Walking Trail

The Purcell Park Trail is a beautiful trail in Harrisonburg and only a few minutes off I-81 for folks looking to break up long drives. The Bluestone Trail also crosses over the Purcell Park Trail at two intersections, making it easy to extend or your hike or add in variations. There are multiple parking lots on Monument Avenue to access the trail. Starting from the northernmost point next to the parking lots, you can take a right at the first fork a few feet past the tennis courts to hike alongside Blacks Run. There are multiple information panels to educate visitors about Blacks Run, its ecosystem, and efforts that were taken to restore the creek's water quality to healthy levels. The trail continues straight over a bridge and loops around the pond. It crosses over the paved Bluestone Trail and heads into an open meadow into the southern corner of the park near the highway. The trail turns back to the north paralleling the highway and then switchbacks over a bridge over Siebrites Creek and then joins the Bluestone Trail for ~100'. The Bluestone Trail continues straight onto Butler Street, but the Purcell Park Trail takes a left hand turn toward the baseball diamond. Continue past the diamond and then the playground and then eventually return back to the tennis courts. This is a popular trail for runners, walkers, and dog-walkers, so be sure to be friendly and call out when you'll be passing them.