Rocky Run and Ox Hill Battlefield

Let's enjoy a spring hike along Rocky Run Trail in Chantilly, with a visit to Ox Hill/Chantilly Battlefield!

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Ox Hill/Chantilly was a Civil War battle (and battlefield) that is often overlooked.

Smarting from his defeat at the Battle of Second Manassas in 1862, Union General John Pope ordered his army to retreat to the safety of the Union fortifications of Washington DC. Anxious to cut off and destroy Pope's army, Confederate General Robert E. Lee ordered the corps of his trusted lieutenant, "Stonewall" Jackson, to block Pope's escape.

Jackson's corps arrived at Ox Hill several hours ahead of the Union forces, but being exhausted from the previous days' battle, both Jackson and his corps settled down for an afternoon nap and made no move to close the intersection of Little River Turnpike and Warrenton Pike (Germantown).

By the time the equally exhausted Union elements arrived, it was 5 pm and raining cats and dogs, with thunder and lightning. Jackson's forces outnumbered them quite handily (by well over 3 to 1) and repulsed their attacks, often in hand-to-hand fighting, yet made no attempt to advance and secure the road junction through which the Union forces must escape.

While Pope himself was discredited, his army's valiant attacks at Ox Hill secured both its valor and the route of its retreat to the shelter of Washington's fortifications. Pope's Army of Northern Virginia was no more, but its soldiers were incorporated into the Army of the Potomac, where they would recover to march north and fight again.

The aftermath of the battle was that Lee was forced to choose. After a long summer of armies moving and fighting across it, northern Virginia's crop fields were picked clean of sustenance. Lee could not stay where he was; his army would starve. It was a choice between retiring south for the winter, giving up all the gains of his successful summer battles and the lives lost achieving them, or moving north in the hope that a bold invasion might obtain independence for the Confederacy. He chose the latter, and the campaign that followed culminated in the Battle of Antietam, the bloodiest single day of the war.

The route: From the parking lot at 4601 Stringfellow Rd, we'll head north on the sidewalk to the Rocky Run Trail, turn right (east) and follow the trail along Rocky Run all the way to the intersection of VA-286/Fairfax County Parkway and Monument Drive. From there we'll follow Monument Drive east along the sidewalks, first on the north side and crossing over to the south side at the Fair Ridge Dr intersection, until we reach Ox Hill Battlefield. After doing a 0.25-mile loop of the battlefield, we'll retrace our steps along Monument Dr and Rocky Run Trail to our starting point at Greenbriar Park.

This is an out-and-back hike of 4.8 miles, with a .25 mile loop at the halfway point, for a total distance of just over 5 miles of smiles. The hike should take about 2 hours at a moderate pace, though we may dawdle a bit reading the historical markers at Ox Hill Battlefield. The surface is fairly level and a mix of paved sidewalks and gravel trails, with a couple of bridges, stepping stones, and crosswalks. There are some puddles here and there from melting snow.

Google map: http://tinyurl.com/jttlera

How to get there: From the I-495 Capital Beltway (either direction), take I-66 W and drive west for about 6.3 miles. Take exit 57B for US-50 W toward Fair Oaks/Winchester and follow US-50 W for about 4 miles. Turn left onto Stringfellow Rd and drive 1.3 miles SW, through two stoplights at the intersections with Poplar Tree Rd and Point Pleasant Dr. The entrance to Greenbriar Park Field 2 will be on your left. See https://goo.gl/maps/VkRKEWryjsB2

What to bring: Water, comfy shoes, and your furry friend if desired. Looks like wonderful weather, but mind the layered look this time of year. You may want to bring a change of socks and shoes in case you encounter a puddle.

Weather: The forecast is partly cloudy and high of 63 degrees. http://tinyurl.com/bo3gw

Advisory: As a reminder, this is an adult group, and you are ultimately responsible for your own safety and well-being during events. No one under 18 years of age is allowed at this event, either as members or as guests, to include babies in carriers and/or strollers.

Administrative stuff: There are NO restrooms at Greenbriar Park! (It's winter, so the portable ones usually at the ballpark are gone.) There are a couple of commercial establishments near Ox Hill Battlefield across Monument Drive in Fairfax Towne Center, so you may wish to make a pit stop on your way to the hike. See below for addresses.

Notes:

• Greenbriar Park, 4601 Stringfellow Rd, Chantilly, VA 20151. http://tinyurl.com/jlsa8la

• Ox Hill Battlefield Park, 4134 West Ox Rd, Fairfax, VA 22033. http://tinyurl.com/h7vn2w5

• The Battle of Chantilly at the Civil War Trust: http://tinyurl.com/hbj2c8g

• Chutzpah's Deli, 12214 Fairfax Towne Center, Fairfax, VA

• Panera, 12120 Fairfax Towne Center, Fairfax, VA

• Safeway/Starbucks, 12200 West Ox Rd, Fairfax, VA