Corse Trail – Pine Rock Trail Loop Hike map (click to enlarge)

---

See the Five Forks Battlefield Trails web page to download a PDF trail map

---

Length:  1.5-mile loop
Time: 45 minutes
Difficulty:  Easy with a few mild hills

Located on White Oak Road west of the Five Forks intersection is a trail parking lot for those wanting to do some hiking or biking in the Five Forks Battlefield Unit of Petersburg National Battlefield. Horseback riders are allowed on the trails as well, but, assuming you have a horse trailer, the parking lot for trailers is on the east side of the intersection.

From the west side parking lot you can pick up the Corse Trail, then connect with all the other trails in the park. While I did hike all of the trails, this review covers a 1.5-mile loop that combines the Corse Trail and the Pine Rock Trail. The hike begins on the Corse Trail.

Corse Trail trailhead in the Five Forks Battlefield unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

In 100 yards from the parking lot is the intersection of the Corse and Pine Rock trails where the loop portion of the hike begins. You can go around in any direction, but I continued straight and traveled around in the counterclockwise direction, and this report is written from that perspective.

Intersection of the Corse and Pine Rock trails, Five Forks Battlefield unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

The Corse Trail starts out as a wide, dirt path similar to a former road, though it does narrow farther ahead. Yellow blazes (paint splotches) on the tree mean that the trail is open to hikers, bikers, and horseback riders. If you even see a red blaze, that trail is for hikers and bikers only. Blazes also mark the route of the trail, and you follow them like Hansel and Gretel breadcrumbs so that you don’t get lost. The trails within Petersburg National Battlefield are well marked with directional signage at most intersections, so the blazes aren’t really needed for navigation that often.

Typical terrain on the south end of the Corse Trail in the Five Forks Battlefield unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

In four tenths of a mile, the Corse Trail narrows into a more traditional hiking trail, though it is still open to horseback riders. The terrain is not flat, but the hills are mild and go by without much notice. There is a creek crossing via a footbridge, and just prior to and after this, the trail dips down and out of a ravine. It is a moderate stretch, but it doesn’t last much more than a tenth of a mile.

Narrower section of the Corse Trail, Five Forks Battlefield unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

Corse Trail crosses a small creek via a footbridge, Five Forks Battlefield unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

At the top of the hill, a half mile into the hike, the Corse Trail dead ends into the Pegram Trail. Most of the trails in the Five Forks unit are named after officers, both Union and Confederate, who fought at the Battle of Five Forks on April 1, 1865. The exceptions are the Pine Rock Trail and the Ford’s Trail, which is named after the road that runs north from the Five Forks intersection. Today it is called Courthouse Trail, but at the time of the Civil War it was Ford’s Road. The Corse, Peagram, Mumford, and Steuart trails are named for Confederate officers and the Griffin, Devin, and Winthrop for Union officers.

Intersection of the Corse and Peagram trails in the Five Forks Battlefield unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

Turn left on the Peagram Trail and take this for a tenth of a mile until it ends at the Pine Rock Trail. This intersection is towards the middle of the Pine Rock Trail. To continue around the Corse-Pine Rock loop, take a left. A right takes you north on the Pine Rock Trail.

Intersection of the Corse and Pine Rock trails in the Five Forks Battlefield unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

No sooner to you make the turn than the Pine Rock Trail makes another dip in and out of a ravine, crossing over another creek at the bottom. Both the climbs up and out are a little longer than the hike into the previous ravine, but the grade is much milder.

Mildly hilly terrain of the Pine Rock Trail in the Five Forks Battlefield unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

Pine Rock Trail crosses a creek via a footbridge, Five Forks Battlefield unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

The Pine Rock Trail widens a bit beyond the creek, but there are still some narrow sections here and there. The terrain isn’t quite flat, but again, any hill you might encounter and negligible.

Typical terrain at the southern end of the Pine Rock Trail, Five Forks Battlefield unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

In .9 mile from the time you turned on to the Pine Rock Trail you’ll be back at the start of the loop at the Corse Trail intersection. Take a right to get back to the parking lot. You can see it from the intersection.

Return to the parking lot on the Corse Trail in the Five Forks Battlefield unit of Petersburg National Battlefield

Back to the Top