The Nature Conservancy. Protecting nature. Preserving life.™

Six spotted tiger beetle (Cincindela sexguttata) at Fortune's Cove. © Dana Blackmer Photography

Open to the Public

Yes

Things To Do

Take a look around and spot some of Fortune Cove's amazing plants and animals. View All

Plan Your Visit

Download a trail map and get the most of your visit to Fortune's Cove. View All

Get Directions

Why You Should Visit

Easily accessible from the Charlottesville and Lynchburg areas, Fortune's Cove Preserve provides a challenging hike that rewards visitors with stunning mountain vistas. The preserve is situated within some 29,000 acres of relatively intact forest habitat and hosts rare plant communities on a series of rocky glades.

Location

Nelson County, near Lovingston

Hours

Open daily, dawn to dusk, year-round

Size

755 acres

Conditions

The 5.5-mile loop trail climbs steeply from the parking area, gaining some 1,500 feet in elevation before reaching its highest point. Hikers should be in good physical condition and should allow six hours to complete the entire loop. A gravel parking area and kiosk with trail map are at the preserve entrance; there are no restrooms.

Why the Conservancy Selected This Site

Fortune's Cove straddles Virginia's Piedmont and Blue Ridge. Here, these two ecological regions meet to form a unique collection of flora from both areas. The preserve also is nestled within some 29,000 acres of relatively unfragmented forest, providing excellent wildlife habitat. The plant community—i.e. combination of plant species—found on the glades is thought to be extremely rare, with fewer than 20 examples known to occur worldwide.

Landowner Jane Heyward approached the Conservancy about donating her property and making it accessible to visitors. Through Mrs. Heyward's exceptional generosity, the Conservancy created a parking area, signage and hiking trails for people to experience the preserve and will protect Fortune's Cove for future generations.

What the Conservancy Has Done/Is Doing

Conservancy staff and volunteers completed the 5.5-mile hiking trail in April 2002 and will maintain it for visitors. The preserve falls within the project area of the Conservancy's Piedmont Program, which focuses on the protection and restoration of the most significant remaining habitats throughout the Piedmont region of central and northern Virginia.

Things To Do

What to See: Animals

Black bear, bobcat, white-tailed deer, red fox, raccoon, and box turtle are all present. Bird species include quail, turkey, and red-tail hawk, as well as migratory songbirds such as the cerulean and blue-winged warbler, scarlet tanager, and orchard oriole.    

What to See: Plants

The west-facing slopes at Fortune's Cove are broken by a series of rocky glades. These openings support expanses of lichens and rock mosses—please tread carefully on these as you take in the spectacular views, as these fragile pioneers are easily abraded away by foot traffic. Little bluestem, a prairie grass, dominates the grassy portions of the glades, while the woodlands are abundant with fringetree, also known as grandfather's beard. When this shrub blooms (late April/early May), you may notice its sweet fragrance before catching sight of the blossom's unusual white plume. Wild azalea, mountain laurel, and fire pink also bloom around this time.

The oak-hickory forests at Fortune's Cove are representative of this part of the Appalachians. Most of this forest is young, but uncut chestnut oak grows in a small area near the ridgeline of Woods Mountain.

Plan Your Visit

Download a trail map of Fortune's Cove Preserve (pdf, 272KB).

Please review the Preserve Visitation Guidelines. For more information, contact the Virginia Program: (434) 295-6106.

Directions

From the north (Charlottesville area):

• Take 29 south towards Lovingston.
• Before reaching Lovingston, turn right onto Rte. 718, Mountain Cove Road.  Go 1.5 miles and turn right onto Rte. 651, Fortune's Cove Lane.
• Continue 1.2 miles to a fork in the road. Bear left at the fork (going right here will take you to Mountain Cove Vineyard).
• Go 0.2 miles after the fork and then turn left into preserve parking area.

Discussion

Have you been to this preserve? Are you thinking of visiting? See what others are saying about their experiences and add your comments below.

Add Your Comments

Time for you to join the discussion. Tell us about your experience at this preserve. What plants and animals did you see? When did you go? You can help others plan their visit when you share your thoughts. And thank you for visiting one of our nature preserves!

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