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Almost 23 miles of continuous singletrack ranging from beginner to expert.


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Map Key

22.8

Miles

36.6

KM

95%

Singletrack

312' 95 m

High

158' 48 m

Low

2,381' 726 m

Up

2,374' 724 m

Down

4%

Avg Grade (2°)

27%

Max Grade (15°)

Dogs Leashed

E-Bikes Unknown

Features Drops/Jumps

Family Friendly Easy loops with optional features. Saw many kids under 10 there and even a few push bikes.

Closed from 9:00 pm to dawn. Access requires daily or annual parking permit ($5) but free to ride in. Night rides of the Lakeview loops and the Swift Creek Trails are allowed with a mandatory waiver displayed on your dash (one per rider). Riders can only ride these trails and fire roads or trails that connect them. Because the park closes at dusk, riders must either park in the Loop Forest Trail parking lot on Courthouse Road or in the front office parking lot. More info fopsp.org

Overview

This is a terrific ride for a full afternoon of fun. The three trails of the Morgan Trail System (Box The Box Turtle Trail (Green Trail) , Morel Ravine Trail (Red Diamond Trail) & Tall Oaks Trail (Blue Diamond Trail) ) with Lakeview Loops I, II, and III. The systems are connected by fire roads and a short road section.

Need to Know

Bring lots of water, it can be very humid. The Lake overlooks are a great place to stop and have a bite.

Description

Starting at the Horner Forest Trail parking lot (annual pass required to park), a short bi-directional connector takes you to meet the Morgan trails about 1 mile before the official trailhead. From there it loops through the beginner trail (a great warmup), the Morel Ravine Trail (Red Diamond Trail), which is black diamond rated with lots of log overs, a couple of avoidable jumps, steep, rooty climbs and some deep ravine drop-ins 6' high. We finish the Morgan trails with an intermediate loop of technical but not overly intimidating singletrack. The route includes the optional "Little West Virginia" section that is truly expert only with lots of drops, log overs, uphill and downhill rock gardens.

After that warmup (about 9 miles) we head over to the Lakeview loops and complete all three including the optional red offshoots. In addition to some great views of Swift Creek Lake, Lakeview offers stream crossings, some great rocky sections, a unique boulder obstacle, a 30' log skinny, rock shelves and more.

History & Background

The trails were built by Volunteer groups that grew into the Friends of Pocahontas State Park. The Morgan Trail System was named for local legend Stan Morgan who participated in the original trail building, served as treasurer for the Friends group for many years. He also volunteered thousands of hours in the park and many thousands more to encouraging teens to run and ride its many trails.

The Box Turtle Trail passes some really unusual terrain that is actually an old garbage dump (like pioneer old). Riders have cut pirate trails intro that section but please do not ride there - large pieces of metal are sticking out of the ground and could make an otherwise uncomfortable fall, serious or even fatal.

Contacts

Local Club: rvaMORE

Land Manager: Pocahontas State Park

Shared By:

Trail Boss with improvements by Drew Davis

Trail Ratings

  3.7 from 16 votes

#2185

Overall
  3.7 from 16 votes
5 Star
31%
4 Star
31%
3 Star
19%
2 Star
13%
1 Star
6%
Recommended Route Rankings

#69

in Virginia

#2,185

Overall
51 Views Last Month
13,068 Since Sep 11, 2014
Intermediate/Difficult Intermediate/Difficult

8%
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42%
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Photos

I live in Virginia Beach and have no problem driving the 2 hours it takes to get this variety of singletrack with much more ups and downs than anywhere in the tidewater region! The place is empty during the week.
Mar 24, 2021 near Chester…, VA
Little W. VA Trail  ** Double Red Diamond** Advanced Trail
Jan 18, 2014 near Chester…, VA
Rock Jump on Lakeview 2
Aug 9, 2013 near Chester…, VA
Linked back up from the camping section to Lakeview trail. moderate trail along the lake with good chances of spotting a deer!
Apr 9, 2021 near Chester…, VA
Probably the fastest I've gone on my Specialized hardtail and a wonderful view of the beaver dam
Apr 9, 2021 near Chester…, VA
Love hitting Pocahontas for some serious ups and downs, the pines, the singletrack, and for having the best variety within two hours of VB!
Apr 9, 2021 near Chester…, VA

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Weather


Current Trail Conditions

Minor Issues 95 days ago
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