Prince William Forest Park

Prince William Forest Park Welcome to the official page for Prince William Forest Park. The park is the largest preserved green space in the Washington, D.C. area.
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Founded in 1936 as Chopawamsic Recreation Demonstration Area by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), these woods and streams welcome campers, hikers, bikers and nature lovers. Prince William Forest Park offers 4 campgrounds, 5 cabin camps, 37 miles of hiking trails, and 21 miles of bicycle-accessible trails. The park also offers a rich history spanning from the American Revolution to present da

y and intersects with two national trails. More information about the park's history and recreational opportunities can be found on our official website. Prince William Forest Park is managed by the National Park Service (NPS) under the Department of the Interior (DOI). While this is an open forum, it is also meant to be one in which individuals of all ages, life stages, and backgrounds are encouraged to participate in a respectful manner. The National Park Service and the Department of the Interior encourage inclusion, respect, and comfort in all aspects of visitor enjoyment, including their virtual experience. The administrators of this page will strictly enforce the National Park Service’s social media policy which can be found at www.nps.gov/subjects/digital/social-media.htm

08/31/2026

World War II Across America’s National Parks: An Introduction

As we celebrate the 250th anniversary of our nation, we embrace the story of America from our founding to today. National parks help preserve many chapters of that story, including one of the most defining events of the 20th century: World War II. Sixteen million Americans served under arms, more than 400,000 were killed, and countless millions more supported the war effort at home. The war touched every part of American society, and little was left unchanged—including national parks.

For the next 16 weeks, leading up to the 85th anniversary of the attack on Pearl Harbor, the National Park Service will take you across the country to explore America's experience in World War II through the lens of national parks. These sites preserve different parts of America's wartime story, including both triumphs and tragedies. This list of parks is by no means exclusive, nor are the stories that will be shared. They represent just a fraction of the war's impact on our parks and the nation, with many of those impacts still felt today.

To follow the series, use . Each Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, a new park will share its story and point you to the next stop in the journey.

The series begins here at .

Image Caption: WWII enlisted visit Grand Canyon National Park.
Image Credit: NPS/Emily Welch

National Park Week is ending, but the adventure does not stop here. We explored remarkable national parks within two hou...
08/30/2026

National Park Week is ending, but the adventure does not stop here. We explored remarkable national parks within two hours of Washington, D.C. Together, they protect roaring rivers, mountain forests, historic farms, forts, battlefields, performing arts and monuments honoring democracy, freedom, service and sacrifice.

You could explore them all in two days, but it could take a lifetime to discover every trail, place and story. Return to finish the hike you started. Join a ranger-led program you missed. Share a memorial you love with a new friend. Volunteer to care for a park that inspired you.

These places preserve America’s story, strengthen our communities and belong to all of us. They also need all of us to help them thrive throughout the nation’s next 250 years.

Keep exploring. Keep learning. Keep protecting. https://ow.ly/8uI550ZFoX2

Today is Junior Ranger Day! Junior Ranger of all ages can stop by the Visitor Center to pick up a Junior Ranger Book or ...
08/30/2026

Today is Junior Ranger Day! Junior Ranger of all ages can stop by the Visitor Center to pick up a Junior Ranger Book or join park rangers for Junior Ranger Arts and Crafts near the visitor center at 2:00pm. If you can't make it to Prince William Forest Park, check out how to complete the Junior Ranger online at https://www.nps.gov/prwi/learn/kidsyouth/junior-ranger.htm. What is your favorite Junior Ranger memory?

National Park Week continues with Junior Ranger Day! Next on your tour is Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical ...
08/30/2026

National Park Week continues with Junior Ranger Day! Next on your tour is Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historical Park, where every junior ranger mission can stretch for 184.5 miles.

This National Junior Ranger Day explore, learn and protect the park as you trek along the historic towpath, see canal locks in action, cross iconic aqueducts on a model canal boat, and discover the stories of canal builders, workers, and communities that lived and worked along the canal's waters and the park staff and volunteers who protect it today. To participate, pick up a book at a visitor center or download a Junior Ranger activity book. Curiosity has no age limit, and grown-ups may report for Junior Ranger duty as well! Whether you’re biking or hiking, fishing or canoeing the C&O Canal has something for everyone. https://ow.ly/LheU50ZFoCw

National Park Week continues with Staff Saturday! Celebrate by visiting the National Mall and Memorial Parks and walk th...
08/29/2026

National Park Week continues with Staff Saturday! Celebrate by visiting the National Mall and Memorial Parks and walk through America’s front yard.

Meet the people who keep America’s front yard beautiful and welcoming for millions of visitors! Watch the colors of sunrise dance across the Washington Monument, climb the Lincoln Memorial steps and read the powerful words carved into its walls. Reflect at memorials honoring veterans and visionary leaders, enjoy a picnic beneath the trees or discover something new during a ranger-led program. Return after sunset to see stone, bronze and the Tidal Basin shine against the night sky. Rangers, skilled craftspeople, historic preservation experts and maintenance crews care for more than 1,000 acres of treasured places. Come see their remarkable work and experience the National Mall and Memorial Parks for yourself. https://ow.ly/abn850ZFohK


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National Park Week continues with Staff Saturday! Next on your tour is Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, ...
08/29/2026

National Park Week continues with Staff Saturday! Next on your tour is Wolf Trap National Park for the Performing Arts, where cicadas share the summer soundtrack with symphonies, singers and stars.

