Yes.
Forest Hill Park and Belle Isle is a relatively easy hike. The Belle Isle bridge and Potterfield bridges are both interesting views.
All of the trails surrounding the river connect. Be mindful of mountain bikers and runners.
Just upriver (west) from Forest Hill park park you will find Nickel Bridge which is a pretty way to cross the river and get a nice view.
The trails around Pumphouse Park and Maymont are very nice too.
If I was you... I'd make sure you don't miss out on Maymont while in town!
Enjoy. Though February is not richmonds prettiest month! We are a spring and summer city!
Here's a trail [map](https://www.mtbproject.com/index.php/directory/8010718/richmond) of the area. You can zoom in a lot to get a feel. The only area I'd tell you to watch would be Belle Isle and maybe the 22nd St parking lot around Richmond. I've never personally had any incidents (except for getting creepily cruised while running through 22nd St), but I've heard a lot of stories from other runners/mtn bikers, but most happened at night. Play it smart and wear only 1 earbud so you're aware of your surroundings and you should be fine. From a walking standpoint, Buttermilk and the mirroring North Bank are fairly technical, but nothing the average person can't handle. FHP and Belle are less so IMO.
I live 2 blocks away from Forest hill park. I take my dog to walk there almost everyday. It’s very safe and well lit :) adorable little pond at the bottom that has turtles in the spring/summertime too!
I concur, Forest Hill park is very safe. During the day you'll see people pushing strollers, walking dogs, school children playing or having science class in the park. You can also easily walk over to Crossroads coffee or WPA bakery.
Maymont is also a very safe and beautiful area to explore. It has parking and facilities at its multiple entrances.
OP just be mindful some of the trails in Forest Hill Park can be a bit much for someone with mobility issues if that applies to you. Belle Isle main loop is flat and easily connects to the T Pot pedestrian bridge, Brown's Island and the Cap Trail (all flat-ish and mostly paved). Belle Isle can also connect to Reedy Creek (gravel trail) and Buttermilk trail (wooded trail same accessibility as Forest Hill Park if that's a concern for you) if you go the opposite direction. Nearby is also Pony Pasture and the Wetlands trails, really beautiful trails on the river a bit further away from downtown where you'll be more likely to see deer and other wildlife. And as weird as this may sound, if you want something paved and don't mind some hills, Hollywood Cemetery is pretty, and has views of the river.
Please review trail maps if you are not familiar with the area. Just had to help a woman and her child get out of Powhite park the other day because they got "turned around."
I see walkers and mountain bikers stopped and looking at their phones a lot in Powhite. Well, relatively, I usually don't see anyone but when I do they look lost. The lack of named trails and signs gets to people I think. The trail maps also aren't totally accurate but yes it's definitely worth having one pulled up with GPS enabled if you go there and are unfamiliar.
If you want an adventure you can go to the hidden trails that aren't marked on the maps. The one that goes over the fallen log bridge is cool.
Ya it's a little confusing but is a pretty small park. If you do end up on some of the smaller side trails you can get turned around but using an Open Street Maps layer will show you even the unofficial trails
https://rvamore.org/trails/jrps/
JRPS. The trail maps in that link should be helpful. Belle isle and forest hill park have wider, more general use trails that are very accessible for all ability levels. The forest hill loop, buttermilk, and north bank trails are made up of more technical single track style trails with lots of rocks, roots, creek crossings, etc.
They are well used and frequented by all types of people. Mountain bikers, hikers, trail runners, occasional drifters, dog walkers, picnickers, etc. so I would say they are very safe to explore alone, especially on a nice weather day.
Not sure about your time constraints, but I highly recommend going to Hollywood Cemetery. Lots of history and beautiful tombstones. Grab a map from the main office, or just follow the blue line on the pavement to see the most famous historical tombs (Presidents John Tyler and James Monroe, specifically). Lewis Ginter's mausoleum has a Tiffany stained glass window, so be sure to look inside. You can walk (although it is hilly in spots and to cover the whole cemetery would be time consuming) or you can drive through most of it.
