Virginia Outdoor Adventures: Hiking, Camping, Kayaking, Local Travel and more!
From the Blue Ridge Mountains to the Chesapeake Bay, Virginia is a mecca for outdoor travel and adventure. Virginia Outdoor Adventures Podcast is your local guide to hiking, camping, kayaking, travel and so much more. Get the information and the inspiration to plan your own adventure, right here in Virginia. Lets Go!
Virginia Outdoor Adventures: Hiking, Camping, Kayaking, Local Travel and more!
Virginia’s Adventure Towns: King George – Rivers, Rail Trails, and Recreation between the Potomac and Rappahannock with Jenna and Warren Veazey, Friends of Caledon State Park and Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Trail (Ep 79, Part 1)
Nestled between the Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers, King George County is a destination that offers adventure on land and water.
Our guests, Jenna and Warren Veazey, members of the Friends of Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Trail and the Friends of Caledon State Park, lead us on an exploration of this Northern Neck community’s hidden gems.
Hike, run, or cycle the Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Trail, a converted railway where you’ll find everything from smooth, accessible pathways to more rugged terrain. Along the Dahlgren Trail, you’ll discover “Poetry on the Trail,” featuring works by Virginia poets paired with nature facts, inviting trail users to connect with the landscape.
We’ll also explore Caledon State Park, known for its old growth forests and abundance of Bald Eagles. Caledon offers primitive riverside camping, guided kayak programs, and wildlife viewing.
King George provides multiple river access points for kayaking, fishing, boating, and more. And when the adventure winds down, you’ll find waterfront dining and local breweries and wineries serving up the best of the region.
Jenna and Warren help you plan the perfect King George weekend getaway full of natural beauty and unforgettable Potomac River sunsets.
Find it all between the rivers in this Virginia Adventure Town. Let’s Go!
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Mentioned in this Episode:
48-Hours of Unforgettable Outdoor Adventure in King George
Dahlgren Railroad Heritage Trail
Episode 26. Elizabeth River Trail
Dahlgren Trail Maps and Access
Potomac and Rappahannock Rivers Access
Episode 59. Wandering Waters Paddle Quest
Fan Mail - Send Jessica a Text Message
Contact Show Host, Jessica Bowser:
jessica@virginiaoutdooradventures.com
Jenna and Warren, welcome to Virginia outdoor adventures. Thank you so much. We're so excited to be
Unknown:here. Yeah, can't wait to talk about King George with
Jessica Bowser:you. What do you love about King George?
Unknown:It's a little jewel of a rural county surrounded by the big cities of DC and Richmond and two rivers, but it still has some high tech Navy base. So there's plenty to do for outdoors and also for work and life. And in an hour or so, get to a city, or an hour and a half get to a mountain up in Shenandoah. So has a lot to offer. I think, hands down, I was gonna say natural beauty. It's so gorgeous here. It's coastal, as Warren said, It's nestled in between two rivers, the Potomac and the Rappahannock, and just all the wildlife and flowers and everything.
Jessica Bowser:Could you two describe King George a little more for people who are completely unfamiliar with it, sure
Unknown:it's uh, east of 95 and Fredericksburg, that's our exit. There's really only three ways to get into the county. Is route three from Fredericksburg, the 301 nice bridge from Maryland, or the 301 bridge in Port Royal from down south. So unless you're boating in, those are the three roads to get into the county. Yeah, it's an old, old farming and fishing county that, because of the Navy base at Dahlgren, developed into a high tech hub, and a very noisy one at that, because of all the gun testing and that they do on the base. So if you come here, expect to hear the sound of freedom. But because of that, there's a lot of good jobs and lacks. Think we have the highest ratio of PhDs in the state because of that, because of all the scientists and engineers working here at the base. So it's an interesting mix of farmers and and physicists in
Jessica Bowser:here. Tell us about your involvement with the Friends of the Dahlgren railroad Heritage Trail and the friends of Caledon State Park.
