A Compendium of Hikes in and near Roanoke, Virginia
A fall hike at Bottom Creek Gorge
UPDATED: 2/26/2023
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We are lucky to live in the beautiful Blue Ridge mountain city of Roanoke, Virginia, a valley with endless outdoor activities and amazing vistas. Even without leaving the city, there is a dedicated Greenway trail system with over 400 miles of trails and a Blueway (waterway) system for canoeing and kayaking and other water activities. Carvin’s Cove, a reservoir with both water and land activities, including over 60 miles of paths, is the second largest municipal park in the entire country.
As for exploring all of this? The struggle is real.
Outdoor activities have played an outsized role in our domestic and foreign trip planning. But when it comes to our own region, we have explored far fewer hikes after over a decade here than we sometimes cram in to one week somewhere else.
The excuses are varied and both legitimate and not. Weekend weather is often crummy or unpredictable, several popular hikes in the area are packed and run out of parking very early, summer humidity is gross, winter cold is biting, and there are so many other priorities pulling at us on weekends. That is the beauty of a trip away from home - there are no chores piling up!
But, we have started to make some solid headway and are trying to prioritize exploring new hiking areas that we can share.
Because we post a fair amount about our own region, we are creating this as a single post that we will keep updated and linked to new Roanoke-area hikes as a one-stop-shop.
Waterfall at Fenwick Mines
Booker T Washington National Monument
Roaring Run Furnace
To be clear, there are a significant number of other hikes we have gone on that we did not post about, so we will only capture here ones that have a specific post we can link to! We will also be creative with how we define “hikes” - there are some spots that have other historical interest, for example, but also include decent paths and trails. In terms of location, these need to be within a reasonable day trip from Roanoke.
hikes within 30 minutes of downtown roanoke, virginia
Carvin’s Cove: Hiking Horsepen Trail
Read Mountain Preserve - 3.5 mile loop: Buzzards Rock, Crossover Trail, Rocky Way Trail
hikes within one hour of downtown roanoke, virginia
Booker T. Washington National Monument - also check out our winter visit to the site here
Johnson Farm and Harkening Hill Hiking Trail & Living History at Peaks of Otter
Roaring Run Furnace and Waterfall
hikes within two hours of downtown roanoke, Virginia
Roaring Run Falls
Fenwick Mines - site of a former mine filled in with water
Cascades Waterfall frozen in winter
Booker T Washington National Monument
We want to hear from you! Have you been hiking in Roanoke or Southwestern Virginia? What hikes are your favorites or off-the-beaten-path? Share in our comments box below!
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Check out our other posts about Virginia:
Northern hiking and exploring
Follow us on our 10-day road trip through the Scottish Highlands and Isle of Skye