June is National Outdoors Month and June 5^th is National Trails Day. In celebration of and in support of local trails and outdoor spaces, during the month of June a number of local breweries are giving their patrons menu options that contribute to local trail non-profits. A portion of the proceeds from select menu items will go to help maintain, operate, and expand the network of trails in the Charlottesville area.

In the City, Beer Run, Kardinal Hall, Random Row, and Selvedge breweries are supporting the Rivanna Trails Foundation. In Nelson County, Devils Backbone is supporting the Rockfish Valley Foundation, which manages trails in the Nellysford/Old Wintergreen area.

If you like the outdoors, whether hiking, biking, birding, or simply enjoying the view of nature around the area, please visit one of the sponsoring establishments, and refresh yourself while helping to support the refreshing surroundings in Central Virginia.

The Three Notched Trail is a 25-mile car-free trail proposed to run from Charlottesville to Afton Mountain -- and someday be a key link connecting the Capital Trail in Richmond to the Shenandoah Valley. The next step is a feasibility study, for which VDOT has already offered funding. Please voice your support encouraging the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors to proceed with a VDOT-funded feasibility study of the proposed trail.

Due to construction, the RTF's River North Trail has been rerouted through the Belvedere neighborhood. See the map below for the new trail alignment. 

Directions: Coming from Pen Park or or the Dunlora neighborhood, the trail now veers to the left (orange connector trail) and onto Farrow Drive in the Belvedere neighborhood. Turn right on Farrow and soon left onto Fowler Street. After a block, make a right onto Belvedere Drive, a gravel road, until making a left and jumping back into the woods before the tree line. This section follows an old fire road until it reconnects with the original River North Trail beyond the construction zone. We are working on adding new signage and updating our maps. 

Many thanks to the Dunlora and Belvedere community members who built this reroute, as well as the Belvedere developers for working with us to make this reroute possible. For your safety, as well as to help us maintain our community relationships, please stay on the designated RTF River North Trail system. If you have any questions please contact us at info@rivannatrails.org.

Belated thanks to Paul Kay, a student a UVa who served the RTF this past summer as our first-ever intern. Regular users of the RT may have seen Paul as he walked every inch of the trail, cataloging maintenance needs and noting where clarification signs are needed. Chief among his accomplishments was the creation of a detailed signage improvement plan that will guide our wayfinding efforts in the years ahead. Thank you, Paul!

The Charlottesville Track club is hosting the Men's Four Miler on October 31. The run/walk event will be held--with proper social distancing--on a new grass course at Foxfield that made its debut with the Women's Four Miler last month. It's a great opportunity to explore a new course and support cancer research at UVa. Details are at https://mens4miler.weebly.com.

The Rivanna Trail lost one of its earliest visionaries and long-time advocates with the passing of John Conover on Sunday, October 4. In 1992 he was one of the founding board members of the RTF, and he helped clear some of the first segments of the trail. Named a Charlottesville Bridge Builder in 2002, John also served as a member of the Charlottesville City Council, on the board of the Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society, and with the Legal Aid Justice Center. We are grateful for his service to the Rivanna Trail.

The trailhead at the end of Kenwood Lane, at the southeast corner of Greenbrier Park, is temporarily closed for construction. Storm water pipes are being installed, after which the City will add fencing and stone dust to improve the entry to the trail. The closest alternate entry to the trail and park from the south is at the end of Jamestown Drive.

News of the opening of the bridge at Woolen Mills was premature -- there are some outstanding inspection and permitting issues that are being worked through with the County, and until those are complete the bridge is closed. We've reached out to the County for more information and a possible timeline, and will post here when we learn more.

We've had reports of sightings of a female coyote following walkers with dogs on the Willoughby Loop (between 5th Street and Jordan Park). It's believed there are pups in the woods. Small mammals of this sort aren't generally a risk, though they can become threatened by aggressive dogs and will protect their young. (As a reminder, dogs are required to be on leash on the entire Rivanna Trail.)

The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources has tips for dealing with wildlife furbearers: https://dwr.virginia.gov/wildlife/urban/.

The new bridge at Woolen Mills is officially open, closing a major gap in the Rivanna Trail loop. As you head out to explore the new bridge, please be especially careful along the segment between Rt 20 and Woolen Mills. Our dedicated trail adopters and volunteers have been hard at work mowing and trimming, new trail blazes are coming soon, and we have more improvements planned once we are able to resume monthly work parties. However, portions are rocky and challenging (and we've also had reports of a downed tree after the recent storms), so watch your step.