For our get outside adventure this past weekend we decided to keep it local and visit a state forest that is just just down the road from the bluff (about 8-10 miles), Zoar State Forest.

It was a wet, slightly humid morning for the hike but since we had so much going on that day it was early am or not at all. Arriving early we were the only ones there, which was actually very nice. The forest has two hiking trails, the Mattaponi Bluff Trail which runs along the shores of the Mattaponi River and is a 1 mile loop and the Herring Creek Trail which is a offshoot of the Mattaponi Bluff Trail and is .40 long. We decided to try and get both in if time allowed, which it did as both trails are more very easy walks than hikes, nothing strenuous at all. There is one very steep staircase you must use to continue along the trail but other than than no issues at all.

The State Forest is in desperate need of some maintenance of the man made structures, bridges and walkovers but it still has beauty within the views of the Mattaponi River and the natural growth found within the forest.

Near the end of the Mattaponi Bluff Trail we came upon this marker with Captain John Smith engraved on it and the message "To The Cross Hath Bin Discoverd A.D. 1607" on the other side. No other explanation as to what the markers indicated so as always we consulted Google who explained that this is one of 24 markers throughout the shores of Virginia which highlight the history of Captain John Smith’s explorations along the Chesapeake watershed areas. More information about these markers and where you can find them is in this article Friends of the John Smith Chesapeake Trail .

This is a nice local find that we will return to again, especially in the fall and winter as it will certainly be overgrown and very buggy in the summer.