High Meadows – South Valley Trails Loop Hike Map (click to enlarge)

Length: 4.4-mile loop
Time: 3 hours
Difficulty: Moderate

A loop hike can be formed by combining the High Meadows Trail in its entirety along with a section of the South Valley Trail and Taylor Farm Road, an old gravel fire road that is open to both hikers and bikers. Parking for the High Meadows Trail is at Lot H on the southwest side of Scenic Drive, the main road through Prince William Forest Park. I started out by hiking north, clockwise around the loop.

Trailhead for the High Meadows Trail at Parking Lot H in Prince William Forest Park

Scenic Drive is situated along a ridge, so just about any time you hike away from it you are going to be heading downhill, usually towards a creek that runs through the bottom of the valley. Once you cross the creek and hike away from it, the trail almost always heads back uphill to the next road. Such is the case when traveling north on the High Meadows Trail toward a small stream that feeds into South Fork Quantico Creek. (For brevity, I will refer to this creek simply as South Fork.)

Downhill hike along the High Meadows Trail in Prince William Forest Park

The stream is .4 mile from the parking lot. Cross over it via a footbridge and then, as predicted, you have a healthy uphill climb towards Taylor Farm Road.

First creek crossing north of Scenic Drive on the High Meadows Trail in Prince William Forest Park

Uphill climb out of the valley on the High Meadows Trail in Prince William Forest Park

It looks like a tornado came through the area. Trees are down everywhere, and those still standing have roots nearly exposed to the air like varicose veins. Prior to this, the trail was smooth enough to jog along, but now you must watch your step so you don’t break an ankle.

Rough trail surface on the High Meadows Trail near Taylor Farm site, Prince William Forest Park

Just before coming to Taylor Farm Road is the site of the old Taylor Farm. The National Park Service website for Prince William Forest Park has a photo of a building foundation and tells how to find it, but I never saw anything other than an old family graveyard. The only tombstone is that of Robert Taylor, the man who started the farm in the early 1900s with his wife Jennie. Fieldstones mark the rest of the graves. At one time there were six other marked graves, but most tombstones were removed by the family or were stolen.

Grave of Robert Taylor at the Taylor Farm Cemetery in Prince William Forest Park

Taylor Farm Road is just a minute’s walk past the cemetery. I had biked the road the day before and knew it went downhill all the way to South Fork, which is why I chose to hike clockwise around the loop. High Meadows Trail actually goes a little farther and ends at Old Black Top Road near the Turkey Run Education Center, but if you are hiking this loop, take a right on the road and proceed downhill. At this point you have come exactly one mile.

Intersection of the High Meadows Trail and Taylor Farm Road in Prince William Forest Park

The experience of biking Taylor Farm Road versus hiking it is very different. While traveling at a high speed on my bike I felt that I was going down an extremely steep hill. On foot, I wondered what all the fuss was about. It’s downhill alright, but the slope is very gradual. The road has a lot of ruts and gullies, so watch your step. These made the bike trip dangerous.

Ruts and gullies on Taylor Farm Road in Prince William Forest Park

Taylor Farm Road comes to an end at the South Valley Trail, .6 mile from the High Meadows Trail intersection. Take a right onto the boardwalk and head west. The trail crosses Scenic Drive just past the end of the boardwalk.

Boardwalk at the intersection of Taylor Farm Road and the South Valley Trail in Prince William Forest Park

South Valley Trail follows South Fork for nearly the trail’s entire length. I hiked a segment near the Visitor Center between the Laurel Loop Trail and the North Valley Trail and found it to be the most enjoyable trail in Prince William Forest Park. Expecting much of the same, I began the nearly two mile trek west to the intersection with the High Meadows Trail.

South Fork Quantico Creek in Prince William Forest Park

The vast majority of the South Valley Trail in this area is relatively level and free of rocks and roots, making it as leisurely a hike as the section near the Visitor Center. However, starting at a large boulder located .4 mile from the Taylor Farm Road intersection, the trail has sporadic segments that are challenging. The first instance is a short stretch of extremely rocky terrain, and even when it ends, the trail is often so narrow that one false step could send you down a hill and into the creek. That doesn’t sound too bad if you are at the same elevation as the water, but at times the trail rises high above South Fork on a ridge. My pace slowed to about one mile an hour on this segment.

Start of a rocky stretch of the South Valley Trail in Prince William Forest Park

A series of very steep hills with treacherous surfaces keep the hike interesting. At one point I thought the trail had come to an end, a victim of a rock slide. Climb up and over the pile of rocks, for the trail continues on the other side. There is a nice view of South Fork from this spot.

Large pile of rocks block progress on a section of Prince William Forest Park’s South Valley Trail

South Fork Quantico Creek along the South Valley Trail in Prince William Forest Park

Three miles into hike, the trail enters into a thick forest, oftentimes veering far from the creek. There isn’t an inch of ground not covered by vegetation. However, no sooner do you wonder where you are headed than the trail weaves back along the creek, just a step away from falling in.

Terrain of Prince William Forest Park’s South Valley Trail temporarily heads away from the creek

South Valley Trail in Prince William Forest Park follows closely to South Fork Quantico Creek

At the 3.5-mile mark on the hike, the South Valley trail begins a steep ascent over rocky terrain that continues until reaching the intersection with the High Meadows Trail a tenth of a mile ahead. If you continue to hike straight at the intersection you will naturally end up on the High Meadows Trail, right where you want to be. You must actually turn left to stay on the South Valley Trail, which continues along South Fork and eventually ends at the Oak Ridge Campground. I never did hike that section of the trail during my four-day visit to Prince William Forest Park.

Intersection of the South Valley and High Meadows trails at Prince William Forest Park

Since the southern terminus of the High Meadows Trail begins at South Fork, it should be expected that the hike back to the parking lot will be uphill. However, if you take a closer look at the trail map you will see that it actually crosses another creek on the way north. It can therefore be deduced that the hike will be uphill from South Fork, level out for a bit, and then head back down to the creek, and this is exactly what happens. The hill is moderately strenuous in difficulty.

I came across a black snake that was stretched out across the trail. I can’t say for sure, but I think this is a non-venomous Black Rat Snake. I’ve seen these snakes before, and they always have a twisted-up body like somebody broke them at various places. These snakes couldn’t care less about people, and you pretty much have to get a big stick to poke at them to make them move.

Black rat snake

Black rat snake

What the trail map doesn’t show is that the High Meadows Trail crosses a second creek before reaching the parking area, which means you have one more hill ahead of you before making the final climb back up to Scenic Drive. The hill is as difficult as the previous one, but the final ascent to the parking lot is much more gradual. Other than that, the trip back is uneventful.

Creek crossing on the High Meadows Trail just south of Scenic Drive at Prince William Forest Park

Overall, this is an enjoyable hike. It’s not too tough, and a hike along the South Valley Trail and South Fork Quantico Creek is always fun. And getting away from the trails near the Visitor Center, which have a high amount of traffic, means you won’t be running into many people.

Last leg of the High Meadows-South Valley Trail Loop Hike at Prince William Forest Park

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