never enough parking in places like this, but that's my only complaint. this is a great natural…read morearea to hike & the access to the creek for canoeing or kayaking is excellent. it is a relatively long carry for the kayaks - the boardwalk is around 100 meters long, and the path from the parking area is around another 25. having a wheeled trolley to aid moving the boat helps. the area is wonderful - lots of wildlife and sights without compare. such a pleasant workout to paddle through the wilderness. it is a good idea to check times for the tides - the creek is tidally influenced and it can make a big difference in how leisurely your paddling is. excellent place - so glad that Stafford County & the Commonwealth established it.

It's not terribly far from the highway, but this is a very quiet stretch of waterside woods. Of the…read moretwo entrances, the one I took (a right turn on the road leading into the area, as opposed to staying straight) had a long dirt road before reaching the parking area. From there, a path led a few miles through tranquil forest before reaching a fairly anticlimactic ending. The view of the river was obscured by trees, and you couldn't really get down to the water on the muddy cliffs with signs telling you to stay clear. Still, if life is about the journey, it was a pleasant walk, and there were other trails. I suspect the area is interesting by canoe as well.

If you're into history, hiking the trail around Government Island is an interesting one. It's the…read moresite of a colonial-era quarry that the federal government later bought to use the stone to help build the U.S. Capitol and The White House. After driving 45 minutes from Southeast D.C. on a January Saturday, here's my experience. 1) Parking: There's a medium-sized gravel parking lot with empty spots often. On the edge of the lot is a porta potty. Near the trail head are signs talking about the area's history and directions on which path to follow. 2) Trail: The path leads to a boardwalk where people sometimes fish. Follow the boardwalk across the water to the island. Here, the trail wraps around the small island with a constant view of the water and its wildlife, including herons. 3) Markers: The trail is well marked with signs that talk about the quarry's history, how the stone was transported to D.C., etc. You can see the foundation of the old quarry and a historic marker.

Ive been coming to this place since I was In HS You can…read moreclimb up and see where the Stones were cut for the Washington monument. History is this close by is a cool part of our past you should check out. Bring a good pair is shoes and look for the Bald eagles.

Wanted to give a more recent review since most of the other reviews are 10/11years or older. This…read moretrail is so much fun but definitely more for a seasoned bike rider. About at mile 2 from Rt 605 the gravel has seen better days and it's quite bumpy. However, it is such a fun trail for a challenge without much hills. Definitely need a mountain or mountain hybrid bike. Walking or running on this trail is wonderful just be sure to watch your footing especially in fall when the leaves may cover up some of the old wooden tracks. Small kids/strollers will have a hard time past the 2 mile. Bring bug spray in the summer! Views are absolutely beautiful!

If your an outdoor enthusiast, this is the place to go. Over 15 miles of landscape and trail hiking…read moreshould suffice for those looking for a challenge. There is limited parking at the entrance, so plan accordingly. They have a small pic of area with two pic ic tables, a frill and a cinder block fire pit. If I had more time it would be an awesome hangout place for a group of friends. I really hope that the continued fight to protect the trail prevails!!

This national park has been on my list of places to see for two years. Active duty military & their…read morefamily get free access to this park as well as military veterans and gold star families. They charge $20 for a vehicle (car) to enter this park. Annual park fee is $35 and a better option if you come to the park often and pay for entrance. We were immediately impressed by the scenic drive, low traffic, and visitor center of the park. This is the least crowded national park we ever visited with so many trails to hike & explore. Bicyclists will love the immense bike routes and trails in this park. They engineered the roads with bicycle only paved roads beside the automobile road. Perfect for bicyclists. The visitor center was conveniently located by the Laurel Loop Trail and restroom areas. It was the first place we visited to get information for the park and a stamp for our national park passport book. The rangers were very helpful and showed us locations & trails we might be interested in seeing. We hiked two hours on the easiest trails in the Prince William National Park. We hiked the Laurel Loop Trail, the Birch Buff Trail, the Mary Byrd Branch Trail, the Quantico Falls Trail, and the North Valley Trail. The rugged terrain of some of these trails made it difficult to hike. I actually got holes in the heels of my old boots walking these trails. While we hiked we listened to birds on the trails and identified some birds we never heard before: Golden-crowned Kinglet, other unknown birds - etc. The Lauren Loop Trail had miniature Fairy Homes placed along the trail which was a delight to see. The Quantico Falls Trail was one of the smallest trails and winded down to the Quantico Creek & small waterfalls. We spent the most time in this area sitting on the large flat rocks on the creek watching the falls and the fish in the water. Proper hiking boots and socks are a definite must for these trails even the easiest trails. Prince William's Park has of the most difficult hikes we encountered despite going on the easiest trails we encountered yet it was one of the most memorable and enjoyable times we had hiking. Looking forward to coming back to this park.

A long time ago, Prince Wiliam Forest Park would bus in kids from the city to spend the week to…read moreenjoy nature at one of their camps. Now those camp sites are available for rent and include a working mess hall and kitchen, two art camps, medic lounge, as well as bunks. My group and I literally had an entire summer camp at our disposal! We came in late April so we dealt with a lot of weather malfunctions, but the area truly is a beautiful space to get away from it all. There is no air conditioning in cabins, but hearing and feeling the wind howling outside was oddly comforting. We had so much space to spread out and run around which was super idyllic until several run ins with wolf spiders. When they say this place is historic ... they truly mean it. The main mess hall area is updated with not one but two walk in fridges/freezers and two fire places. But the medic room looked straight out of a horror film (five stars out of five if we were filming a scary movie!). We scheduled an orienteering tour with a ranger and she was absolutely so fun to work with! She was so patient and did a great job keeping our group of girls on track. The wolf spiders might stop us from scheduling a trip back into their cabins but my sister camps often in a tent and says the entire experience is lovely!

