Woods Creek Park and the park trail form a ribbon of green space two miles long, running virtually from one end of Lexington to the other. Near its south end the park contains open spaces and a playground area. Going north on the trail, one walks along Woods Creek through groves of pines, cleared forest, grassy areas and back through cleared areas at the north end of the trail. The trail passes under a large stone culvert that once carried the railroad over Woods Creek. After passing the W&L law school, the trail follows the old railroad bed to the end of the trail near the Maury River.
Currently, there is no easy connection between the northern terminus of the Woods Creek Trail and the Chessie Trail. To reach the western end of the Chessie Trail, go east on Old Buena Vista Road (Route 631) at the end of the Maury River bridge three-tenths of a mile and look for the sign on the right for Chessie Trail parking.The trail is also accessible from Stuartsburg Road (Route 608), where the South River flows into the Maury, and at the Eastern terminus, Stuartsburg Road (Road 608) at U.S. Route 60 near Buena Vista. The Chessie Nature Trail follows the old road bed of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railroad for 12 miles between Lexington and Buena Vista. Along the trail, hikers can see relics of the railroad and of the canal that came up the Maury to Lexington.
The trail is open from dawn to dusk every day except Christmas Day. No vehicles are permitted on the trail, but bicycles are allowed, though there are several fixed gates that make bike use difficult. There is a nice three-mile ungated stretch of trail from the western terminus to just east of where the trail crosses under I-81. For a trail map, go to https://www.vmi.edu/media/content-assets/documents/chessie-trail/Chessie-Trail-Tourism-Map.pdf
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