Rangers, maintenance employees, resource specialists, visitor-service teams and volunteers care for more than 100 acres while welcoming audiences for music, theater and dance. Before the curtain rises, hike the 2.5-mile Wolf Trap Trail through quiet woodlands and across Wolf Trap Run, or join a ranger-led activity. In 1966, arts champion Catherine Filene Shouse donated nearly 100 acres of her farm and funds for an outdoor amphitheater, creating a place where nature and the performing arts could flourish together. Her extraordinary gift became Wolf Trap, the only national park established specifically for the performing arts. Explore the landscape, experience a performance and give the people who keep this remarkable place safe, scenic and show-ready a standing ovation. https://ow.ly/Fpwi50ZFo6w



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National Park Week continues with Freedom Friday! Next on your tour is Antietam National Battlefield, where farm fields ...
08/28/2026

National Park Week continues with Freedom Friday! Next on your tour is Antietam National Battlefield, where farm fields became a battlefield and a battlefield changed the course of American freedom.

Walk the ground where America’s bloodiest single day opened the door to freedom. On Sept. 17, 1862, about 23,000 United States and Confederate soldiers were killed, wounded or reported missing during 12 hours of combat. The United States victory gave President Abraham Lincoln the opportunity he had awaited to announce the preliminary Emancipation Proclamation. Five days later, he issued it, expanding the United States war effort from preserving the nation to also striking directly at slavery and advancing freedom.

Come experience Antietam National Battlefield for yourself. Follow the driving tour, hike across historic farms and stand at Dunker Church, Bloody Lane and Burnside Bridge. Join a ranger program, explore the museum and pay tribute at the National Cemetery. Walk where history turned toward freedom and discover how one momentous day helped change the course of the nation. https://www.nps.gov/anti/planyourvisit/index.htm



NPS Photos

National Park Week continues with Freedom Friday! Next on your tour is Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, where two...
08/28/2026

National Park Week continues with Freedom Friday! Next on your tour is Harpers Ferry National Historical Park, where two rivers and some of America’s most powerful struggles for freedom meet.

Freedom was never guaranteed to happen. It was won through courage, sacrifice and the refusal to accept injustice.

Explore John Brown’s 1859 raid against slavery, Storer College’s education of formerly enslaved people and W.E.B. Du Bois’s leadership of the Niagara Movement, which gathered here in 1906 to demand full civil rights. Walk through Lower Town, enter John Brown’s Fort and climb toward sweeping views of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers.

At Harpers Ferry, people risked their lives, pursued knowledge and raised their voices to move America closer to its highest ideals. Come stand where they stood, hear the stories of those who sacrificed for freedom and carry their unfinished work toward a more perfect union. https://ow.ly/vf4b50ZFn95

National Park Week continues with Thankful Thursday! Next on your tour is Prince William Forest Park. Come trade traffic...
08/27/2026

National Park Week continues with Thankful Thursday! Next on your tour is Prince William Forest Park. Come trade traffic and towers for deep forests, rushing streams and historic cabins.

Explore a landscape shaped by a rich history of use by indigenous people, early colonial settlers, the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) and the US military. Today, employees, resource specialists, volunteers and partners alike work together to ensure preservation and conservation for the more than 150 historic cabins, four campgrounds and 37 miles of trails. Hike, bike, camp, picnic, enjoy a program or test your navigation skills on the park’s 60-point orienteering course. Enter the park ready to explore and leave inspired to help this extraordinary forest flourish. https://ow.ly/xOv550ZFn1E

National Park Week continues with Thankful Thursday! Next on your tour is Monocacy National Battlefield, where quiet far...
08/27/2026

National Park Week continues with Thankful Thursday! Next on your tour is Monocacy National Battlefield, where quiet farms witnessed a battle that helped save Washington in 1864.

They lost the battle. But they bought Washington a precious day.

On July 9, 1864, a smaller Federal force stood in the path of Confederate troops advancing toward the nation’s capital. Although defeated at Monocacy, the soldiers resisted fiercely and delayed the Confederate advance long enough for reinforcements to reach Washington.

This Thankful Thursday, we honor the soldiers who fought and sacrificed here, and we thank the rangers, maintenance crews, volunteers and partners who preserve their stories and care for this hallowed ground today.

Come experience it for yourself. Follow the trails across historic fields and river crossings where soldiers fought, fell and changed the course of history. At Monocacy National Battlefield, a lost battle helped save the capital, and the courage shown here still speaks across generations. https://ow.ly/2ABg50ZFmrA



NPS Photos

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18170 Park Entrance Road
Triangle, VA
22172

Telephone

+17032217181

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