Bull Run Regional Park

Just off the Bull Run Occoquan Trail near Atlantis Waterpark lies the Bull Run Bluebell Trail, a one and a half mile loop that explores the forest around Bull Run. 

Every year from November until just after New Year’s Day, you can experience the Bull Run Festival of Lights, 2.5 miles illuminated by holiday light displays. Drive the festival route from the comfort of your car; turn out your headlights and just follow the magical glow.

VISIT OFFICIAL SITE

Located adjacent to Atlantis Waterpark, this trailhead marks the beginning - or the end, depending on your perspective - of the Bull Run Occoquan Trail. NOVA Park’s longest natural surface trail at 19.7 miles, the BROT, also known as the blue trail, connects Bull Run, Hemlock Overlook, Bull Run Marina and Fountainhead Regional Parks. 

The camp store sells camping supplies, snacks, ice and firewood and is open daily from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.  Disc golf, a playground, hiking trails and an outdoor water park are all within walking distance from the campground.

Bull Run features an 18 hole disc golf course that runs through the woods between Atlantis Waterpark and the camp store. The course is open 7 days a week, from dawn til dusk, weather permitting. The Bull Run Camp Store sells discs and supplies.

In the course of a season, many common wildflowers of the eastern deciduous forest can be found along the trails at Bull Run Regional Park. The stars of the show, though, are the Virginia Bluebells and Spring Beauty that bloom in April.
Weather conditions may affect blooming time by as much as a week, but generally, mid-April is the time of peak bloom.

Around mid-April every year, thousands of visitors come to Bull Run Regional Park to celebrate the arrival of Mertensia virginica, the Virginia bluebell! Named the “Wildflower of the Year” in 1989, by the Virginia Native Plant Society, this azure blue ephemeral has a devoted following of all ages.

Tracing a 40-mile route on two tributary waterways of the Chesapeake Bay, paddling adventures await as you explore a vast and changing landscape, spanning 13,000 years of human history, past 10,000 acres of public lands dedicated to resource conservation in northern Virginia. Access with public parking can be found at Occoquan, Fountainhead, Bull Run Marina, Pohick Bay and Bull Run.

This late 18th-century African American cemetery contains 91 burials of people who were likely free and enslaved. Members of the extended Harris family are buried here.

Robert Carter Ill was born in 1728 to one of the richest Colonial families of the time. His grandfather, Robert "King" Carter, owned 295,000 acres of land and hundreds of enslaved people. Young Carter inherited much of that wealth in 1732 when his father and grandfather died within months of each other. Most of Centreville and Manassas were part of Carter's Leo Plantation. 

Henry Harris was descended from a for­merly enslaved man and woman freed by Robert Carter Ill in the early 1800s. In 1844 Alfred Ball of Prince William County sold Harris 15 acres located just north of today's 1-66 and Bull Run Regional Park. The 1850 census recorded Harris as a farmer and the "only person" living on his farm. The Slave Schedule of that census, however, listed the enslaved resi­dents of Henry's farm as of a woman of 35, a girl of 6 and boys of 4 and 2. They were his wife Jemima and their children.

The Barn Pavilion at Bull Run Park offers picnicking for large corporate events and group picnics. Amenities include electricity, covered seating with tables for up to 300 and uncovered seating for an additional 300. The Barn Pavilion has its own private lot for up to 110 cars and additional parking in the soccer field area. The Barn Pavilion is located near a playground and in proximity to restrooms. The spacious fields next to the Barn Pavilion provide the perfect atmosphere for a variety of field games.

Bull Run Regional Park offers rental picnic shelters perfect for picnics with family, friends and coworkers. Picnic shelters include tables and grills. All shelters are rented for the day. 

Bull Run Regional Park has two large playgrounds suitable for kids of all ages. Located near the camp store, the playground features multiple slides and levels, a rock climbing board, multiple levels, stair cases and a large swing set. The play area is open year round and conveniently near restrooms.

The NOVA Parks is pleased to offer a nature interpretation program. The mission of the NOVA Parks Roving Naturalist Program is to connect the citizens of northern Virginia with the natural world in our Northern Virginia Regional Parks. Through guided nature walks, hikes, canoe and kayak tours, night explorations, stream and pond studies, and live animal programs, participants gain the opportunity to discover our native flora and fauna in a safe and fun environment. Programs are catered to kids, adults, and anyone interested in the natural world! Programs are offered in many of the Northern Virginia Regional Parks.

READ MORE

Bull Run Regional Park offers boat and RV storage space on its property. Pricing is available for both regular and oversized plots. The storage area is located in a secure area on the park property, away from the major road and from all of the parks attractions. 

Bull Run features as many as six tournament caliber soccer fields, designed to be used by local soccer organizations only and area flag football leagues. The fields are available for use by permit only, and located in isolated areas within the park.

The Bull Run Special Events Center serves as a multi-use events space, located outside of Washington, D.C. in Centreville, VA. This unique venue has the ability to host a range of events, including cross country races, food and drink festivals, cultural festivals and much, much more!

Winding through the woodlands along the northern end of the park, the white trail provides an easy two and a half mile loop for hikers and equestrians.