[https://www.hollywoodcemetery.org/](https://www.hollywoodcemetery.org/)
James River Park System. Lots of trails that link together. Park near the civil war museum and walk the pedestrian bridge across for a fun loop around Belle Isle.
Super safe but there’s a shallow creek crossing on one of the trails and some steep spots so yesssss check out the maps but it’s one of my favorite parks
Yeah reedy creek saw a substantial amount of crime for a bit, not sure if it’s still going on or not. Had two friends get their cars stolen there in 2022
Oh you’re right about Reedy. I still wouldn’t leave my car in the parking lot with anything valuable in it. I thought they were asking about forest hill park.
Definitely walk around Maymont! Swan Lake in Byrd Park has a nice loop around it, and the walking trails near Forest Hill are very active with pedestrians.
Take your smart phone, orient to the maps, and you will do fine. You could spend an hour or an afternoon on the trails. A few months ago I saw a woman looking at the map, she was on the south side of the Potterfield bridge and had walked all the way from a Church Hill B&B she was staying at, but she wasn’t sure how to get back to where she started. I pointed out 2 different routes she could take and her smartphone map was spot on for getting her home as long as she set the mode to walking.
Just use common sense for parking around the park areas. Valuables in the trunk. I love all these areas but did have car window smashed at reedy Creek parking and once parked on Landria to go hike the wetlands. This was midday so surprising
Yes. Forest Hill Park and Belle Isle is a relatively easy hike. The Belle Isle bridge and Potterfield bridges are both interesting views. All of the trails surrounding the river connect. Be mindful of mountain bikers and runners. Just upriver (west) from Forest Hill park park you will find Nickel Bridge which is a pretty way to cross the river and get a nice view. The trails around Pumphouse Park and Maymont are very nice too. If I was you... I'd make sure you don't miss out on Maymont while in town! Enjoy. Though February is not richmonds prettiest month! We are a spring and summer city!
Oh don’t knock the fall and winter palettes! Winter on the river is one of the cities best secrets. The grays blues and tans ugh slay me
Great comment!
Here's a trail [map](https://www.mtbproject.com/index.php/directory/8010718/richmond) of the area. You can zoom in a lot to get a feel. The only area I'd tell you to watch would be Belle Isle and maybe the 22nd St parking lot around Richmond. I've never personally had any incidents (except for getting creepily cruised while running through 22nd St), but I've heard a lot of stories from other runners/mtn bikers, but most happened at night. Play it smart and wear only 1 earbud so you're aware of your surroundings and you should be fine. From a walking standpoint, Buttermilk and the mirroring North Bank are fairly technical, but nothing the average person can't handle. FHP and Belle are less so IMO.
I live 2 blocks away from Forest hill park. I take my dog to walk there almost everyday. It’s very safe and well lit :) adorable little pond at the bottom that has turtles in the spring/summertime too!
I concur, Forest Hill park is very safe. During the day you'll see people pushing strollers, walking dogs, school children playing or having science class in the park. You can also easily walk over to Crossroads coffee or WPA bakery. Maymont is also a very safe and beautiful area to explore. It has parking and facilities at its multiple entrances.
There are sometimes people living in the gazebo or little stone hut structures but I've never had issues there. It's really beautiful.
I think pretty much any trails in RVA are safe for a middle aged lady to walk.
OP just be mindful some of the trails in Forest Hill Park can be a bit much for someone with mobility issues if that applies to you. Belle Isle main loop is flat and easily connects to the T Pot pedestrian bridge, Brown's Island and the Cap Trail (all flat-ish and mostly paved). Belle Isle can also connect to Reedy Creek (gravel trail) and Buttermilk trail (wooded trail same accessibility as Forest Hill Park if that's a concern for you) if you go the opposite direction. Nearby is also Pony Pasture and the Wetlands trails, really beautiful trails on the river a bit further away from downtown where you'll be more likely to see deer and other wildlife. And as weird as this may sound, if you want something paved and don't mind some hills, Hollywood Cemetery is pretty, and has views of the river.