Unknown:Sure, the third time we moved here, we came we're just above Caledon, and we joined that to have our kids have a place to learn about nature and whatnot, and then we're actually looking as the kids got older, it's like, Alright, where do we teach them how to ride a bike? Because all the roads are dirt. So just turned out that a friend that we started a little biking group with got contacted to help open, privately, an old rail trail that goes through the county a rail to make it into a rail trail. So we started volunteering back in 2006 and for the last 19 years, been out maintaining the trail and taught the kids how to ride a bike, taught the kids how to hike. Now They've all moved on, and we're still out here volunteering at Caledon and the friends of the dog and trail. In some ways, I feel like we identified really early on, when we moved here, how important Caledon State Park was and how beautiful it was, and so we really it was important to both of us to be volunteers there. Warren kind of dipped his toe in first becoming the Friends of Caledon getting on the board. And then, as he said, When the dog run railroad Heritage Trail friends group started forming, he decided that he needed to volunteer there. And so I took over his position. With our kids being a little bit older, I took over the position his position at the Friends of board, I assisted in the beginning with some of their art and wine festivals, and now I continue mainly as a volunteer Master Naturalist, helping out with some of their programming. So we're still, we're still pretty involved, and then I think we will get in a little more deeply later on, about a poetry installation on the dog and railroad Heritage Trail. So little teaser,
Jessica Bowser:yes, I'm excited to dive into both the Rail Trail and the State Park, because I feel like both of those are gems in King George County. And in fact, I am super excited to have both of you as guests. Do you remember when we met each other a couple of years back at an outdoor adventure Expo, and you two came up to me, and you were telling me about poetry on the trail and about Caledon, and we hit it off right away, because I'm a member of the Friends of Mesa next state park. You're a member of your friends groups, and I think we had that volunteerism and stewardship connection right away, and so we, I think we were fast friends. So when you two were identified as potential guests for this episode, I thought that was absolutely perfect. Because of your involvement in the community, your involvement in the trails and the parks, I think it's you were the perfect choice for this episode. So I'm super excited to talk about the Dahlgren Trail and the state park, and, of course, also the river access, because that's what makes King George County. I mean, there's two major rivers to the north and south of the county, and I think there's like, 131 miles of shoreline, and that's just amazing. That's that's a. Think it makes King George really special. It does indeed. Okay, so let's kick it off by talking about the Dahlgren railroad Heritage Trail. Can you give us some information about the trail?
Unknown:I'll try to keep it short. Let's see. So in 4142 is when the Navy decided they needed to have a railroad to the Navy base, because back then, the river would freeze over quite often, several months a year, and they needed to test fire every gun, every large caliber gun that was gonna go out to the fleet before they put it out on the fleet. So couldn't have it, you know, shut down for a couple months out of the year. So they built this railroad from Fredericksburg all the way to King George, to the base, and used it until about 62 actually has a commuter rail in addition to, you know, carrying the ammunition and whatnot, switch it over to Norfolk Southern, I guess, and our RFP, Richmond, Fredericksburg and Potomac railroad, I guess, CSX eventually took over the whole thing, and they stopped really using our section of it, I think an 8682 86 timeframe. So they put it up for sale. None of the local Jason property owners wanted to buy it. So a Joe Williams, who was on the planning commission here in the county, saw sitting around on bought for years, and he thought it would be a perfect opportunity to buy and and give it to the county as a county park. So he did that the county said they did. Weren't interested. They actually were a little unhappy in the years past when Caledon State Park became a park in 76 that they were losing their real estate taxes for the land when it becomes a state park. So they weren't interested in taking it. So he bought it, and then David Brickley, who was was the head of DCR department Conservation Recreation, actually came out and visited. It said, Oh, this would make a great part. So he attempted to do that during his stay in office down there, but couldn't get it through. So he decided, alright, we're going to open it up and let the public use it. And so we've been doing for the last 19 years. It's been a private property, a free