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Conservancy warns repairs to trestles will close large section of Virginia Creeper Trail
Summary
The Virginia Creeper Trail Conservancy told the Washington County Board the worst‑off trestles will require closures that could shut the trail above Taylors Valley during repairs; bids are planned for early October and work aimed for a Dec. 1–March 1 window to limit peak‑season disruption.
Lisa Quigley, executive director of the Virginia Creeper Trail Conservancy, told the Washington County Board of Supervisors on Sept. 24 that two trestles on the upper trail — identified as Trestle 30 and Trestle 31 near mile marker 24 — require significant structural work and will need to be closed while crews repair them.
Quigley said the two trestles have no road access and can only be reached through the trail, so closure of the bridges "means no trail traffic above Taylors Valley will be permitted, period." She described a plan to confine major work to a roughly 90‑day window, beginning Dec. 1 and ending March 1, to avoid the busy spring and summer recreation season.
The conservancy asked the board to recall that the county previously approved $387,000 in ARPA funds for Trestle 31; additional costs and emergency shoring installed after inspections created an unexpected shortfall. Quigley said the U.S. Forest Service transferred $56,000 from Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) funds to help cover core‑sampling and emergency work, and that the conservancy expects to advertise a targeted bid process on Oct. 2 through the nonprofit (three companies have already expressed interest).
Board members asked about public notification, potential sporadic openings during the winter window and whether a master plan exists for inspections of all trestles. Quigley said the conservancy is pushing for an engineering firm to inspect every trestle consistently so the highest‑priority repairs across the 34‑mile corridor can be identified and costed.
The presentation did not include a request for new county appropriation at the meeting; Quigley said the conservancy would follow up with staff and continue coordinating with the Forest Service and town officials as bids and scheduling are finalized.
