First Landing State Park Loop

Starting at the Trail Center, proceed southeast (the obvious direction) along the Cape Henry Trail, which is flat, very wide and well-used by hikers, runners, and mountain bikers. Water collects in the middle of the trail in a few points after heavy rains. You'll pass interesting bald cypress swamps along this trail, which you stay on for a little more than 2 miles. Turn right through the turnstile to begin the White Hill Lake Trail, which is narrower and continues about 1.4 miles. This trail introduces some rolling hills and rootier and sandier terrain. The highlight of this part is the view of White Hill Lake at the end, just before it meets the Long Creek Trail. Turn right (the obvious direction) on the Long Creek Trail. Immediately after beginning this segment, there are excellent views where Long Creek empties into Broad Bay, with good birding opportunities, best in the early and later parts of the day. The trail at this point crosses a low wooden bridge which ends at an elevated viewing platform. The trail continues for about 1.5 miles along rolling sandy trail along Long Creek. The scenery gets progressively less natural, with views of houses and boats as the opposite shore gets closer. It is still very pretty though! The last 1/2 mile of the Long Creek Trail turns back inland across more coastal forest and swampland, before meeting the park road that you exit through a turnstile. Turn right and complete the last 1/2 mile of the hike down the park road back to the Trail Center.

The park is named based on the belief that it is the site where colonists first landed in 1607. The park was created as a Great Depression-era Civilian Conservation Corp project and previously (when I grew up in the area) was known as Seashore State Park. The CCC was racially segregated at the time, and the builders of the park were an all African-American camp.