permit that you sign up and agree not to be a bad neighbor to any of the 100 and some properties that touch the trail. And we have approaching 10,000 free permits of people to come out, to use, use the trail. We hold several races over the year. I think we just literally yesterday, had our 17th annual 50k and, I think, 16th annual half marathon, just yesterday, on Saturday, and the first week in August, 1 weekend in August. And then we also do a race in February. Another local resident has started his own race called sheets to sheets. It's now in April, which sells out within like an hour, 350 spots. Then we do other, you know, bike events and whatnot on the trail, built a couple campgrounds, picnic tables, have a lot of Eagle Scout projects to help help us maintain the trail. We were donated a 1917 wooden and iron Caboose and freight car, which we're working on maintaining or trying to rehab, because obviously, wood doesn't last so well when it gets rained on for 100 years. So that's our big focus right now, besides improving the surface of the trail to hopefully, in the next couple years, with a a bill from down in Richmond to add it to Caledon State Park. That's what that's our mission of the friends group is to make it a part of the state parks, so that's what we have been pushing. And let Jen and I'll talk about one of the things that she came up with to help have help people interact. As you can tell, we're very involved with with the dog and railroad Heritage Trail and lots of scheduled activities, races, bike events. And when you go out on the trail, you will see people walking their dogs or running for leisure. And I earlier mentioned how I'm just such a nature lover. And I really love watching the birds, the wildlife, and the trail is so varied. You have farmland, you have forest, you have marshy areas, wetlands, really, really gorgeous opportunities to see wildlife. And I thought, wow, we have these really neat benches along the trail, but I never see anybody just kind of hanging out. And, you know, watching birds, watching for wildlife. I say birds because I think of the green Heron and the Great Blue Heron that we often see, along with all the turtles and sometimes Beaver and muskrats even so cool. So I thought, Well, I'm a I'm a poet and a poetry lover, and poetry in public spaces is not a new idea. Wouldn't it be super cool to somehow get poetry on this trail, and I thought, I know QR codes. So along those benches, we have a series of seven. I installed a QR code on each of those seven benches with really kind of unique vistas. And if you use your. Phone to pull up the QR code, you can get a poem, a nature poem, written by a poet living in Virginia. You can hear it read to you in their voice. And then I worked with my local Master Naturalist group to actually put in some, I call them nature notes, about what's so unique about that particular spot that you're standing in, you know, are there Paw Paws behind you? Or may apples along the along your feet? Are you looking at a beaver made wetlands? It's called poetry on the trail. My hope in creating it was that a the users who are already familiar with the dog run railroad Heritage Trail would be invited to kind of sit with the trail a little more intimately. And the other hope was people who had never heard of the dog and railroad Heritage Trail might think, oh, that's kind of cool. Let me go visit that. Let me go check that out. And then would become trail lovers, just like us.
Jessica Bowser:It is really cool. When we were together on the trail, we went to all seven benches, and you scanned every QR code, and I thought it was really beautifully presented the way there was a photo and then the poem is printed on your screen. But also, like you said, you could hear the author reading it in their own voice, and then to have some actual facts about that area. I think it gives people an opportunity to really interact with a trail and with nature in a way that probably they wouldn't otherwise. I mean, to be able to learn about like you said, beaver created marshland. I mean, maybe people will notice a beaver or a beaver hut when they're going by, but also maybe they wouldn't otherwise, just a really great opportunity to interact and learn something. And some of these poets are so talented. I mean, I was moved almost to tears a couple of times just how beautiful the writing is, and they're all short. You know, nothing is very long, but just a little short snippet that really gets you thinking about the beauty that you're surrounded by, and how lucky we are to have it.
Unknown:And we have such wonderful it's such a wonderful showcase for all the poets that we have in Virginia. We change over the poems every season, we're just getting ready to have our this is our third season on the Dahlgren railroad Heritage Trail. So we're just getting ready to change over. By the time the podcast airs, we'll have a new new crop of poems on so we're constantly having a reason to invite people to come back. Come hear these poems.
