Boxerwood Nature Center & Woodland Garden

Distance: 0.4 miles (Loop with a tail)

Difficulty: Easy

Elevation Gain: 80 feet

Hike Time: 30 minutes

Highlights: Beautiful old oak trees, wetlands, and meadows.

Parking: Boxerwood parking area

Coordinates: 37.777649069314755, -79.46489245901891

Driving Distance/Time: 2 miles/10 minutes*

*from Lexington Visitor Center, 106 E. Washington St.

Directions: Turn right on East Washington Street. Travel three blocks. At the light turn left on Jefferson Avenue. Travel 0.4 miles to a “T” intersection and turn left onto White Street. Proceed one block and turn right on South Main Street. Travel 0.2 miles on turn right on Edmundson Avenue. At the “T” intersection turn left onto Jackson Avenue. Go one block and turn right onto Ross Road (CR 657). Travel 0.9 miles and turn left at the Boxerwood sign. Take the first right. Parking is on the right.

Trailhead + Parking

There is a parking fee for non-members. Payment for parking is at the kiosk.

Trail Description: The Main Path leaves the parking area to the right of the kiosk. There is a wide path through a narrow stand of trees. Then the path enters a mowed meadow. It passes a stand of tall grasses on the left and a stump sculpture on the right. The grade is slightly downhill. Go to the left of the fenced garden and to the right of row of Red cedar.

The path turns left and heads toward The Great Oak Tree, which fell in April 2025. This majestic tree is on the left. Just past The Great Oak Tree, the path turns right and drops down to a small pond on the left. After the pond is the junction with the Avenue of Eternal Tranquility. Turn right on the Avenue. It is a wide grassy area, head toward the pond. The trail passes the pond on the right. At the mailbox turn right and cross the dam. There is a Bald cypress on the left and its knees can be seen sticking out of the ground.

The trail goes around the wetlands passing under a gazebo and the Weeping Cherry. A small path to the right leads to the wetlands and a footbridge. Past the footbridge, there are some stone steps that descend to the creek. Before the creek crossing is the Zig-Zag Bridge. On the other side of the creek there is a trail junction and a concrete notice on the ground that lets the traveler know “You are here, Mean-while…”.

At the junction turn left into the woods. The trail crosses the creek again. There is a big Tulip poplar on the right. The path climbs out of the drainage on a set of stairs. At the top turn right onto the Old Farm Road, Go past the trail on the left with a sign “Fairy Forest”. Continue past another Bald Cypress and into the first meadow. This closes the loop. A left leads back to the parking area.

Click Website Link below for trail details, photos, and maps.