The Shadow
HOT SPRINGS — The USDA Forest Service will temporarily close sections of Hidden Valley Road (Forest Service Road #241) in Bath County, to ensure visitor safety during a road improvement project.
The work is scheduled to begin the week of Feb. 10.
During the temporary closure, the Forest Service will grade the gravel road, repair the low-water bridge that crosses the Jackson River and replace culverts.
Short sections of the road will be intermittently closed beginning at milepost 2.68 from the Hidden Valley Road intersection with Mc-Guffin Road (State Road 621).
During the repairs, access to the Warwick Mansion, the Hidden Valley Day Use parking area, the Hidden Valley trails and the Jackson River Gorge Trail (Forest Trail #481D) will be intermittently limited to walk-in only.
Sections of the road may be closed for periods of up to five days at a time.
Signs posted on the road will alert travelers when the closures are in place.
During the bridge repair, anglers will be unable to fish from the low water bridge and access to the south side of the bridge, including to the Warwick Mansion, may be limited to walk-in only. Anglers may still fish along nearby sections of the Jackson River during the bridge closure.
The existing culvert will be replaced with a box culvert designed to allow fish and other aquatic organisms to travel up and down the stream, which will improve stream health.
The project is expected to be completed by the end of May 2020.
“Thank you for patience as we work to improve road conditions, water quality and fish habitat in the Hidden Valley,” said District Ranger Elizabeth McNichols.
More than 100 miles of road have been maintained and repaired on the James River and Warm Springs Ranger Districts in fiscal years 2019 and 2020.
Special funding through the Emergency Relief for Federally Owned Roads Program is being used to repair the damage to Hidden Valley Road from prior storm events.
For more information on this improvement project, contact the Warm Springs Ranger District office at (540) 839-2521.
