Dismal Swamp State Park

Map of TRACK Trail through Dismal Swamp State Park

The Dismal Swamp State Park TRACK Trail follows the Swamp Boardwalk, an accessible half-mile loop. You can get a feel for the Swamp without getting your feet wet!

For those seeking more adventure, the park also offers more than 20 miles of hiking and biking trails following old logging roads through the Swamp forest. Or, enjoy a leisurely paddle along the historic Dismal Swamp Canal. Visitors may bring their own canoe/kayak and/or bike at no charge. Rentals are available for an hourly fee through the park office.

Come see why George Washington called the Dismal Swamp "a glorious paradise," learn about the Swamp's rich cultural history as a home to maroons seeking freedom from enslavement, its role in the Underground Railroad, and the ecological importance of swamps and wetlands in the Visitor Center's exhibit hall. All of this and more can be found 3 miles south of the NC/VA border on US Hwy 17.

Track an adventure here

Location Details

Recreational Features: Canoe / Kayak, Picnic Tables, Interpretive Programs, Birding

Amenities: Restrooms, Visitor Center

ADA Compliant: Partial

Seasonality:

Kids in Parks trailhead sign with brochures

Adventures for Dismal Swamp State Park

Track Adventure

e-Adventure

Hiking

Nature's Hide & Seek

Difficulty:

Easy

Trail length:

0.50

The Nature's Hide & Seek brochure is designed so that kids of all ages can walk along the trail and discover common things that are often overlooked in nature. Some of them are hard to find, others are easy. Best of all, the adventure never ends because every time you walk the trail you will discover new things hiding in nature.

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Track Adventure

Hiking

Finding Ferns

Difficulty:

Easy

Trail length:

0.50

The Finding Ferns brochure is a fun and challenging adventure. Follow the illustrations and clues to find as many of the ferns as possible. You're going to have to be a nature detective to find them all.

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Track Adventure

e-Adventure

Hiking

Flower Power

Difficulty:

Easy

Trail length:

0.50

Many flowers depend on relationships with pollinators to reproduce. Use the clues in this brochure to see how a flower’s size, shape, color and smell have the power to attract unique pollinators.

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Track Adventure

Hiking

The Underground Railroad in Dismal Swamp

Difficulty:

Easy

Trail length:

0.50

By the mid-1800s, four million people in the United States lived as slaves. The Dismal Swamp was a safe haven for many people who were escaping slavery in the South. Discover how escaped slaves could live in the Swamp in freedom.

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