Bottom Creek Gorge Preserve

Bottom Creek © Dana Blackmer

Why You Should Visit
Forming the headwaters of the Roanoke River, Bottom Creek Gorge boasts spectacular scenery: the second highest waterfall in Virginia, virgin hemlocks and hundreds of wildflowers.

Bottom Creek is a powerful mountain stream that forms a stair-step series of broad-basin waterfalls known as the "kettles." One of the headwater streams of the South Fork of the Roanoke River, Bottom Creek boasts a 200-foot high waterfall. Flanking Bottom Creek are forests of mixed hardwoods (tulip poplar, maple, oak, hickory) and upland meadows. Five rare species thrive in this habitat.

Location
Montgomery County

Hours
Open daily, dawn to dusk

Size
1,657 acres

Conditions
More than five miles of accessible trails. There are no restrooms.

How to Prepare for Your Visit
For information, contact the Virginia program office at (434) 295-6106.

Directions
From Roanoke and points north: 

• From I-81, take exit #141, Route 419 south, to Salem.
• Go south on Route 419 for about eight miles to Route 221 at Cave Spring.
• Take winding Route 221 south for 13.8 miles to Route 644.
• You will pass through the town of Bent Mountain, then pass an entrance to the Blue Ridge Parkway on your left. About 0.6 miles past the Parkway entrance, turn right on Route 644. 
• After 1.1 miles, the road forks. Stay to the right on Route 669.
• Continue straight on Route 669 (the road turns to gravel for a while)—DO NOT turn right on Bottom Creek Road.
• After 1.5 miles, you will come to a "T." Turn right, staying on Route 669.
• Soon you will be driving alongside Bottom Creek on your left. After 1.3 miles, you will cross a small bridge. Look for the Preserve sign on your left. Turn left at the sign and go up the gravel driveway to the gate.
• Park on the side of the road at the gate. Walk about half a mile up the gravel road to the trailheads where you will find another sign and trail maps.

From Blacksburg and Christiansburg: 

• Take Route 11/460 northeast to the town of Shawsville.
• At Shawsville, turn right on Route 637 (Allegheny Springs Road).
• Stay on this road all the way to the first stop sign in Simpsons. [NOTE: after about seven miles, Route 637 turns to the left while Route 653 continues straight. DO NOT turn left on Route 637, but stay straight on Route 653 to Simpsons].
• At the stop sign, turn left on Route 610.
• At the next stop sign, turn left on Route 221. Stay on Route 221 for about seven miles.
• You will pass through the town of Copper Hill. Turn left on Route 644.
• After 1.1 miles, the road forks. Stay to the right on Route 669. Follow the above directions from this point.

What to See: Fish
Bottom Creek is critical habitat for four species of fish native to the headwaters of the Roanoke River: the orangefin madtom, the bigeye jumprock, the riverweed darter and the Roanoke darter. It also contains approximately 10 percent of all fish species known from Virginia, including native brook trout.

What to See: Plants
Within the boundaries of the preserve is a half-acre of hardscrabble terrain (a shale barren) that provides habitat for the globally rare chestnut lipfern. Formerly known only from north central Mexico to the southwestern United States, this chestnut lipfern population is isolated in southwestern Virginia and eastern West Virginia.

Rising from the north side of the creek is an old-growth hemlock forest that boasts the state's largest Carolina hemlock. Due to their inaccessibility, the hemlocks are largely untouched and are spectacular in size and age.

A mix of forest and fields cover the rest of the preserve. Mixed hardwood stands of tulip poplar, maple, oak, and hickory are complemented by several meadows and dense rhododendron thickets in the ravines.

Why the Conservancy Selected This Site
Bottom Creek Gorge is a hotbed for rare aquatic species. It contains three rare fish and one globally rare plant.

What the Conservancy Has Done/Is Doing
The Conservancy has improved the trails at Bottom Creek Gorge while reducing their impact on surrounding habitat. Researchers continue to monitor the rare species and Conservancy staff are working with private adjacent landowners on conservation easements.