High Bridge Trail will carry bikes in spring, 2012
I love biking the roads of Southside Virginia, but there are plenty of bike trails in the area for those who would rather cycle off-road.
The closest to Oak Grove Plantation Bed & Breakfast is the Ringgold trail, which runs for a few miles near Danville and is about 10 miles west of Cluster Springs. It’s not easy to find, but I can give you directions or ride with you. Then there is the paved Riverfront Trail in Danville, which affords pretty views of the Dan River all the way to Dan Daniel Park. In Lynchburg, there’s a long trail with bridges along the James River. And in Durham, N.C., you can enjoy the American Tobacco Trail.
Perhaps the most ambitious one nearby is the High Bridge Trail near Farmville, a little more than an hour north of South Boston. I rode part of it this summer with Jack Houghton, a local resident I met on the trail. When the high bridge is completed in 2012, the trail will about double in length to 30 miles, going from Pamplin City in Appomattox County all the way to Burkeville in Nottoway County. I recommend a mountain bike on this trail and the Ringgold trail because the base is limestone rather than pavement.
What’s next? The state is about to award bids for a short trail from Berry Hill to the Dan River in South Boston. And long term, if property issues can be resolved, the lengthy Tobacco Heritage Trail should run through South Boston, as well. A few segments are already open east of South Hill.