Prince William Forest Park

As a novice hiker, I was nervous to do the 10-​mile loop at Prince William last Saturday, but it ended up being the perfect distance and difficulty for someone who is active but not used to hiking. There were some hilly sections that were more challenging, but overall the hike difficulty was only ³⁄₅. Plus, its proximity to DC is a huge plus so you don’t have to wake up at the crack of dawn to get there.
A couple highlights were seeing frogs and a garter snake, but other than that, the hike consists of pretty scenery and babbling brooks. Don’t forget to check behind your ears for ticks!
$ 7/​entrance fee for a hike is totally worth it.

Very disappointed with how this park is managed and would highly NOT recommend in staying in the cabins. The staff appeared to be very unorganized and clueless with the camp reservations. They did not hand out any information about rules and regulations about the campground or the park itself. The only confirmation of a cabin site given to us was the printed receipt for the $ 7.00 parking fee. It was handed to us with scotch tape to adhere to the dash. When asked about which cabin was reserved for us we were told to look at the screened-​in kiosk at the cabin site and then told that «in a perfect world it would tell us where to go.» When asked what if «it was not a perfect world», the staff said to just pick any cabin at the site. This instantly caused us to be very concern. The parking lot is about a ¼ mile from the cabin area in which we had to pulled carts up a gravel road to our cabin. All the cabins are accessible via the gravel road but for some reason the park had the road gated so the patrons could not drive up to drop off supplies and luggage for some odd reason. It was very difficult to pull the loaded wagons up the road and on the day that we left we had to haul our things back to our vehicle in the rained.
There was a very large event held in the main cabins on site nearby and at the end of the day all the parking spaces were taken. We had to ask around for the cabin host for assistance as to where we could park. She was very rude when asked about what to do. She told us to park in the over flow parking area which was in a low lying field. It had rain a lot during the week and there were comments from fellow campers of the possibility of getting stuck in the muddy field. We were told by the cabin host that was the only parking option we had and if we got stuck we could call AAA and pay it at our own expense. The park ranger arrived and the cabin host acted very uncomfortable around him and now I understand the reason.
There have been various comments about the park ranger being very hostile and to the point of being aggressive. This is probably due to the aggravation of the park being under staff and poorly trained. Granted he may have good reasons but please do not take it out on the patrons who want to come and enjoy your park especially for the first time. Sorry to say that we came for a gathering with quite a few people with some simple expectations. We paid our parking fee and rented cabins for the weekend with the anticipation of enjoying the great outdoors with some hikes and visiting friends from afar. Instead we all left with great bitter memories of this park and would have much rather pay the high cost of staying at the local hotel in town than dealing with all the hassles that this park has to offer.

Hiking in this park is really nice, there are waterfalls and creeks, miles of hiking. Also for the history buffs this park has an abundant amount of history that changed the country. Wildlife is abundant. Awesome spot for photography. The camping is also not bad however it is expensive to camp in the park even car or tent camping, that would be my only complaint.

What a wonderful place. I live in Fairfax, and was looking for somewhere I could camp (legally) in the woods, but more backcountry than campgrounds. I couldn’t believe that it cost 30 dollars to camp at one of the campgrounds in the area, at a National Park Service one, a place people travel to, I get it, but Lake Fairfax and Burke Lake shouldn’t cost what the Shenandoah or First Landing at Va Beach does. So back to the review, I found that Prince William Forest National Park has 8 spaced out «backcountry «camping spots, situated on a 2 mile loop. Now please understand that Backcountry means nothing is provided, so digging a cat hole for your personal business is the way of it. I arrived at 1640, just before the office closed at 1700. The staff asked me lots of good questions, told me the rules, and after signing the disclaimer, I was handed a key to the gate and off I went. The Ranger said that his favorite site was site 2, which did not disappoint. I drove out of the park to the fire road, (not ideal if you drive a low sports car, my Impreza did fine) and found my turn off where the key let me into the parking lot. There is a portapotty at the trail head, so last chance. I hiked to my spot and after a short steep hill site 2 was awesome, overlooking the river. I setup my ENO hammock and shelter, and setup for dinner. This site is more windy than the others, but that also means less bugs. This spot was awesome as I set my hammock shelter with my feet towards the east, got to watch the full moon rise, and the sun rise. The following things should be noted: stoves only, no open fires slowed. This is the woods, bug to include ticks and such live here, as do coyotes, foxes, deer, possums, raccoons, and such, and you are a guest in their home. They can and do come around looking for food, so hang up your stuff. I was blessed by an owl hooting me to sleep. Now the possible negative (for some) this land butts right up against the US Marine Corp, which can be noisy neighbors. Depending on what they are doing, this can include small arms fire, to include belt fed weapons, and the occasional distant mortar report. Doesn’t phase me, as I grew up around it, but others may not be to happy about it. The end is that it is 7 dollars, or free with your annual NPS park pass, I have found my new place to escape to! My wife, who loves backcountry dirt time, will be returning with me soon!

