Doggin’ Northern Virginia: Top 10 Places to Walk Your Dog in NOVA

Have you ever wondered how much you walk with your dog? If you walk just 15 minutes a day, you will have walked enough in your dog’s life to cross the United States. With everything ahead of you, aren’t you ready to take your dog on a hike to a new place in Northern Virginia? Here are the best NOVA trails to hike with your best friend…

1. Sky Meadows State Forest

When you put your park in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, away from traffic-clogged eight-lane highways, you have to work hard not to be the best place to walk your dog in Northern Virginia, and Sky Meadows isn’t. disappoints. The real star here is the meadows – your dog couldn’t walk any better.

2. Mason Neck State Park

A half-dozen dog walk options through an attractive oak and holly forest on soft, paw-friendly ground is pretty enough that you’ll want to complete them all with your dog. If you have time then stay at the best beach for your dog in Northern Virginia.

3. Prince William Forest Park

The many miles of forested trails on the largest swath of protected land in the Washington DC metro area are refreshingly unpopulated, always an attraction for canine hikers. The trails are wide enough for a pack of dogs to travel easily and are well marked.

4. Great Falls Park

You may come for the spectacular views of the Potomac Falls, but you’ll stay for the dog walks on wide trails that take your dog through a variety of habitats and the ruins of a colonial canal town. However, save the swimming for another place.

5. The Battlefields of Manassas

Two five-mile interpretive walks examine the fighting between North and South along this Civil War battlefield. For your dog, these hikes offer the best mix of open country and wooded trails in Northern Virginia.

6. Claude Moore Park

This East Loudoun oasis offers a pastiche of a dozen short trails that add up to more than ten miles of dog walking. You can choose from two trails that circle the park, both of which visit Little Stoney Mountain for long views on Sugarloaf Mountain in Maryland.

7. Fountainhead Regional Park

Fountainhead is a park for trail users. There are reserved horse and bike trails, and the White Llama Pedestrian Trail is a meandering two-mile jaunt around wide ravines and airy woods. For true canine adventures, you can hit the 18-mile Bull Run-Occoquan Trail.

8. Leesylvania State Park

There are three loops to enjoy with your dog in Leesylvania, the star being Lee’s Woods Trail. This dog walk packs a lot of history into its sporty two miles over bluffs overlooking the Potomac River. For easy walks with your dog, take the Potomac Trail through the old waterside amusement park that was part of the gambling den. Lots of beach and swimming time for your dog here too.

9. Harpers Ferry National Historical Park

Few places in the United States pack as much scenic wonder and historical importance into an area as small as Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, where the Shenandoah and Potomac rivers join forces. Your dog can try tri-state hiking here: up the mountain in Maryland Heights, through town in West Virginia, and across the Appalachian Trail in Virignia.

10.Mount Vernon

America’s most visited home is dog-friendly to the core: Door attendants provide a bowl of water for canine visitors. George Washington would not accept it any other way. The Father of Our Country is also the Father of the American Foxhound. He bred a new breed of fox hunter with dogs from his friend the Marquis de Lafayette and English hounds. The president preferred silly names for his beloved dogs: Drunk, Tipler, Tipsy.