Nice little state park in King George VA. Has some good walking trails that are nice to visit…read more In November they host an annual art and wine fest that is always a good time. Lots of local vendors. They do more events - like kayaking trips but never did one of those.

I place this in the category of "nice place, not worth driving a long way for". And notably it is…read morekind of out there. Even from Fredericksburg it's a decent drive, and if you're coming from DC or Richmond the space is not especially notable (and I've reviewed plenty of alternatives). For my specific travel route, it made sense. The trails were, in no small part, gravel roads. It took me a little over half an hour to walk to the marsh, but there wasn't a boardwalk or anything really to do at the marsh. The most notable wildlife I found was a bevy of dragonflies. Whatever was in the water was not interested in hanging out with me, though I did spot a rather large turtle looking down at the estuarine Potomac. Some people were carrying up kayaks, and I definitely think there's some good activities to be done here.

My husband & I stumbled upon this park when looking for things to do in Fredericksburg. We will be…read morerelocating in the coming months & wanted to get to know the area! The park is pretty big. There are a ton of trails, picnic tables, playgrounds for the kiddos, & a stream that runs all the way through the park. It's a great spot to take family photos and to enjoy one with nature! We love taking our dogs & letting them play in the stream. We have only gone to the park during the fall/winter time, so I can only assume how busy it is in the summer. The trails are dog friendly & we always stumble upon a new trail when visiting (who wants to do the same trail over & over again? Not me!). If you bring the doggies, make sure to also pack a towel & some water. There is no dedicated water station for them. I can't recall if there are poop stations along the trails, so bring those too! I also recommend calling the park ahead of time to see if they are open. There are times after a heavy rainfall that the stream is too high to cross with a vehicle. In this case, you'll have to park on the outside of the park. Another big thing is you have to drive pass an apartment complex (kinda weird I know) in order to enter the park. Don't be alarmed though! You will definitely see the park entrance if you keep going. I give this park a 5 star because it never disappoints. There is always something to do & my fur babies love it. I will definitely be back & can't wait to check it out in the summer! If you are in the Fredericksburg area, go to Alum Spring Park & enjoy the beautiful nature views!

Great park and playground for kids. Beautiful streams and walking trails. Definite must visit in…read moreFredericksburg.

A great day for a hike on the A.T. This one is just o/s Fauquier County on Mt Weather. I took the…read moreSOBO trail a couple years ago. This time I went North to the waterfall. Let me give some mad respect to whomever dug out the spot to put in a rather large parking area for us! For years we've been on side of this narrow dirt road. * Thank. (Virtual fist pump). This was 3 miles out and 3 miles back. The waterfall is around 1 mile mark. It's off to the right. *please understand, ricks are slippery whether they're wet ot not. How someone brings three toddlers here with no backpack, water or first aid is beyond me. I had to leave the area. But it was really nice. Very relaxing and you did have to hand/foot climb to get up there. Be careful please. I double backed and got on the A.T. Couple more miles to the secret cliff I saw in another Yelp post. :) . Lots of people walked by, no one knew I was there. I had it all to myself. Its better than the actual lookout. Anyway. I scanned the rocks for danger, shot some pics and sat down for water and dry crackers. I look over and there are 2 snakes curled up by a small tree about 6 feet from me. I spoke to them. "Thought you'd hide from me. I got you!" It was funny. I took a couple pics and kept my eyes on them. Only takes a second to lose track and they end up right at me saying, "HA got you back!" I sat a while then headed back down. I enjoyed it! I'd like to section hike and have a car waiting to take me back to my own car where I started. They should have an Uber Hikes App available for that. ;) This way I can hike for as far as I want without turning around to come straight back.

Short trail, pretty and cool, but the waterfall wasn't what I expected. The trail was well kept,…read moreand trimmed back, some areas were steep, and can be slick if it rains.

Beautiful park! Smells great. I was here for a camp for only a day but it seemed like a great placeread more

This park is in Clifton. It's at the end of a dead end road next to a winery…read more It is a beautiful park with many trails . It's very quiet , lots of birds .

Amazing experience. 5/5 Stars. $10 parking…read more I had a great time at Leesylvania State Park. They have paved roads in plenty of parking spaces. I experienced some of the most majestic birds. I seen my first great blue heron. Osprey and Turkey Vultures are also here and can be seen throughout the park. The trails were well-maintained and easy to navigate, offering beautiful views of the Potomac River. The fishing pier was a peaceful spot to relax and take in the scenery. I highly recommend this park for birdwatchers, nature lovers, and anyone looking to escape into a serene, well-kept natural space. I will definitely be coming back!

I used to like it more. While happy it's more popular than it used to be, am on the flip side…read moremissing the relaxing solitude. Would hike the trails here and see, either no one or very few people. That's no longer the case, and kudos to other folks being active. This is still a nice place to go. I'm not sure about swimming in the Potomac River. Fishing is decent from the walk out pier. Again I won't eat the catfish out of here, as I still have some concerns about pollution. They are of good size. Get chicken livers and catch lots of them. The parking lot is huge. If you have a boat they have a ramp.

It's a nice place to hang out with the family and cool off. Great spot for the kiddos to, not to…read moredeep till you go further out.

A little gem. This is a small but nice little place to go that's not far if you live in the area…read more It's great for little kids with no waves. The water is never freezing. If you want to go to a 'sandy beach' area that's not far this is the place. It can quickly get crowded and parking does fill up quickly so go early. The bathroom are clean.