This park is a haven for tree lovers. The rough trails cut through expanses of deciduous forests and it’s possible to go quite a few miles without being overrun by northern Virginia’s hordes. The farther out you park (along the scenic drive) from the central visitor’s center, the fewer the other people you will encounter. The best trails, we feel, are alongside quiet Quantico Creek; they climb up and fall back down some interesting minor elevation. There are deer and plenty of birds to be spotted along the way. Once while hiking, we encountered dozens of racers taking part in an organized race.
The history of this Park back to the days of the Civilian Conservation Corps is everywhere evident, from the hewn log bridges to the names of fire roads like «MaWaVi Trail» which is the hip 1930s way of combining Maryland-​Washington-​Virginia (today we’ve coined the term «the DMV» for it).
The park’s developed campsites such as Oak Ridge campground are well-​organized and allow nature enthusiasts with fairly minimal camping gear to get away in tents, communing with the wind in the trees, without too much effort. They have flushing toilets and the map indicates camp spots that offer a bit of seclusion – a very helpful feature. There are also some permitted backcountry sites set in the woods to go in with your backpacking gear… and that is pretty impressive within an hour of DC.
I appreciate that its within ½ hour drive of Alexandria but is sufficiently forested to feel like there is a real nature preserve within easy access.

Oak Ridge Campgrounds is a nice easy little camping spot close to DC.
Cost is $ 20 per night for camping and 1 time fee of $ 7 to get into the park
¹⁄₃ of the sites are reserved for walkup — self registration which is awesome. The last time we were there there was ample FREE firewood. You just had to ask the campground steward and they gave you a handful. There is a soda machine which is nice.
There are about 100 tent sties and I’ve hardly ever seen them all full. On our last trip we drove over to Po Hick Bay campgrounds which is about 20 mins away, and immediately turned around and went to prince William.
What is also nice is the campground map also tells you which sites are good for what kind of groups.
Even though you are really close to DC you feel like you are in the woods in a little oasis of calm.
Also for the lazy — you can just pay your park fee at the self registration at the campgrounds if you don’t want to deal with the visitor center.

This was my second time out to this oasis of fresh air in the DC Metro.
If you want another National Park like this; you must drive to the Shenandoah.
There are those that believe $ 7 is too much to pay for this park. I’ve heard some say…‘I pay taxes, why should I pay again’ If you don’t think it’s worth it… stay home.
That way you don’t overcrowd and you can use that $ 7 to put a couple gallons of gas in your tank.
I really like that you can drive up to the oneway road and park your car and just walk on the paved road when the trails are too wet. There are several trails throughout the park of various lengths. None that are what i would consider ‘primitive. There is a nice 3.8 mile trail you pick up from lot E that will take you by the cascade waterfall.
There are plenty of areas for picnic tables. Great two way biking on paved road. There is gravel road for those that want to mountain bike.
Very easy access off I-​95 or Route 619/​Joplin Rd.
I really like the criss crossing of the Quantico Creek and the bridges for viewing the water.
A great place for families and adults of all ages. People are so much nicer when they are not stressed by competing for space.
A great place for attitude adjustment. This should be everyones ‘happy hour.’

