Gilbert's Corner Regional Park

There are two main, connected, trails; a small grass covered 'bluebird trail' and a longer one that leads into the woods. The longer trail is a nice respite from the city and the shorter is definitely designed with children in mind. If you walk the shorter loop, it is easy to hop onto the longer trail. The parking lot is immediately north of the roundabout that has Mt. Zion church. It is the second roundabout east of 15. If you come near sunset, you can see the sun lower over Bull Run Mountain. Even the parking lot would be a nice place to unwind for a moment. There is a little library in the parking lot, so a nice place to read a book, take a book, or leave a book. Speaking of libraries, the smaller bluebird trail has a 'story trail' from the Loudoun County library. There are small signs with pages from a children's story book placed about every 30 feet along the trail. They seem to change them with some frequency, and the changing of the seasons seems to be a theme of the books they select. I don't know how far north the larger trail goes. I have only walked about 30 minutes with a toddler, but there is a charming little creek and quite a bit of wildlife. It doesn't take long before the sounds of 50 are extinguished and the tranquility of a trail established. Throughout the fall and spring, there is a bit of mud, but nothing unmanageable in sneakers. This is a dog friendly trail: plenty to sniff and not many thorns. My photos were taken in February or early march---it is much greener during the summer.