Ellett Valley Recreational Area is located near the boundaries of Blacksburg and Christiansburg, Virginia. We drove to the trail by taking South Main Street to Ellet Road (which becomes Cedar Run Road), turning right onto Jennelle road, and then taking a quick left into the trailhead’s parking lot. Primary activities on the trail include hiking and dog walking. Parking is free but only has enough space for a few cars. There are no restrooms or water. Cell phone service was intermittent while on the trail. The following Google Map shows an accurate green marker denoting the location of the trailhead but the dense forest canopy prevented my Google phone from recording accurate GPS coordinates for the trail.
The Ellett Valley trail loop is 1.0 miles long with changes in elevation ranging from 1,800 feet to 2,000 feet.
Stay left at what looks like the first trail intersection. The intersection for the loop includes a trailhead sign and map. The trail didn’t appear to have been used recently because grass was growing in the middle of it, spider webs were draped across it, and plants were hanging over its edge.
Notably, the following looks like Poison Ivy and was hanging over the edge of the trail.
The trail has at least eight interpretative signs that feature topics such as mushrooms, beetles, and birds. Its short length and abundance of species make it a fun place for people of all ages to connect with nature.
At the intersection where the lead up path meets the loop is a an area set up to be an outdoor classroom.
On the trail, I used my tree guide book to identify the following as Sugar Maple because its leaves are opposite, simple, palmately lobed, smooth around the edge, and consisting of five lobes.
In sum, Ellett Valley Recreational Area is a place to enjoy a peaceful, easy hike because it does not appear to receive many visitors. Similar trails nearby include:
Two Knobby Tires 