Northern Virginia Recreational Trails

Northern Virginia is situated along the Potomac River across from Maryland and near Washington D.C. The cities of Arlington and Alexandria area located here, and a number of other residential communities incluiing: Ashburn, Reston, Manassas, McLean, Alexandria, Fairfax Station and Woodbridge.

This part of Virginia has numerous recreational trails for bike riding, walking, sight seeing, commuting to work or to school and for enjoying the great outdoors. These may be trails that follow the route of abandoned railroad right-of-ways, wander through the greenspaces adjacent to rivers or alongside major roadways. There are paved pathways through the urban areas that link up with the bridges that head into Washington D.C. with all of its monuments and government buildings. There are also trails that have a compacted crushed stone surface that travel for miles through the countryside and past the local towns.

Washington & Old Dominion Trail

The Washington & Old Dominion Regional Park is the park that encompases the Washington & Old Dominion Trail. The trail is a 45-mile paved pathway that extends from the heart of Arlington to the City of Purcellville in Northern Virginia. The trail goes from rural farmland and forested areas, to suburban residential areas and then to densely populated urban areas. This is an historical route as portions of the railroad date back to 1855. There are remnants of the old railroad along the route in the form of old railroad cars and train stations.

The Washington & Old Dominion Trail was constructed along an abandoned railroad right-of-way and connects several other local communities along its route, including Purcellville, Paeonian Springs, Leesburg, Belmont, Ashburn, Sterling, Oak Grove, Herndon, Reston, Vienna, Dunn Loring, Falls Church and Arlington.

Chesapeake & Ohio Towpath

The Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historic Park is located throughout much of the State of Maryland, stretching from Georgetown to Cumberland. The park encompasses the C&O Canal that follows alongside the meandering Potomac River. The Potomac River forms the border between Maryland and West Virginia and Virginia. The Chesapeake & Ohio Towpath is the mostly unpaved pathway that follows alongside the canal.

The Chesapeake & Ohio Towpath is located across the Potomac River from Northern Virginia. It can be reached from the Chain Bridge in McLean, and the Francis Scott Key Bridge between Arlington and Washington D.C.

Mt. Vernon Trail

The Mt. Vernon Trail is a paved pathway that follows alongside the Potomac River from the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Arlington, through Alexandria, to Fort Hunt. The trail goes past Arlington National Cemetery, Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, the Potomac Yard, Downtown Alexandria, residential neighborhoods, local parks and Fort Hunt Park.

For much if its route, the Mt. Vernon Trail follows alongside the George Washington Memorial Parkway. There is a gap in the pathway through Downtown Alexandria.

Gary Connolly Cross Country Trail

The Gary Connolly Cross Country Trail is an unpaved pathway that wanders through the natural areas alongside Accotink Creek. The route of the trail spans between Fairfax Boulevard in Fairfax to Occoquan Regional Park in Lorton. The trail goes past residential neighborhoods and local parks.

Burke Lake and South Run Trail

The South Run Trail is a system of paved and unpaved pathways that wanders through the natural areas along side the creek in the Fairfax Station area. Burke Lake is located along South Run. The trail system has numerous branches that head up into the surrounding residential neighborhoods.