James River Hikers - Hiking With History

You need to be in relatively good shape to do this hike. It is not a beginner or no drop hike.

We leave exactly at 6:15 pm. If you are late, you may be able to catch up by walking East on Dock Street to the Flood Wall pedestrian walk-through at the end of the Canal Walk or on the paved Capitol Trail. ***This is a moderate paced hike with a few short rest stops depending on what group wants at the time. This hike is short (5.1 miles, 3.5 mph, 17 min miles), but can be very *challenging due to all the flights of stairs we climb during this hike (thus is the reason it is called the "Mountain Training Hike"). Even though this is a group hike, each participant is welcome to choose whether he or she wants to do some stairs that are considered "optional" and opt out of doing any of the stairs at any time since there is no pressure from the organizer or other members. There will be several overlooks of the Richmond Skyline, Church Hill, and/or Shockoe Bottom. Hydrate before & during hike. Bring a headlamp, flashlight, or use your mobile phone flashlight app. when it is not Daylight Savings Time.

*You will take over 10,000 steps (not stairs) which is well over the daily recommended amount in two hours. There are several sets of stairs to tackle which equals 1,149 stair steps but once again each participant decides which ones he or she wants to climb during the hike. The terrain is mostly paved and brick sidewalks. Some sidewalks are uneven. There is also a short dirt decline which has the usual stumps and small rocks. We will have brief breaks to take in the beautiful views of our city.

PARKING: Park for free on the street. OR Park at the Capitol Parking Lot on Main Street directly across from the Amtrak Train Depot - costs $2 for 3 hours, $3 for 4 hours, or $4 for 5 hours.

DOGS: Dogs are welcome. Please bring plastic bags to pick up your dog's droppings.

What we’ll do:

We’ll meet near the benches at the start of the Vita Course near 2701 Police Memorial Way. Parking is available along Police Memorial Way and Spottswood Road. Our route will vary between the Vita Course, the lakes, the Carillon, the pump house, the Dogwood Dell trails, and the Boulevard Bridge. Sometimes we may even venture over to Maymont or Texas Beach. The distance covered will be 3 to 5 miles, taking about 2 hours. Leave your dog at home, since dogs aren't allowed on the Vita Course or in Maymont.

We'll do 6-7 mostly brisk miles around the river, Buttermilk to North Bank. On Belle Isle we will take the eastern trail to hike to the Pedestrian bridge.

This will be a mostly brisk pace. Know your capabilities. There will be some roots and rocks to traverse along with hills and stairs. Trekking poles may be helpful.

We start by crossing the Nickel (Westhampton) bridge, then go under the bridge heading east.

We pass thru Reedy Creek and follow the Buttermilk to the 22nd St. tower. We will go down to the ‘mini’ pipeline and follow it to Belle Isle.

After crossing Belle Isle we take the Northbank back west to the Pump House. We pass Oregon Hill, then Hollywood, Riverview and Mt Calvery Cemeterys. We also pass by Maymont. Past Maymont we head back up to the Pump House parking lot.

We will pass by a few port-a-potties if you need to stop.

Come on down and enjoy some Chester Hospitality; Holiday Lanes, a long time Chester Institution, has lowered their lane fee and shoe rental fee for James River Hikers! Join your fellow Hikers for a few VERY friendly non-competitive games of bowling from 3:30 to 5:15. Whether you are a beginner or a seasoned pro this is a good way to have some fun, get to know your fellow Meetup members and end the week. For those interested we can go for dinner afterwards. Don't judge a book by its cover. The inside of this alley has been completely renovated with new lanes, state of the art electronic scoring and a 50's retro snack counter. No money was spent on the parking lot, exterior of the building or sign. Please note, the entrance sign on route 1/301 is rather small. This entrance is on left side of route 1/301 just past route 288. Shoes FREE!! Games $3:00 only!!!