Find the top rated bike trails in Buena Vista, whether you're looking for an easy short bike trail or a long bike trail, you'll find what you're looking for. Click on a bike trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
Rode this trail every day for a week during a stay in 2022. It's quite level with only a few curves. Not terribly crowded. Much of it goes through residential areas, although it does narrow a bit as it skirts downtown and the local hospital. It was great for wildlife; we saw deer on almost every ride. Scenery is not dramatic, but certainly pleasant, making for a good 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.
I hiked this trail today and enjoyed it quite a lot. The trail itself is nice and wide, and fairly flat. There’s good tree canopy over most of the route and beautiful views of the rivers and fields. There are benches and picnic tables scattered along the trail as well. Plenty of parking at the Piney River trailhead. Will definitely hike this one again.
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
The trail is in great shape going East from FarmVille. Going West from FarmVille needs some attention. It appears that the area had a storm and a lot of trees fell. Heavy equipment used to remove the trees has left ruts in the trail. We rode for about five miles and decided that it wasn’t going to get better, turned around and went back to FarmVille.
Maybe it was the time of year but kinda boring. Well used by horses as there was ample "evidence" lying on the trail. The Nelson County website mentions "restroom facilities" at the trailheads. The Piney River trailheads "restroom facilities" is a single porta potty. The Roses Mill trailhead does have a small bathroom.
We rode two different sections, nice trail. Took the side gravel trail near the bridge to see the underside. At Pamplin, the west end, there’s a small restaurant with excellent burgers, MiPa’s Table. Just past the trails end along the small Main Street.
Amazing tunnel and a fun experience with kids. Be sure to bring your flashlight.
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