Jessica Bowser:It's very unique. And doesn't the Dahlgren trail also have a sister trail somewhere else in Virginia that does something similar.
Unknown:It does. It does. I'm so excited. Last year we partnered with the Elizabeth River Trail with one of my favorite people ever, Kendra, and we have poetry on the trail now on the Elizabeth River Trail. Yeah, that
Jessica Bowser:is so cool. And I bring that up because not only is it something that people would be interested in, but Kendra McDonald Green has been a guest on this podcast in the past. She's the Executive Director of the Elizabeth River Trail. I should probably put a link to that episode in the show notes for anybody who would like to learn about the Elizabeth River Trail down in Norfolk. But I think it's so cool that the two of you get together and you put a call out for entries, and anybody who wants to submit can right. And then the two of you go through all those poems and select the ones that are going to be chosen for the next period of time. So I mean kudos to both of you for for doing that so that the rest of us can enjoy it.
Unknown:Thank you. Thank you. It's so much fun.
Jessica Bowser:I want to talk a little bit more about the trail, just as far as like, what the surface of it is, like, how long it is, where the access points are, so that anybody who wants to come ride the Dahlgren trail is prepared and knows where to go. So Warren, could you talk a little bit about those details? Sure, the trail
Unknown:itself is, I think, 15.7 miles, the last half mile to get to the eastern end at 301 right at gate B of the Dahlgren base is privately held, but it still exists, and I'm sure it will be kept and hopefully eventually donated, along with the other 15.7 as we cleared it, we had some limited funding from Jay Gerald, a local developer from spot See, whose son was also an Eagle Scout with some of our friends. And that's he loved it and donated a lot of money, and that's what allowed us to pull up all the railroad ties. But we just left, you know, the gravel underneath it was cut and fill. So the to build it very quickly, they cut the hills and used whatever materials on that hill to push into the valley when the Navy created it. But because of that, it's a lot of loose round gravel. Over the years, they've added, you know, some. Blue Stone from up in the Shenandoah occasionally, and then we had enough money to cover about four miles with stone dust. So it's almost like hard, like a sidewalk from the western end where the caboose is at, route 605 in the county. It was about a mile and a half side by side with the railroad, because there actually were a line of two tracks there, and we pulled up one track and left the other one there. So we actually can use it for pumper cars and stuff for about a half a mile. But so that that first mile or so with stone dust and nice and smooth, and then it goes to the whatever the material was in the hillside next to you until mile eight. And then again, we had stone dust for about a mile and a half past the where the poetry on the trail is and campsite. So you could actually even use a wheelchair in those sections. But the rest of the trail you really want, like, you know, a mountain bike to or running, and it's going to have roots and occasional railroad tie that we didn't pull up, you know, if it was stuck on roots or something. So it is very much more of a trail with, you know, gravel and whatnot in between for 14 of the 12 of the miles. Yeah, you're going to kind of see all kinds of different surfaces there. And, you know, as we get grants, we're looking hopefully to do another half mile of stone dust, and we've gotten grants to help pave into the parking lot so you don't spend your tires when you're pulling up onto the existing state roads. But I think we have five real state crossings, you know, regular state roads, six to five, as I mentioned, common road is a good parking lot, Indian town road 610 is another good parking lot, right in the center of the trail. And then you really need to go all the way to the far to the eastern end, where you can park at the Walmart parking lot or the sheets and walk onto the trail from there, and that's where we have the run. Just this past weekend, we had 260 runners down the trail from one end to the other and back. So it's well used, but it does vary. So that's one of the things we're trying to do as friends, is improve the surfaces as we get our funding. That's, you know, besides the caboose, that's our major thing that we all the funds that we get goes to 100% of all donations go to that to improve the trail.
