Eastern Front Trail Map (click to enlarge)
Other than the interpretive trails at stops on the battlefield tours, all of the earthen trails within the Eastern Front Unit of Petersburg National Battlefield are open to hikers and bikers. Many allow horseback riding as well. When on the trails, look for the blazes (paint splotches on trees) to determine the type of trail. Yellow-blazed trails are open to hikers, bikers, and horseback riders. Red-blazed trails are for hikers and bikers only. Blazes are also used for navigation—follow them like Hansel and Gretel breadcrumbs—but the trails at Petersburg National Battlefield are pretty well marked with directional signage, so rarely do you have to rely on blazes to find your way around.
Yellow-blazed trail in the Eastern Front Unit of Petersburg National Battlefield
Before setting out on a hike, be sure to get a copy of the trail map. A printed map is available at the Eastern Front Visitor Center, but it is in black and white and very hard to read (not to mention black and white negates the color coding for the trail types). The color option, which is only available in electronic format, is the one you want. Cell service is good at the park, so you should have no problem accessing the electronic version of the map while on the trails. Better yet, download the one at the top of this page to your phone or home computer ahead of time. Also, the map given out at the Visitor Center is not 100% accurate. I have made corrections to the trail map provided above.
When navigating with the trail map, notice that the intersections are identified with a letter. In most cases, these letters are stamped on posts at each intersection as well. Signs with trail names are attached to the posts. Only a couple of intersections are not marked.
Sign post at a trail intersection within Petersburg National Battlefield
All trails at Petersburg National Battlefield are for exercise purposes only. Other than passing through some of the stops on the battlefield tours, the trails do not lead to monuments, forts, memorials, or anything else of historical interest that you can’t get to in a vehicle. They are just walks in the woods, or in the sunshine at some points.
While the trails do have names, there is no trail that anyone would set out to hike on its own. For the most part, they are just a network of paths that crisscross the battlefield, allowing hikers, bikers, and horseback riders to piece together a route to suit their own needs. I made an eight-mile hike around the perimeter of the Eastern Front Unit starting at the Ranger Station parking lot on Hickory Hill Road. I’m not going into details about it since most people will want to do a hike of their own creation, but I have provided some basic information on the trails that I did hike along with photos to help you pick the ones you’d like to incorporate into your own route. These reviews pertain to everyone: hikers, bikers, and horseback riders.
PRINCE GEORGE COURTHOUSE TRAIL
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Last updated on March 29, 2023