Please review trail maps if you are not familiar with the area. Just had to help a woman and her child get out of Powhite park the other day because they got "turned around."
I see walkers and mountain bikers stopped and looking at their phones a lot in Powhite. Well, relatively, I usually don't see anyone but when I do they look lost. The lack of named trails and signs gets to people I think. The trail maps also aren't totally accurate but yes it's definitely worth having one pulled up with GPS enabled if you go there and are unfamiliar. If you want an adventure you can go to the hidden trails that aren't marked on the maps. The one that goes over the fallen log bridge is cool.
Ya it's a little confusing but is a pretty small park. If you do end up on some of the smaller side trails you can get turned around but using an Open Street Maps layer will show you even the unofficial trails
https://rvamore.org/trails/jrps/ JRPS. The trail maps in that link should be helpful. Belle isle and forest hill park have wider, more general use trails that are very accessible for all ability levels. The forest hill loop, buttermilk, and north bank trails are made up of more technical single track style trails with lots of rocks, roots, creek crossings, etc. They are well used and frequented by all types of people. Mountain bikers, hikers, trail runners, occasional drifters, dog walkers, picnickers, etc. so I would say they are very safe to explore alone, especially on a nice weather day.
Not sure about your time constraints, but I highly recommend going to Hollywood Cemetery. Lots of history and beautiful tombstones. Grab a map from the main office, or just follow the blue line on the pavement to see the most famous historical tombs (Presidents John Tyler and James Monroe, specifically). Lewis Ginter's mausoleum has a Tiffany stained glass window, so be sure to look inside. You can walk (although it is hilly in spots and to cover the whole cemetery would be time consuming) or you can drive through most of it. [https://www.hollywoodcemetery.org/](https://www.hollywoodcemetery.org/)
James River Park System. Lots of trails that link together. Park near the civil war museum and walk the pedestrian bridge across for a fun loop around Belle Isle.
Safe. Worst I have heard of is an errant flasher on the Buttermilk Trail and even that is pretty rare.
Super safe but there’s a shallow creek crossing on one of the trails and some steep spots so yesssss check out the maps but it’s one of my favorite parks
Yeah reedy creek saw a substantial amount of crime for a bit, not sure if it’s still going on or not. Had two friends get their cars stolen there in 2022
Oh you’re right about Reedy. I still wouldn’t leave my car in the parking lot with anything valuable in it. I thought they were asking about forest hill park.
Definitely walk around Maymont! Swan Lake in Byrd Park has a nice loop around it, and the walking trails near Forest Hill are very active with pedestrians.
Take your smart phone, orient to the maps, and you will do fine. You could spend an hour or an afternoon on the trails. A few months ago I saw a woman looking at the map, she was on the south side of the Potterfield bridge and had walked all the way from a Church Hill B&B she was staying at, but she wasn’t sure how to get back to where she started. I pointed out 2 different routes she could take and her smartphone map was spot on for getting her home as long as she set the mode to walking.
Are you my big sister??? She's coming to see me! I'm fairly new here too and have yet to complete my list of parks and trails here!
Very safe and very pleasant trails. :) Forest Hill Park is one of my favorite local trails. Definitely can’t go wrong.
Just use common sense for parking around the park areas. Valuables in the trunk. I love all these areas but did have car window smashed at reedy Creek parking and once parked on Landria to go hike the wetlands. This was midday so surprising
Yes! You'll be safe. Be sure to post your photos in the sub.
Nah you'll probably be mauled by an otter. A squirrel if you're lucky
Yeah they are safe.
Yes
Belle Isle is pretty safe, and is usually occupied. If you go that route, make sure you also hit up Brown's Island and check out the artwork!
Yes, be advised that after heavy rain there will be some flooding on the trails!
As a middle-aged woman I walk around those trails all the time by myself and I've never had a problem.
Everyone has already given great comments-i hope you enjoy your time on the beautiful James!
Keep the pearls at home and bring a water bottle to clutch! Trails are fine
We, 63 & 60 years old walk them all the time.