Nature, Hiking, & Photography

Love nature, hiking, or photography? You can spend endless hours taking it all in on the Huckleberry Trail. There are plenty of benches along the trail to stop and enjoy the surroundings, and free parking is available at both ends of the trail and at Warm Hearth Park.

A few things to look for along the trail include: dogwoods, cornfields, cow pastures, honeysuckles, dandelions, daffodils, creeks, meadows and more!

Chicory

There are twenty native or naturalized wildflowers along the Huckleberry Trail, so as you spend some time on the trail you can look for some of the following wildflowers: Saponaria officinalis L. (Bouncing bet), Solanum dulcamara L. (Bittersweet nightshade), Cichorium intybus L. (Chicory), Impatiens capensis Meerb. (Spotted Touch-me-not), Eupatorium
fistulosum Barratt (Joe-pye-weed), Potentilla canadensis L. (Canada cinquefoil), Allaria petiolata (Garlic mustard), Centaurea cyanus L. (Cornflower or Bachelor’s buttons), Ranunculus bulbosus L. (Bulbous buttercup), Trifolium pratense L. (Red clover), Oxalis grandis (Wood sorrel), Lathyrus latifolius L. (Everlasting pea), Oenothera biennis L. (Common evening-primrose)

And don’t forget to stop and pick huckleberries – or wild blueberries – at mile 5. This is where the corps cadets would hop off the train cars to pick huckleberries and then board the train again as it made it’s slow ascent up the hill.

For the serious hiker, you will soon be able to extend your trek from the Huckleberry Trail to the Jefferson National Forest. The connection to Gateway Park will open in the near future to provide a “gateway” to the Jefferson National Forest, offering hikers, mountain bikers, and horseback riders access to recreation areas and 30 miles of trails that connect the Huckleberry Trail to Pandapas Pond.

Do you have a great picture from the trail that you would like to share? Visit our Contact page and let us know – we always love new photos to add to the website!

Click HERE to download a detailed map of the Huckleberry Trail.

Nature Photo 1 Nature Photo 2
Nature Photo 3 Nature Photo 4
Photos from: Two Knobby Tires

THINGS TO DO ON THE TRAIL

From Blacksburg Striders:
Rails to Trail Map
Roanoke Times Map
Christiansburg Extension Map
Hethwood Extension Map
From the New River Vally Bicycle Association:
Aerial Map
From TrailLink.com:
Google Map

From Friends of the Huckleberry Trail:
Future of the Huckleberry Trail
Tunnel to Hethwood

Northern Trailhead:
US Hwy. 460 toward Blacksburg to Main Street (US Hwy. 460 Business route), heading north. Turn left on Miller Street and drive three blocks to Harrell Street, where street parking is available. Trailhead is located in the library parking lot on Miller Street. Do not park in the library lot; towing may be enforced for trail users parked here.
Southern Trailhead:
US Hwy. 460 toward Christiansburg, right on VA Route 114 (Peppers Ferry Road). The New River Valley Mall is on the right on New River Road. Follow New River Road around the mall; trailhead parking is at the back of the mall.

Central Trailhead:
Parking is also available near the intersection of Hightop and Merrimac Road for use of the Huckleberry Trail and Coal Miners Heritage Park.