Helpful Information for All Visitors

Welcome

We welcome you to Friends Wilderness Center and ask that you know and observe the following important tips to have a rewarding and safe experience.

Any first time visitor should Contact the General Manager to see about availability of facilities, to get accurate directions, or for details on events. Our trails are not paved and, therefore, cannot accommodate people in wheelchairs.

Roads and Trails

When you come to the end of the paved section of Mission Road, turn left onto a two-way, narrow, bumpy gravel road following signs to Niles Cabin, a distance of 1.6 miles, that ends with crossing a shallow brook. We recommend that people visiting us for the first time arrive during daylight to see road conditions and signage. Follow signs for Friends Wilderness Center (FWC) and Niles Cabin.

The Niles Cabin is a 20-minute hike away from the yurt and tree house. One may also drive up to near the tree house or yurt on a gravel road.

Most trails are easy to moderate in difficulty. We offer a map at Niles Cabin and can recommend hikes based on their difficulty. It will guide you to some unusual and enjoyable natural or hand-built points of interest in the area.

Children

The woods are a great place for children. Obviously, awareness and adult supervision is needed, especially while in our tree house or around our ponds.

Pets

Cats are not allowed.
Dogs are welcome:

• Contact Us before you plan to bring your dog. There might be a conflict with a scheduled group.
• Bring plenty of drinking water for your dog.
• Also, give your dog a tick prevention product.
• When home, give your dog a good grooming for ticks. Reference

Ticks

• Wear light colored clothing to aid in detection of ticks.
• Spray or roll-on "Deep Woods" insect repellent. Carefully follow directions on container.
• REI carries Repel, a plant based Lemon & Eucalyptus insect repellent that repels mosquitoes and deer ticks for up to 6 hours.
• Check for ticks after walking around Rolling Ridge (and anywhere in the eastern United States), especially between March and November, to avoid Lyme disease. Ticks, including "baby ticks", have been detected on ankles, waist, neck, and chest.
• These ticks are not the larger "dog" ticks but are nearly as small as the period at the end of this sentence.
• Remember that all ticks do not carry Lyme disease.
• Information on ticks is at: Loudoun County, Virginia, Health Dept., US Centers for Disease Control or in a notebook in the Niles Cabin.

Wildlife, Weather, and Safety

Animals, poison oak or ivy, changing weather conditions, and open bodies of water are present; respect and reverence needs be applied toward them.

Air temperatures here may be up to 20 degrees cooler than in the city.

Hunting is allowed only by a small hunt club in season and is separate from the hiking trails. You can check with our Resident Manager about hunting season and take the basic precautions if in season of wearing our orange vests and avoiding the marked hunting areas.

Off trail hiking is enjoyable, but brings added risks including rusted barbed wire from fences of long ago and a rare snake.

Cell phones are not reliable out here so do not depend on being able to call. When its possible to get a tower, Sprint and AT&T get ok reception; Verizon's reception is poor to nil. Often, a text message will get through when a voice call will not. There is a land line phone in Niles Cabin.

Camping and campfires

Camping is available in the tree house, the yurt, and other places. Bring your own camping gear. Campfires must be in existing fire pits and never left unattended. Some cut firewood may be available. We ask that you first pick up fallen firewood or cut some firewood for yourself and the next camper who comes along. The tree house and yurt share a basic outhouse.

Meals and drinking water

We offer pre-arranged meals at Niles Cabin. Tell the Resident Manager in advance if you want to have home-cooked meals at the Cabin. Vegetarian or special dietary meals can be arranged. For daytime events, you’re welcome to bring your own prepared food that does not require use of the kitchen. If staying overnight in the Cabin, dinner and breakfast are included. If camping, you can request dinner or breakfast. Any water other than in the Cabin should be purified before consumption.

What To Bring

Basic outdoor checklist, depending on whether you are hiking or camping, includes:

• hat
• rain or windbreaker jacket
• sunscreen
• bug repellant
• drinking water
• whistle
• compass or GPS
• flashlight with batteries
• trail snacks
• basic first aid kit
• journal
• binoculars

The Niles Cabin has a small library of nature, spiritual, quaker, and other books.

What Not To Bring

Nature has is own entertainment, so electronic entertainment devices such as radio, iPod, DVD player, etc., are unwelcome distractions. Cell phone service tends to be not dependable here.

Rates: Per person, unless noted:

• Cabin stays, overnight:
  • Friday, Saturday, Sunday including dinner and breakfast: $80 non-members; $60 members
  • Monday through Thursday: $60 non-members; $50 members.
• Camping including in the yurt or tree house: $25 per family or $15 per person
• Pre-arranged meals in the Cabin if camping: $5 breakfast, $7 lunch, $10 dinner. Contact Us
• Day use of Rolling Ridge trails with Cabin as base: $10 suggested donation
• Groups up-to-20-persons use of Cabin, trails: Contact Us
• Presenters at Center events may receive complimentary cabin stay and meals. Volunteers at our Work Days get a free lunch.

Want to hold you own event at the Center?