Archive for the ‘Central Virginia’ Category
Virginia State Park Locations
Posted by Chris | Filed under Appalachian Trail, Blue Ridge Parkway, Central Virginia, Eastern Virginia, Northern Virginia, Roanoke/New River Valley, Shenandoah Valley, Southwest Virginia, State Parks, Trail Information, Western Virginia
If you’re looking for a listing of all the state parks in Virginia, then look no further. Below is a list of all the Virginia State Parks and links to their individual pages within the Virginia State Parks website.
Bear Creek Lake (BC)
Belle Isle (BI)
Breaks Interstate (BR)
Caledon Natural Area (CA)
Chippokes Plantation (CP)
Claytor Lake (CL)
Douthat (DO)
False Cape (FC)
Fairy Stone (FS)
First Landing (FL)
Grayson Highlands (GH)
High Bridge Trail (HB)
Holliday Lake (HL)
Hungry Mother (HM)
James River (JR)
Kiptopeke (KP)
Lake Anna (LA)
Leesylvania (LE)
Mason Neck (MN)
Natural Tunnel (NT)
New River Trail (NR)
Occoneechee (OC)
Pocahontas (PO)
Sailor’s Creek Battlefield Historic (SC)
Shenandoah River Raymond R. “Andy” Guest Jr. (SH)
Shot Tower (ST)
Sky Meadows (SK)
Smith Mountain Lake (SM)
Southwest Virginia Museum Historical (SW)
Staunton River (SR)
Staunton River Battlefield (SB)
Tabb Monument
Twin Lakes (TL)
Westmoreland (WE)
Wilderness Road (WR)
York River (YR)
Enjoy all the beautiful areas that Virginia has to offer!
Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania County Battlefields Memorial National Military Park
Posted by Chris | Filed under Central Virginia, State Parks, Trail Information
This 7,787 acre national military park, comprising numerous scattered units in and near Fredericksburg, protects and interprets four major Civil War battles: Fredericksburg, December 11-13, 1862; Chancellorsville, May 1-4, 1863; the Wilderness, May 5-6, 1864; and Spotsylvania Court House, May 8-21, 1864. The park also features Chatham Manor, Old Sale Church, and the building in which Confederate General Stonewall Jackson died.
Fredericksburg
Following a number of intense clashes between Union and Confederate tropps at Fredericksburg in December 1862, one of the worst military disasters of the Civil War resulted in a devastating defeat for the Union army, with casualties totaling at least 12,500 men. The site of this killing field was below Marye’s Heights, a strategic hill that, as was known to the Union forces, was bristling with Confederate batteries of cannon and infantry. What the Union commanders did not know, however, was what lay hidden at the base of the hill, along a sunken road and out of sight behind the breastwork of a stone wall.
As the first Union brigade of soldiers charged across a 400-yard expanse of open ground in an attempt to storm the hill, they were suddenly mowed down by the massive volley of Confederate musket fire that erupted from behind the wall. From noon until dark, wave after wave charged across the field, but each suffered the same fate. The slaughter continued, with not a single Northerner ever reaching the wall. Feeling from this defeat, the demoralized Union army withdrew northward across the Rappahannock River.
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Colonial National Historical Park
Posted by Chris | Filed under Central Virginia, State Parks, Trail Information
This 9,352 acre park in the Tidewater are of eastern Virginia protects and interprets two sites: part of the site of Jamestown, the first permanent English settlement in North America, founded in 1607 on Jamestown Island in the James River; and the site of the decisive American-French victory over British forces in 1781 in th Battle of Yorktown at the mouth of the York River. The two park units are connected by the 23-mile Colonial Parkway.
Jamestown
Hardships beset the budding community from the outset. A fever that was likely typhoid claimed many lives; the island’s brackish water was undrinkable; perishable food spoiled; was virtually unbreathable; prolific mosquitoes and other insects made life miserable; and in the first cold, damp winter, more than 60 settlers perished from illness and starvation. Two winters later, the death toll reached 500, leaving a mere 60; but 1610, a large group of new settlers arrived from England just in time to save Jamestown from almost certain abandonment. From the beginning, there had been almost constant conflict between the settlers and the native Indians, who were alarmed by the rapid takeover of their traditional ands, especially with the settlers’ clearing of land on which to grow tobacco. In 1622, the Powhatan Indians finally retaliated: close to 350 settlers were killed (about one-third of the population), and nearly all outlying settlements were destroyed.
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Appomattox Court House National Historical Park
Posted by Chris | Filed under Central Virginia, State Parks, Trail Information
The 1,775 acre national historical park, at the village of Appomattox Court House in central Virginia, protects and interprets the Civil War site where Confederate General Robert E. Lee surrendered his 35,000 man Army of Northern Virginia to Union General Ulysses S. Grant on April 9, 1865. It was there also that Confederate weapons were surrendered, on April 12 – four years to the day after the way began.
The visitor center in the reconstructed county court house provides interpretive exhibits, audiovisual programs, and publications. Living history programs are presented during the summer, and a walking tour of the reconstructed buildings is offered. Access is by the way of the Appomattox exit of U.S. Route 460 (about 20 miles east of Lynchburg), and just north of State Route 24.
Address:
PO Box 218
Appomattox, VA 24522-0218
Website:
http://www.nps.gov/apco/
Guide to the Rivanna Trail Around Charlottesville, Virginia
Posted by Chris | Filed under Central Virginia, Trail Information
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Originally Published at Rivanna Trails Foundation
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This information describes the various sections of the Rivanna Trail that circumnavigate the City of Charlottesville. Trail sections are described in counterclockwise order. (length, cumulative mileage from mile 0, description of footing)
Woolen Mills to Riverview Park (.41 miles, mile 0 is at railroad trestle, moderate)
Mile 0 is at the railroad trestle. Follow the sandy trail from Moore’s Creek to the Woolen Mills dam, climb up to East Market St., turn right, and do a short road walk past historic mill buildings. Turn right at Riverside Ave., and turn right again into Riverview Park.
Riverview Park to Route 250 at Free Bridge
(1.48 miles, 1.89 from mile 0, easy)
As you follow the trail that hugs the bank of the Rivanna River, watch for the many birds that inhabit the park’s fields and forests. After exiting the fields, continue along the river’s edge. A spur trail (.39 miles) makes possible a loop hike within the park.
Route 250 at Free Bridge to Holmes Ave.
(1.64 miles, 3.53 from mile 0, moderate)
Enjoy rewarding views of the Rivanna River as the trail winds through a valuable strip of buffer vegetation. Look for a roadwalk section of the trail. Side trails near the mouth of Meadow Creek pass through an Osage orange grove and pines. Parking is available at the VFW trailhead on River Rd.
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