The old bridge before construction began.

This one may stretch the definition of Central Virginia a bit, but it’s a destination worth the journey. I wrote about High Bridge Trail State Park a couple of years ago before work had begun on the actual bridge. It was a fun place for a bike ride then. I saw plenty of walkers and horseback riders, too, that day. Now that the park’s centerpiece is open, though, I think I need to go back. There’s just nothing else in this relatively flat part of the state that offer the kind of views this bridge over the Appomattox River does.

 Here’s the press release from the DCR:

High Bridge in Prince Edward and Cumberland counties, the centerpiece of High Bridge Trail State Park, will open Friday, April 6. The bridge has been under construction since March 2011 converting it from an abandoned railroad bridge to a pedestrian, bicycling and equestrian-friendly one.

Site of one of the last battles of the Civil War, the bridge is 2,400 feet long and towers 160 feet above the Appomattox River. It is the final link in connecting 31 miles of linear state park. It is the most prominent of numerous cultural and historic areas connected by the park. Efforts are still ongoing to extend the park into Burkeville on its eastern end and Pamplin to the west.

High Bridge is located approximately 4.5 miles from downtown Farmville. The park entrances closest to the bridge are Rice’s Depot Road, one-quarter mile off U.S. 460, approximately three miles east of the bridge and on River Road, three miles from N. Main Street in Farmville; approximately one mile west of the bridge. As the closest access to the bridge, carpooling is encouraged for the River Road lot. Bicyclists may want to embark from Farmville or Rice.

The bridge now