Beware of Lyme-​carrying ticks!
We went camping in this park in late May. The camp site we got had a wonderful tree canopy. It’s really a beautiful park, but for camping, there are a couple things to keep in mind. The ranger stations provide no firewood and you are not allowed to bring in your own. So, that leaves you with foraging for wood, of which there is little in the park. Of course, what’s camping without a good fire. You’d be better off finding a place where firewood is provided (always call ahead to check).
The other thing was the ticks. They were everywhere! Not just along paths and through the woods, but all over the camp sites. Most of them were dropping out of the trees and onto our stuff and us. We were constantly checking out our bodies for ticks and fearful of the diseases they carried. We were able to ID most of them as the Lone Star Tick, which are very aggressive and carry up to 3 diseases. Surprisingly, the Park provides little information or warning about ticks. Unfortunately, one of our party (who also happened to use DEET) found a tick burrowed into his lower abdomen upon returning home and was subsequently tested and found to have contracted Lyme disease.

Cabins infested with flying cockroaches. All came out at 10pm while the lights were on. Had to pack up a whole girlscout troop and evacuate. Also found wolf spiders and dead mice in cabins. Just nasty…

The rangers here are terrible! There is next to no parking, even though you have to pay $ 5 for it, and then they ticket you. There are plenty of wooded areas around that are just as nice; Save $ 100 and visit one of those.

I LOVE this park.
It’s an amazing bit of serenity in a crowded part of the country. I come here regularly during warmer months to hike the trails. There is a fee to park which seems fair enough since the grounds are kept in great condition and the rangers have always been extremely friendly and helpful.
I generally take the longest loop along the water. During all of my hiking, I’ve only encountered small groups of people – no overcrowding which is huge for me. I can’t stand places that have more people than the mall. That’s not relaxing to me.
There are tables around for having some pre-​/​post-​hike food which is nice. I haven’t tried camping or the cabins, but it’s crossed my mind. I assume it’d be pleasant.

Wow! What a great place to spend a weekend! Super nice, not crowded and green place. Great area for dogs :). Super clean, friendly and nice environment. It’s a great place to get away from crowd and do some hiking.

With two other dads I took 5 boys to the CCC cabins at Prince William National Forest over Father’s Day weekend. We had a great time and did several great hikes.
I give the Park one star because of the experience I had with the Park Rangers, in particular Officer K3n V@lent1. Here is what happened… We drove to the trail-​head of the backcountry camp site hiking trail which was located off of Breckenridge Road Triangle, VA (Google it using satellite mode). Breckenridge road is a one lane dirt road that is more path than a road. We parked outside of the trail-​head and hiked the loop which took 90 minutes. When we returned to our cars Officer Ken Valenti greeted us as if we were terrorists. He blocked our cars with his van and called for additional support and proceeded to detain us for over an hour. Bear in mind I had five 11 year old boys who were scared that their dads where going to get arrested, were hungry, and tick infested (not an exaggeration). Officer V@lent1 lied to us saying that people had complained about where our cars were parked. That is strange because no one was camping in the backcountry, no one was parked at the trail-​head, and no one drove up and down Breckenridge road for the hour that we were detained. As a result, Officer Valenti demanded the three dads give him our SSNs, our weight, the color of our vehicles (Yes, he was standing looking at the vehicles), he had questions about our residence, and he regularly rattled off obscure laws from the 1970s that required this type of treatment from him. It was bizarre. Napoleon would’ve been proud. So, what amounted to parking tickets cost collectively $ 310 in fines. I’m not above the law, and if I’ve broken it then I will pay. However, the law needs to be applied with discretion to those harmed. In this case no one was harmed; we had hiked for 90 minutes in a very remote section of the park (And returned with litter and shotgun shells that we picked up from sloppy campers) that is it.
I will pay my fines, but it should be made clear that Officer K3n V@lent1 is a problem. Avoid this National Park because V@lent1 will fine-​d you.

Great place for family fun activities, hikes, on road cycling, off road cycling, camping.
I come here regularly to bike, and it’s fun and safe. Very little traffic, both foot, and cars. If you can make it on the weekday, there’s hardly any one there, so you have the entire park for yourself.
Be watchful for the following type of people:
1 — runners with headphones
2 — runners that run in the wrong lane
3 — cyclist with headphones
4 — runners with dogs
4 — runners with dogs taking up the entire road !
I wish the park ranger would enforce some laws against people with dogs that take up the entire road.

