Buffalo Mountain Natural Area Preserve — Attraction in Stuart

The trail and park are wonderful. The rangers however are the worst at any park we’ve ever been to. Went up to see the eclipse today. Ranger Prick at the bottom wouldn’t let us up because the parking was “full”. We frequent this area and normally parking is no problem even if there are more than 10 people. We had to walk from the bottom of the road which added 2.2 additional miles and park off road. He suggested we drive 65 miles away to another place. The eclipse was happening in the next 45 min. He did nothing but be a total jerk about the whole situation.

We counted 15 areas on the hike up and another 5 that would have fit at the top. Ranger Prick thought eclipse day of all days was the time to show up and do his job.

Meanwhile he was allowing a large, aggressive neighbor dog bother us and others. He spent his time threatening to call the police on us if we drove to the top. Instead of making cars park closer to each other, picking up trash and maintaining the trail. ( the trail had lots of trash and loose rocks this time) Or removing the mean dog. We asked if he could shuttle us to the top in his pickup he refused.

Be warned if you go up there you may encounter completely useless “ranger” that are argumentative and worthless. There are often 15 cars each time we go. Pics to show how much room there was...

This is a phenomenal nature preserve managed by the VA Department of Conservation and Recreation. I visited in April 2022 and got the joy of viewing some very pretty wildflowers. The red and blue trail connect with the orange trail to make a loop and a nice hike to the summit. I would say that the hike is fairly moderate. I started up on the red trail and then came down the blue trail, but you can go the other way is you choose. The blue trail has A LOT of stairs. The red trail has some elevation gain as well, but you tackle it with switchbacks. The summit is gorgeous and has 360 views, and even areas where you can see into North Carolina. When I went there were a lot of different butterflies fluttering around at the summit.

Parking is EXTREMELY limited! There is a porta john toilet at the trail head as well, but no other facilities. All in all,...

Best views (and the easiest) I’ve found in the area. I took the Oak Trail (red blaze) to avoid the others entering the Ridge trail (blue blaze). It’s twice as long but not as steep. Trail is Ricky in places but nothing too bad at all. Still a nice little workout and both trails meet near the top. Once you arrive at the bench on top continue to follow the ropes path to the rock overhang. Amazing views, had it all to myself for 30 minutes or so. Can watch the birds fly below. Would love to do this for sunrise or sunset. Just a heads up, there is zero coverage on top and you will be exposed, wear sunscreen and/or protective clothing if going in the middle of the day. I returned to the parking lot via the Ridge trail which felt like it would’ve been much more strenuous than Oak trail...