride to encourage my efforts at getting some exercise. The trailhead was well-marked and lots of parking. A pleasant ride as most of the trail is shaded. The scenery is lovely with the river adjacent. We went on a weekday morning and there were very few others on the trail. The just-under 14 miles was a perfect first ride.
My wife and I were on the trail Memorial day, and the county has made significant progress on completing this trail. I'm not sure if it's all the way to Lake Moomaw yet because we ran out of time before we ran out of trail. Just south of Natural Well there's about a 25 yard section that looks unfinished, i.e. rutted out and no cinders. At first we thought that was the end of it but we pushed through to the parking lot at Natural Well and noticed that the trail looked finished again on the north end of the parking lot. So we kept going. And going.
This is by far my favorite bike trail in Virginia. And it's now long enough for the more serious bikers. Get out and enjoy this trail!
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