Trailhead for the Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine Trail at Prince William Forest Park

Length: .4 mile, one-way
Time: 25 minutes
Difficulty: moderately strenuous

The Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine Trail (Pyrite Mine Trail for short) is an out-and-back trail that runs between Pyrite Mine Road, an old gravel fire road that is open to hikers and bikers, and the North Valley Trail. The easiest way to reach it is by hiking or biking a half mile down Pyrite Mine Road, which starts next to Parking Lot D on Scenic Drive, the main road through Prince William Forest Park.

The Pyrite Mine Trail runs downhill all the way from the road to the North Valley Trail, with the steepest part of the hill coming at the very beginning. As you near Quantico Creek the descent is more gradual, but there isn’t a level stretch on the entire trail.

Uphill return along the Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine Trail at Prince William Forest Park

The trail also has a surface composed of loose, black rocks, so it’s like walking on large marbles. I slipped a number of times on the way down.

Rocky surface of the Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine Trail at Prince William Forest Park

The mine ruins are about a tenth of a mile from the North Valley Trail. Here you will find the foundations of the machine shop, the engine room, and the boiler room. Unfortunately, there is no explanation as to which is which, though a wayside exhibit does give a general description of the mining operation. There is a fence around the foundations and you are asked not to enter, but there are not many people coming through the area, so I doubt anyone will see you. Of course, I am not suggesting that you break the rules.

Building ruins at the Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine in Prince William Forest Park

Building ruins at the Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine in Prince William Forest Park

Building ruins at the Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine in Prince William Forest Park

If you are hiking the Pyrite Mine Trail in order to see the ruins of the old pyrite mine, you may want to consider making a loop hike using the road, the trail, and the North Valley Trail, a distance of two miles. I recommend this because there are also a few ruins along the North Valley Trail. It makes no real difference which way you hike around the loop because there are steep uphill climbs either way. Remember that bikes are not allowed on the trails, so if you are riding your bike, I suggest leaving it at the Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine Trail intersection and hiking the loop in the counterclockwise direction.

Pyrite Mine Loop Hike

If you decide to do the loop, when you get to the North Valley Trail you have the choice of continuing straight, which sets you off hiking north towards Quantico Cascades Trail, or taking a right over a bridge and hiking south. There are ruins in both directions, so head north first (it’s just a few minutes walk to the ruins), and then come back and make the turn at the bridge. See the North Valley Trail review for information on that hike, though keep in mind that in the review I am describing the hike in the opposite direction, coming from the South Valley Trail.

Intersection of the Cabin Branch Pyrite Mine and North Valley trails at Prince William Forest Park

If you don’t plan to walk the loop, then you might as well turn around at this point and head back to Pyrite Mine Road because there is nothing more to see between the ruins and the North Valley Trail.

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