I grew up not too far from here and never understood the point of this being a National Park. The woods behind my house had more cool stuff to see and do. I guess nowadays nobody has that benefit anymore because developers bulldoze all the trees to build endless rows of McMansions, townhomes, and strip malls.
The one thing I did used to like here back in the day was the pyrite mine. The machinery had been removed but the denuded hillside gave you a sense of what had gone on there. Now it has been «restored» and just looks like a grassy hillside with a sign explaining how «Something happened here in the past but we’ve totally cleaned it up.» Oh, right, folks don’t have actual nature in their neighborhoods anymore, so just having a grassy hillside with a sign, is special.
I am not against parks or the outdoors. I have visited parks all over the country, from border to border and sea to sea. This is not worthy of being a National Park. Yosemite, Grand Teton, Glacier, Zion, etc.– those are national parks. This is just a bunch of trees. And they’re not even magnificent trees, like you see in Sequoia or Redwoods National Park. They’re just ordinary trees like you can see in your back yard. You do have trees in your back yard, right? Oh.
To adapt a few lines from Joni Mitchell:
They bulldozed all the trees
And put ‘em in a tree museum
Now at Prince William Park
You pay 5 bucks a car just to see ‘em
They paved paradise
And put up a parking lot.

And sometimes… you can hear the gunfire in the distance.
«That’s just cause Quantico’s so close, right?» *laughs nervously*
«Let’s hope so… Let’s hope so.»
«If we’re not trampled by a herd of deer, wanna get phở on the way home?»
A short ride from our abode of old, Prince William Forest Park is a convenient and welcome escape into some lovely Virginia forest. There are woodland trails, 37 to be precise; a variety of routes ideal for a quickie hike after your job sets you free, or you could have a plan and spend a whole day exploring. Car camp, even.
Paths will lead you along babbling brooks, and by beaver-​dammed creeks, and past so many scenic wooded clearings that are just so perfect for reenacting that,
«I’M PRAYING TO YOU! LOOK INTO YOUR HEART!!!» scene from Miller’s Crossing.
Like every time.

If you are itching for a nice hike and don’t want to spend ages in the car — Prince William Forest Park is an excellent option.
You won’t find any beautiful overlooks or waterfalls, but this is a lovely forest and offers a huge network of trails. I love the flexibility of a trail system like this. It’s easy to design a hike that provides exactly what you’re looking for, be it a short walk with your kids/​dog/​whatever or an all-​day hike.
This is a well-​maintained park with clearly marked trails and very helpful rangers, who will happily assist you in plotting a route.
As an added bonus, you pass right by Mom’s Apple Pie Co. in Occoquan on your way back to DC… just saying.

* Easy to miss a turn because of the lack of signage
* Not TOOO much scenery. Was a long stretch of just trees and trail…
* Lots of trails to choose from, though.
* Not too far from the city
* Not strenuous at all… it’s a ‘walk in the park’…literally!
* It is a national park, so if you have the annual pass you’re good. Otherwise it’s $ 5/​vehicle, or $ 3/​person

CAMPING review.
A convenient, scenic camp spot that thankfully had same day camping available when we arrived late in the evening.
There is a six mile drive from the park entrace to the camping area, and another six from the camp back out of the park. It’s a one way loop.
I’ve never been to a campground with more bug varieties, namely flying roaches. There were also giant red and black ants, beetles, daddy long legs, gnats and moths. Surprisingly, no mosquitoes, and I didn’t get one bite from anything else.
The bathroom was pretty grubby and buggy, and there was no dry area to put your clothes in the shower area, but hey, it was nice to have a hot shower.
Overall, just fine for one night.
Cheers–

For a DC resident, this park is a worthy alternative to going all the way to the Shenandoah. There are no mountains or great waterfalls, but for quiet walks in the woods and along creeks this park has hiking galore. Along the way you’ll see evidence of beaver activity and quiet, natural beauty to make you pause and ponder.
On our most recent visit, we enjoyed learning about the history of pyrite mining in the late 1800s, long before FDR established the land as a National Park in 1936. As usual in our capitalist society, the drive to capture and exhaust the resources left the land decimated, and what had once been a river used to export the iron is now Quantico «Creek.» Only a land reclamation effort in 1995 has helped to restore some semblance of what the riverside once looked like.
Already looking forward to returning in the spring as everything starts to bloom for the year.