10 Reasons to Love the Tobacco Trail

I just love navigating Halifax County’s Tobacco Heritage Trail, a four-milepath of crushed stone that is great for biking, hiking and horseback riding.

In Washington D.C., the trails were too crowded on weekends. On weekdays, the hazard was baby strollers.

Here are reasons why I like South Boston’s trail better:

1.  It’s rarely crowded. In fact, I have to be sure to carry my phone in case anything happens to me at times no one is there!

2.  The people are friendly. Says Gerald King, “It is rare to pass anyone on the trail and not get at least a friendly wave or greeting.”

3.  The trail is kept in good shape. Says Nick Nichols, “South Boston has one of the best maintained trails I have ridden.”

4.  Trees on both sides keep much of it shaded in the summer. There are picnic tables, horse stands and even a bathroom, rare on most trails.

5.  Wildlife is abundant. There are deer, squirrels, rabbits, small turtles and occasional snakes. There have been sightings of black bears, coyotes and bobcats.

6.  The trail was extended from the 2 ½ miles constructed in 2006 to 4 miles in 2018. That made it long enough for a decent round-trip bike ride, though maybe not for younger people.

7.  It’s a great place for community events, such as 5K runs.

8.  Parking is easy. The simplest route to get there is west on Edmunds Street and south on Railroad Avenue.

9.  Its history is remarkable. Most locals know about the Crossing of the Dan at Boyd’s Ferry, in which Revolutionary War patriots evaded British troops near the current South Boston. But there was another crossing, Irvine’s Ferry, which ended up near the current trail. A marker is being considered. Just off the trail is a Diamond Hill Memorial, a cemetery for slaves and others who worked at Berry Hill Plantation.

10.                           When Jefferson Davis fled Richmond for Danville at the end of the Civil War, he traveled right over this trail (well, not on a bicycle!) It was part of the Richmond and Danville Railroad, which later became the Southern Railway before its conversion to a trail.

 

Maybe not all is perfect:

—The lower part floods occasionally.

—Biking is slower on crushed gravel roads than on pavement.

— King recommends insect spray for walkers in the summer.

—There is occasional horse manure (eww.) though I haven’t seen any lately.

— Plans to extend the trail farther west were dropped because of the cost, but there is a possibility of more trail into South Boston.

(You can see more at the Facebook page that I manage: Tobacco Heritage Trail Halifax County.)