Jessica Bowser:That's fantastic. And I would also note that there is a website that has a map and all the access locations. And I'll link that in the show notes, so that people don't have to try to figure out where these access points are. There are addresses that you can plug into your GPS to get you there. But I think for planning purposes, the type of surface I think is most important to note, because, like you said, in at Mile Zero, it's pretty accessible. So if you've got young kids with you, or you're walking in. You have strollers or wheelchairs or whatever it may be, the beginning of the trail is pretty friendly for that. But then, like, once you start getting farther down the trail, then it's more like a hiking trail. And like you said, rocks, roots, you know, who knows what. So if you don't have a type of bike that they can accommodate that, then you're probably going to want to stick to the beginning of the trail, yeah. But we had,
Unknown:like, one of the Eagle Scout projects was for a handicap accessible pick a table at the Mile Zero. So, you know, we've got a few little gems here and there, but, yeah, the rest of it's very much still rough. So yeah, you have to, if you look at the link, I think we have little descriptions on our dog and trail.org website that kind of gives you the hint, you know, between this section of this section, you're going to have, you know, large stones or, nope, this is good stone dust, you know, you can, you know, take a baby stroller out if you want,
Jessica Bowser:right? And can you talk a little bit about permits, and then also, like, group events or overnight stays, because that's a possibility as well. So,
Unknown:as I mentioned, it's, it's privately owned. David Brickley, the owner has a real simple, you know, we set paper permits to, you know, free permit to use the trail. Obviously, everybody wants everything digital now, so we've gotten to the point where we have QR codes that you simply put in your name and address and click, I agree not to wander off the trail, leave trash, you know, the usual, and leave no trace, and then you're good to go and allows you and up, I think it's up to 10 friends to come along with you. We do have another Eagle Scout project, where we built a campground around mile eight and a half, which about a half a mile off of the parking lot area where we hold our, you know, annual New Year's day now, because we're getting old, instead of New Year's Eve parties. But there's, I think, four picking tables there. We just bought some new ones, large fire ring with a wire screen that I built over top so you can use have a fire year round. That screen helps you cover the open fire law, but, yeah, it's you just have to contact us betrayal, to say, Hey, I would like to use the campsite. It's free. Just want to make sure you're using it and nobody else crashes your your tent. So we just try to it's strictly for scheduling and de conflicting, just letting us know we're going to use it.
Jessica Bowser:Yeah, I was really surprised to see that, that there was a large picnic area with room to set up tents and and whatnot. I thought that was really unique. You don't often see that. And. Trail. So that was kind of nice. And for it all to be available for free, you just need to go to the website and put your information in. I think that's fantastic. And then, Jenna, do you want to say exactly on the trail where the poetry spots are?
Unknown:Yes, thank you. The poetry on the trail is actually located right in the middle of the 16 roughly 16 miles. So it begins around mile eight. The entire trail is one mile long out, and then you have to come back, and it's accessible from the route 610, parking lot, and there's a little lot there with room for several cars, and that is the same place where you would go to access the that campground area. So we have had events there, which has been a nice little bonus to have all those picnic tables,
Jessica Bowser:aside from the Dahlgren railroad Heritage Trail, King George is surrounded by two major rivers in Virginia, which I think is what makes it so unique. We've got the Potomac and the Rappahannock. So for people who love water sports and are drawn to water activities, could you go over some of the access points and what people need to know
Unknown:Sure, on the Rappahannock side, we have hop yard landing, which is a new NWR spot that was put in with, I think it's parking for like, 12 Tre, you know, boats and trailers. So it's, it's got plenty of room. It does fill up with fishermen on the weekends, but it's actually quite large and and new. And then down river from that, just below the 301 Port Royal section of the county is Wilmont landing, which is much smaller, you know, gravel, but still has good access. And that's much quieter part of the river on the Rappahannock and then on the Potomac side, Caledon actually has a, you know, a mile and a half or more of of riverfront, but there's no driving down to it. You have to hike down about two and a half miles. They have a to the campground. I think we have six spots and a kayak rack or whatnot, so you can put in there, and I assume it's free. I don't think anybody's ever portages boarded their kayak down that far the 301 bridge. We have a little small county park called wayside, which you can park 50 yards away from the Sandy River, and you can drag your boat over and put in there. And then we have two privately owned boat launches, machody Creek Marina and Dahlgren, which also rents kayaks and whatnot. You can put in there, and has a nice cafe. And then over on upriver is Fairview beach. We have Fairview Fairview beach Marina right now doesn't have a restaurant attached to it, but has a full, full service Marina for gas and and for launching, and then Tim's too, I believe, will let you launch right at the base of the pier restaurant and park there. So those are the current accesses we have to the river. Let's in the military. Obviously you can put in at the maybe base as well.
