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Places We Protect

Warm Springs Mountain Preserve

Virginia

Drone view looking out over rolling mountain ridges and valleys. The mountain sides are thickly forested. Sunlight dapples over the trees. Small clearings and farms are visible in the distance.
Warm Springs Mountain Drone's eye view looking east from Warm Springs Mountain Preserve, 300 feet above the Dan Ingalls Overlook parking lot. Bath County, VA. © Doug Rogers
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Three public trails offer an introduction to one of the most ecologically significant forests in the Central Appalachians.

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Overview

Description

Warm Springs Mountain Preserve helps stitch together thousands of acres of forest and conservation lands in western Virginia’s Allegheny Highlands. The preserve anchors our efforts to protect and restore a key wildlife corridor and habitat for an amazing diversity of natural communities, plants and animals.

Situated within a 77,000-acre unfragmented, largely roadless forest block, the preserve helps maintain healthy, breeding populations of interior-forest-dwelling songbirds, provides key habitat for wide-ranging mammals, and protects headwater tributaries of both the Jackson and Cowpasture rivers.

The preserve features Virginia’s only substantial montane pine barren, a globally rare, arid, fire-dependent landscape. The mountain harbors at least two other rare natural communities, three rare plants and eight rare invertebrates.

Access

OPEN TO THE PUBLIC

Leashed dogs are permitted on the public trails. Dogs must be leashed at all times.

Hours

Open during daylight hours

Size

9,269 acres on and around Warm Springs Mountain

Explore our work in Virginia

Get Involved: Preserve Volunteer Program

Virginia's Preserve Volunteer Community Program provides a vital service to help us maintain and monitor our public preserves across the state.

How can you get involved?

  • Community Members—become involved with a preserve without committing time to stewardship work. Receive periodic updates about the preserve and special events.
  • Preserve Stewards—visit Warm Springs Mountain at least 4 times a year to assess trail and preserve conditions and perform basic trail maintenance by removing fallen branches and overgrown vegetation.
  • Preserve Leaders—demonstrated commitment to the preserve and willingness to take on additional responsibilities like managing communication & scheduling, leading workdays and guiding naturalist hikes.

Email vapreservestewards@tnc.org to learn how you can help and become a part of the program.

Download the Warm Springs Mountain Preserve Volunteer Program handbook to learn more.

What to see

Spring is prime time for wildflowers and bird watching. Summer is peak season for wildlife sightings, especially during morning and evening walks. And autumn offers beautiful displays of forest foliage.

Access

The Ingalls Overlook, Sandy Gap and Bear Loop hiking trails are open daily. These three trails offer distinct experiences, from expansive mountain views to a close-up look at a globally rare pine barren, along with opportunities to extend your hike on adjoining public lands.

Scroll to the bottom of this page to find a preserve guide and trail maps for download.

Bear Loop Trail—From the village of Hot Springs, travel US 220 South for 7.7 miles, turn left on State Route 606 and travel 2.6 miles to the crest of Warm Springs Mountain. Turn left onto State Route 703 (Airport Road) and travel 6.2 miles to the trailhead, just left of the entrance to Ingalls Field Airport.  This 3-mile loop trail is relatively flat and with several overlooks offering stunning panoramic views.  Interpretive signs highlight the mountain’s diversity of wildlife species and habitats in addition to TNC’s efforts to restore the region’s fire-adapted oak and pine forests.

Ingalls Overlook Trail—At the northern end of the preserve, park at the Dan Ingalls Overlook, located on Route 39 just outside the village of Warm Springs. Here you will find the trailhead for the 2.4-mile (round trip) Ingalls Overlook Trail. Interpretive signs along the first mile provide an excellent introduction to Warm Springs Mountain and the region’s natural history. The trail then climbs among a series of scenic rock formations with views of Shenandoah Mountain and the Cowpasture River valley before looping back to the main trail and returning to the overlook.

Sandy Gap Trail—At the southern end of the preserve, park at the small gravel lot on Route 703 (Airport Road) just past the south entrance to Bald Knob. Cross the paved road to the gravel Bald Knob service road and you will find the trailhead for the Sandy Gap Trail.  Built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s, this 3.2-mile trail (one-way trip) features tranquil vistas and unique stone work, travels through the George Washington National Forest, and connects to the Douthat State Park trail system. This trail can be accessed directly from State Route 703 or from Forest Road 125, in which case the views of the Falling Springs valley from the trailhead overlook make this a truly rewarding climb.

