Coal Road

Total Miles
13.3

Technical Rating

1

Easy

Best Time

Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter

Trail Type

Full-Width Road

Accessible By

Show in App
Coal Road
8

Trail Overview

Coal Road is a 13-mile-long forest service road near Shenandoah Acres Campground and Sherando Lake. Any vehicle type should be able to travel the gravel sections, and the road is paved on either end. You will find many hiking and biking trailheads along the road, the most notable being Cellar Mountain. Cell signal is okay along the trail, and the trail has two-way traffic. One road intersection near the center leads to the town of Stuarts Draft, which has numerous walk-in campsites along the way, with only a handful accessible by vehicle. Coal Road provides access to the Bald Mountain Jeep Trail and Turkey Pen Trail, both open seasonally.

Photos of Coal Road

Coal Road
Coal Road

Difficulty

It is a paved and gravel fire road.

Technical Rating

1

Status Reports

Mark Bertolino
May 22, 2025
4x4
Open
Normal
Dusty
East road most any regular car would be fine. some pot holes here and there so watch your speed because they can sneak up on you and give you a good jolt. Dispersed camping sites along the road but be prepared to pick up garbage at all of them because people have trashed this area. It’s a shame because some of the sites are beautiful.
Ali Dichiara
Dec 20, 2024
4x4
Open
Normal
Eastern entrance on Coal Rd. is open, didn't go all the way down but was open for at least 1/3 of the road. Beautiful day, nice wilderness vibes.
Lukas Muehlberg
Dec 08, 2024
2002 Land Rover Discovery
Temporarily Closed
Fire Danger
Closed due to fire on the western end. Bald Mountain is also closed.
Wallace Browning
Dec 08, 2024
4x4
Temporarily Closed
Fire Danger
All trails in this area are closed due to a forest fire. Roughly 2000 acres are affected.

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