Oak Ridge Trail Map (click to enlarge)

Length: 1.8 miles, one way (2.2 miles if you count the walk from the parking lot)
Time: 1 hour, one way
Difficulty: Easy to Moderate

The Oak Ridge Trail at Prince William Forest Park is an out-and-back trail that runs between the Oak Ridge Campground and Old Black Top Road near Parking Lot F. It is one of the very few trails in Prince William Forest Park that you cannot combine with other trails to form a loop, though you can walk back along the road. If you have a bike, drop it off at one end and then drive to your starting point. When you finish the hike, ride your bike back to the car along Scenic Drive, a two-mile ride. There is a bike lane at this section of the road.

Regardless of which end you start at, you can’t get onto the Oak Ridge Trail directly from the parking area. If starting on the west end, park in the roadside spaces that are just outside the campground. You must then walk a short distance down the South Valley Trail to reach the trailhead. If starting from Parking Lot F, you must hike down Old Black Top Road for a quarter mile. I chose to start at Lot F and dropped my bike off near the campground (the ride back is downhill).

Entrance to Old Black Top Road in Prince William Forest Park

It is an easy walk down Old Black Top Road, a gravel fire road that is open to hikers and bikers. Be on the lookout for a concrete trail post on the right side of the road that marks the start of the Oak Ridge Trail.

Eastern trailhead for the Oak Ridge Trail in Prince William Forest Park

The trail begins with a very gradual descent towards a narrow creek. Once you reach the creek, which is .6 mile from the parking lot, the trail follows it for a bit before crossing over to the other side on a footbridge. While running along the bank, the trail is perfectly flat. Supposedly beavers can be seen in this area, but I saw none during my hike.

Creek crossing on the Oak Ridge Trail in Prince William Forest Park

From the footbridge all the way to the intersection with Scenic Drive, the terrain is punctuated with small hills connected together by fairly level segments. This is definitely as easy as hiking gets in Prince William Forest Park.

Typical terrain of the eastern half of the Oak Ridge Trail in Prince William Forest Park

Between the 1.2 and 1.4 mile mark (from the parking lot), the trail becomes a little overgrown. I mention this only because whenever you come into contact with vegetation you run the risk of picking up a tick or brushing up against poison ivy. Ticks stay low to the ground—ankle level or there about—so that they can latch onto any animal that comes by, large or small. Once they get on you, they head straight up your leg. If you have on shorts, their destination is your crotch, so be sure to check your legs every chance you get. If they can’t get to your crotch, they will most likely keep crawling until they reach your hair.

Narrow and slightly overgrown segment of the Oak Ridge Trail in Prince William Forest Park

The Oak Ridge Trail crosses Scenic Drive at the 1.5-mile mark on the hike. From here on out the trail is flat and often follows closely to the road. The scenery changes drastically during the first quarter mile, from an ordinary forest to what looks like a logging camp. Trees are down all over the place, the result of a fire from 2006 that burned over 300 acres. I can’t say if this mess will be around forever, but I am certain that the forest will remain pretty thin in this area.

Trees down along the Oak Ridge Trail as a result of a 2006 forest fire in Prince William Forest Park

What remains of the forest near the Oak Ridge Campground, Ground Zero for the 2006 fire in Prince William Forest Park

The Oak Ridge Trail ends at the intersection with the South Valley Trail. If you dropped off your bike at the parking spaces near the campground, or if you want to walk back to Parking Lot F along Scenic Drive, take a right at the intersection. The terrain of the South Valley Trail is a welcome change from the cluttered segment of the Oak Ridge Trail west of Scenic Drive. The trail is wide, the forest canopy open, and the floor is free of debris.

The Oak Ridge Trail is the easiest hike in Prince William Forest Park, not counting the short nature trails by the Visitor Center. It is also one of the least interesting—it doesn’t run along Quantico Creek and it doesn’t pass any historic sites. Considering the section destroyed by the fire, the trail falls into the negative value range as far as scenery is concerned. If your physical ability requires an easier trail, this is it, otherwise I suggest hiking one of the other trails in the park.

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