Drone view looking out over rolling mountain ridges and valleys. The mountain sides are thickly forested. Sunlight dapples over the trees. Small clearings and farms are visible in the distance.
Warm Springs Mountain
Explore this 10,000-acre preserve in the heart of the Allegheny Highlands.
Get Directions

Warm Springs Mountain Preserve The preserve anchors our efforts to protect and restore a key wildlife corridor and habitat for an amazing diversity of natural communities.

Geocaching is a fast-growing hobby that provides an exciting way to explore the landscape and share special places with other outdoor enthusiasts. Players try to locate hidden containers, called geocaches, using a smartphone or GPS, and can then share their experiences online.

A geocache can be found at Warm Springs Mountain Preserve, part of the geocaching trail along the Appalachian Waters Scenic Byway.  Log on to www.geocaching.com to set up a free account.

Please review our preserve guidelines before your visit, and keep these tips in mind during your outing:

  • Caches are only accessible during normal hours of operation.
  • Stay on marked trails at all times.
  • Dogs on the trail must be leashed at all times.
  • Do not litter; used marked receptacles to dispose of any trash.
  • Please respect the land; do not remove plants, animals, artifacts, or rocks.

New geocaches are not permitted on TNC preserves. These sites were carefully selected for their accessibility and low impact to the environment. 

Resources for Download

Warm Springs Mountain: A Closer Look

A large sign held up by two stone pillars welcomes visitors. The sign reads Warm Springs Mountain Preserve. At the bottom is stylized mountain graphic with the TNC logo in the corner.
Warm Springs Mountain Preserve The preserve anchors our efforts to protect and restore a key wildlife corridor and habitat for an amazing diversity of natural communities, plants and animals. © Daniel White / TNC
A gray and white bird with a golden cap and yellow flecks on its wings sits perched on a tree branch.
Golden Winged Warbler The Allegheny Highlands is a stronghold for this increasingly rare songbird species. © Al Bourgeois / VA DGIF
A yellow and green trail blaze is nailed to a moss covered tree trunk. A mountain ridge is visible in the distance through an opening in the leaves.
Warm Springs Mountain A trail blaze shows the way on Warm Springs Mountain Preserve. © Glenna Goldman / TNC
Overlook view of a green forested ridges rolling through a wide valley to the distant horizon. Heavy white clouds hang low in the valley.
Endless Mountains View of fog settling in the valleys shortly after sunrise at Flag Rock, Warm Springs Mountain Preserve, Virginia. © Daniel White / TNC
Pink blossoms of mountain laurel and rhododendron stand out in a forested thicket.
Virginia Getaways Rhododendron and mountain laurel, Warm Springs Mountain Preserve. © Daniel White / TNC
A woman wearing yellow protective fire gear and a yellow helmet stands next to a small fire as it burns through the leafy vegetation on the ground. She is enveloped in white smoke.
Jennifer Dalke Jen Dalke enjoying the smoke and monitoring the fire during the Big Wilson Burn on Warm Springs Mountain. © Daniel White/TNC
Two people wearing red hardhats stand in a green thicket counting stems of young pine trees at a study site.
LEAF Lands in Virginia Lane Gibbons (Shenandoah Natl Park, L) and LEAF intern Jasmine Lowitz (R) count stems among a Table Mountain Pine Regeneration site. © Laurel Schablein / TNC
Three girls stand together arm in arm in tall grass. A valley drops away below them ending in a line of mountain ridges.
LEAF lands in Virginia Interns in the Leaders in Environmental Action for the Future program flex their muscles on Warm Springs Mountain. © Laurel Schablein / TNC
× A large sign held up by two stone pillars welcomes visitors. The sign reads Warm Springs Mountain Preserve. At the bottom is stylized mountain graphic with the TNC logo in the corner.
× A gray and white bird with a golden cap and yellow flecks on its wings sits perched on a tree branch.
× A yellow and green trail blaze is nailed to a moss covered tree trunk. A mountain ridge is visible in the distance through an opening in the leaves.
× Overlook view of a green forested ridges rolling through a wide valley to the distant horizon. Heavy white clouds hang low in the valley.
× Pink blossoms of mountain laurel and rhododendron stand out in a forested thicket.
× A woman wearing yellow protective fire gear and a yellow helmet stands next to a small fire as it burns through the leafy vegetation on the ground. She is enveloped in white smoke.
× Two people wearing red hardhats stand in a green thicket counting stems of young pine trees at a study site.
× Three girls stand together arm in arm in tall grass. A valley drops away below them ending in a line of mountain ridges.

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