Jessica Bowser:There's lots of water access in King George. But I think this is great for anybody who's interested in fishing, for wildlife viewing, for camping, and, of course, for paddling and boating and any of those water activities. There's there's great access points. What I thought was really enjoyable was how much wildlife there is. I mean, we saw so many different things in just two short days, everything from birds, we saw bald eagles, we saw Ospreys, herons, all kinds of other wildlife. And it was so cool to see those things up close. I think there's great opportunities for wildlife watching that probably not that you couldn't see them in other places, but there's really an abundance of wildlife there.
Unknown:Yeah, we're still very rural county, like there's 28,000 residents in the whole county, so there's a lot of green space, a lot of connected green space, so all the animals can still get around. You know, they're not isolated in little islands from development. So there's, it's still a very vibrant wildlife area to be able to see everything. And you know, we're a major stop, I guess, for bald eagles and a lot of you know, other ducks and things flying north and south twice a year. So we have all them popping in, so things just every month or two. The view is completely different with new animals moving through. Occasionally, we'll have a bear or two that'll wander down from the mountains, exciting the whole county, and everybody's watching their bird feeders. But yeah, we have being in the middle of the Atlantic flyway, I guess is, I guess you would describe us. There's so much
Jessica Bowser:to see. And then as just as far as access, I wanted to make sure we pointed out if you have your own boat or kayak or canoe, it's best to bring it, but if you do not, I'm glad you mentioned majoda Creek Marina, because you can rent them there. And so that's one place to rent them. And then the other really great option is Caledon State Park, because they have guided kayak programs. I'm pretty sure they do a morning program. And then. The Evening Program is really popular, like, if you if you want to go on a sunset paddle, you better get on their website and call up the park to make your reservation, because otherwise you might be out of luck. They fill up pretty quickly. I understand
Unknown:it is one of my favorite volunteer activities to help out with their paddling programs. And yeah, you're absolutely right. The sunsets on the Potomac are just amazing,
Jessica Bowser:absolutely stunning. And for anybody who is doing wandering waters paddle quest, which is paddling at all of the state parks that offer paddling opportunities, you're going to want to do one of those guided paddles. Because unlike other parks where you can bring your own Kayak or your own canoe and just put in, like you said, it's a very long walk down to the water, several miles, and most people are not going to want to carry kayaks that far, so you're going to want to sign up for a guided paddle program with the park. I think
Unknown:we had a donation for I think there's 12 kayaks and the large trailer, and they load everybody up in the van, and it'll drive you down to the site and put you in with all the equipment you need. And, yeah, it's an hour or two paddle to a marsh. So you'll, you know, lovely. You know, often see muskrats there, all the ducks, of course, and herons, and there's always eagles flying over top of you. And then you come out of night and see, you know, there's a full moon paddles as well. So there's lots of different paddling events we hold, you know, as well as you know, OWL prowls and all the other events that every State Park is able to do
Jessica Bowser:as well. And I just cannot overstate how gorgeous the sunsets are. When I did and I did a podcast episode about wandering waters paddle quest and Ranger Sammy was the guest, and he used to work at Caledon State Park, and he talked about how those sunsets are absolutely epic. I think he actually said it was one of his favorite places to
Unknown:paddle. I think I remember hearing that and just being like, yeah, we remember Sammy from from back in the day too. He's what got us hooked onto the friends group, originally, back in the days, it doesn't surprise me, he's a great asset to the county, to the state park system. You.
