Average Rating:
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Date of Hike: Thursday, February 15, 2018 |
| We had had a lot of rain, and the trails were very swampy and muddy. We could tell the water had been flowing over the trail in some spots. We thought the walk along the river was beautiful. However, we would recommend starting the trail from the visitor center instead of the dog park so that you can get a trail map. (There may also be maps at the trail head at the dog park--we didn't think to look.) Basically it seemed like the directions were correct as far as which direction to turn. It was just the way they were written that were confusing--making it seem like you were getting off the HT trail when you were supposed to stay on it. The part about the broken bridge no longer applies as it looks like the trail has been rerouted around that spot. There was also one intersection that was not marked along Burke Creek after crossing a bridge. The trail goes straight across a river or left up a hill. It turned out up the hill was the correct one, but there were no trail markings for at least half a mile.
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Newhiker
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Date of Hike: Sunday, April 16, 2017 |
| My husband and I went hiking with our 20 year old son. We only saw one other group on the trail the entire time we hiked. Hike was okay not much to see. I didn't think it was very scenic. Good experience but I wouldn't go back to that trail....too many others to try.
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Suzanne
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Date of Hike: Saturday, January 28, 2017 |
| Hiked Pleasant Grove today with my over sixty hudsband and my son and his girlfriend (both millennials). We all loved it! Very peaceful and calm by the river, and hiked along the water for most of the hole. Trail is well marked. Muddy in a few spots. Would be beautiful in the Spring.
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Wanda
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Date of Hike: Friday, January 27, 2017 |
| The instructions above are no longer valid. Some of the trails are not there any more. Trails are well marked to the overlooks but not so well after that. I recommend getting a trail map from the Fluvanna heritage trailhead museum.
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Jessie R.
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Date of Hike: Sunday, September 11, 2016 |
| This is a well maintained trail with very few other hikers. It is not too far off 64 and was well worth the 50 minute drive from Richmond. We took some of the other trails here to make a bigger loop. It ended up being about 10 miles but it was easy terrain so we were able to do it in 4 hours despite being wildly out of shape. There were some good benches along the trail where we were able to stop and take lunch. Saw some nice wildlife, almost stepped on a black snake and later were surprised by two deer that were within 15 feet of us. Came across one group of hikers with off leash dogs, who were able to grab their dogs before they greeted us, then a group of people on horseback. Those were the only groups we saw. I found a few seed ticks on my dog when we got home so watch out for that. Definitely would go back!!
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Rick & Martha
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Date of Hike: Saturday, April 23, 2016 |
My fiancé and I (both in our mid-60s) hiked this easy trail on a beautiful day. There was a little bit if elevation change, but nothing too strenuous. Family-friendly, yes, but instruct your little ones ahead of time about how to identify poison ivy, as there was a ton of it. Especially hard to avoid when the normally wide path narrowed to 12” in some places.
Bring along a printout of the instructions provided above, as the trail is sometimes unmarked at various intersections. There were a couple of places where we were unsure. At mile 3.0 and 3.2, the instructions say “bear left,” but we turned right because of the Heritage Trail markers. Also, we did not see any pole barns along the gravel path, but we did see cultivated grape vines instead in that spot. It took us 4 hours, 25 minutes, and we only stopped 4 times for a couple of minutes. We were slowed down at a point near the trailhead where several trees had fallen and blocked the path at one point. Navigating this took us an extra 6-7 minutes each way. All that said, we very much enjoyed this hike.
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Date of Hike: Friday, August 21, 2015 |
| I hiked this trail with my boyfriend and this was a pretty nice hike overall. Nothing too difficult, but a great trail to explore on a nice day. We actually ended up trail running parts of it, so if you are interested in trail running, this would be a nice trail for that. The directions were a little confusing to follow and we ended up mainly just following the signs for Heritage Trail. At one point, the hike does open up to some fields, and at this point we had to refer again to the directions to re-orient ourselves with the trail. However, we had a great time and I would recommend this to others if you are looking for something mellow but pretty.
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Long Beard
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Date of Hike: Sunday, January 25, 2015 |
| My wife and I chose this hike because #1, it was close to home and #2 she wanted her dad to come along for an introduction to hiking. It is not a challenging hike so it was perfect for him. The trails were well marked early in the hike, starting at the East end. However once you hike past the house /museum (which is a must see to learn a bit of history) the trails are a bit hard to follow across the fields. Print the map from here, it is helpful. The Beech trees were very pretty along the trail. If you are not from the area this hike will leave you with a pretty good idea of what typical central Virginia woods look like.
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| By:
midlodayhikers
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Date of Hike: Saturday, February 22, 2014 |
| Great trails if you are looking for a place to walk your dog off-leash. The sign at the dog park entrance asks you to leash pet in high volume areas, which we did when we stumbled upon the playground/ball fields. We misread the HU trail directions and got off the Heritage Trail too early. When we got to the ball field we were able to find the trail back towards our starting point, but again took a wrong turn and wound up at library. We walked a short distance on Rt. 15 back to car. Some trails extremely muddy due to recent snow/rain. Lots of unmarked trails that intersect make it easy to get lost. We printed the Fluvanna County Park map, but even it does not show all the trails. Overall, a very enjoyable walk that included a river, woods, creeks, and open fields.
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| By:
Russ
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Date of Hike: Sunday, October 27, 2013 |
| Today was more like a stroll in the woods, not a hike. Pleasant Grove is an easy hike, perfect for taking your dogs, especially if they like to swim. The trails are well marked. We mostly stuck to the trails blazed for horseback riding. There were very few people in the park so we were by ourselves most of the day and the dogs had plenty of off leash time. No vistas, but the photo opportunities were plentiful.
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Date of Hike: Saturday, July 27, 2013 |
| We were pretty surprised by this hike. We weren't expecting much, as it is part of a county park. We parked adjacent to the dog park and started at the end of the Heritage Trail. We skipped out on the Sandy Beach, because we had a bit of a time crunch. GPS said about 5.7 miles without the Sandy Beach Trail. The Heritage Trail is actually only one way, then on the return trip, you have to find other paths, some of which are out in the open field. There are a few ups and downs hill wise, but nothing too crazy. I think overall elevation change was about 300' or so. Trail gets narrow in some parts, but has good footing.
PROS:
Some of the growth got dense in areas, felt as if we were in jungle in some areas. We only saw maybe two other people throughout the whole hike, though we heard some off in the distance along the river. Since we had our dog with us, we didn't mind the lack of people or growth density. Seems to be a lot of wildlife in the area, some we saw, and others only our dog seemed to notice. Great woodsy sounds and occasional creek. The Heritage Trail itself is well marked, some of the others not so much.
CONS:
With lack of people, came lots of spider webs to walk through. There are a lot of intersections, so it would be best to have a map with you and plan out your trip. There are a couple of areas of great views (one overlook of the "river"), however not much to really see here.
Overall a decent trail. If we lived closer, I could see us going here more, and exploring some of the other routes.
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