Skip to content

A Bike around Town in Fredericksburg

Fredericksburg is the perfect city for biking, due to its long list of scenic trails, activities to find for all ages, and good weather. Whenever I ride my bike, I always start on the canal path, because of its serenity and comfortable paved trail. From my house on Winchester Street, I biked the canal path across Fall Hill Avenue and turned left on the bridge. I then kept going forward until I reached the Rappahannock River Heritage Trail, which was very lively with so many people enjoying the cool morning weather.

After a quick break, I crossed Princess Anne Street and continued down the Heritage Trail. I turned left at the bottom of the hill, where I read Otter Lee Brave, an illustrated book by Rena Cherry Brown featured in the Fredericksburg StoryWalk. A line of signs pictured each page of the book for passersby to read. Once I reached Old Mill Park, I turned around and made my way back to the beginning of the Heritage Trail. I decided my next destination would be the Farmers Market at Hurkamp Park, so I started to bike down Princess Anne Street. 

On my way to the park, I noticed the Sprelly building was being painted. The owners were nice enough to let me in, and I got to buy some tasty White Chocolate Caramel Peanut Butter popcorn, which was made in collaboration with The Popcorn Bag, another local business. The inside of their shop is just as fun as the outside, with their PB&J-themed flooring and counter tops. Learn more about what they sell here. I continued down Princess Anne Street, turned right on Amelia Street, then turned left on Prince Edward Street. 

This led me straight to Hurkamp Park, where the Farmers Market is held Saturdays from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. To find out more about it, visit this post. There was a variety of vendors selling art, fresh food, produce, and more. I bought a large loaf of cinnamon swirl bread and some fresh strawberry and mango lemonade. After looking around some more, I made my way back home on Winchester Street. 

This trip was about 2.5 miles, and lasted me over 2 hours. Having done just a few activities, I can only imagine how much more time could be spent biking around town. Although I wanted to ride the new protected bike lane on the Chatham Bridge, my route went much differently than planned. Across the bridge in Stafford County, the bike path goes down River Road, and past Brooks Park, Pratt Park, and Chatham. Someday it might even be possible to bike under or over Interstate 95 on the Virginia Central Railway Trail. There are also tons of off-road trails at Motts Run Reservoir and along the Rappahannock River in Celebrate Virginia. To learn even more about the bike-ability of Fredericksburg, visit this interactive map, which shows parks and trails throughout the city. Also watch this video to learn more about bike racks like the one I used at Hurkamp Park. Stay safe, and remember to keep an eye out for more things to do on our Find Things to Do in Fredericksburg page.

-Written by intern Robert Snead