Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Trail

Monday, December 6, 2021

Hi Blog!

After Saturday's hike in Spotsylvania, we were looking for a nice bike ride to stretch our legs. We did a little searching and uncovered a very unique rails to trails project known as the Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Trail in King George County, Virginia. What makes this trail so unique is that it is privately owned by David Brickley, the former head of the Virginia Department of Conservation. Because it is private property, we had to get a permit and sign a waiver before riding the trail.

The old caboose marks the trailhead on Bloomsbury Road.

The 15.7 miles Dahlgren Railroad line was built by the federal government during World War II to serve a United States Navy base in Dahlgren. The line was later sold to the Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac Railroad and subsequently CSX Transportation before being abandoned. After a number of attempts to turn the rail corridor into a park, Mr. Brickley personally purchased rail line in hopes of turning it over to the state. Negotiations are still ongoing.

The old box car has seen better days.

While park status is still up in the air, the Friends of the Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Trail, a nonprofit group of volunteers, work to develop, preserve, and maintain the historic rail-to-trail greenway as a major recreational, tourism, and educational opportunity for the citizens of King George County and the State of Virginia.  They work to ensure that this linear trail, designated as a National Recreation Trail and an important segment of the Potomac Heritage National Scenic Trail, joins the Virginia State Parks as a connection to Caledon State Park.

The section of trail we traversed had several road crossings. Due to a limited budget, the stop signs are very, very small.

With temperatures approaching 70 degrees, we were surprised we didn't see more folks on the trail. Getting a permit was easy and it is good for two years. You can even use your phone at the trailheads to open the permit app with a QR code.

A section of the trail follows the Rappahannock River. The river starts high in the Blue ridge Mountains and traverses the entire northern part of Virginia. It travels over 195 miles before flowing into the Chesapeake Bay south of the Potomac River.

Several of the old railroad crossing signs where repurposed to mark the trail crossing.

The freshly fallen leaves crunched under our tires. It is hard to believe with temperatures in the 70s today that they are predicting snow on Wednesday!

The trail alternates between farmland and woods. We stopped at this farm long enough to say "hi" to the horses and alpacas.

We decided to make the six mile mark our lunch stop and turnaround point.

There are still more miles ahead, but they will be for another day.

Dave decided to stretch his legs a bit and climb down to explore one of the old culverts. If you look carefully, you can see Kathy standing back on the trail wondering if Dave would make it back up the steep embankment.

After 12 miles of biking, we built up a powerful thirst. We decided to stop at the A. Smith Bowman Distillery in Fredericksburg and sample some of their gins. Nothing tastes better than an icy cold gin and tonic on a hot day.

Forgot to mention that, on our way to the trailhead, we stopped at a couple local coffee shops that roast their own coffees.  25 30 Espresso is a coffee roaster, that roasts coffee from fairt rade, women-owned, and run coffee farms. Agora Downtown Coffee Shop, owned by sisters MJ Stone and Andi Stone Chitty, is a coffee shop, used bookstore and gift shop. 

As we drive we like to eat and drink local. Looking forward to getting out for more hikes and sampling some good Fredericksburg craft brews. Stay tuned.