USFS National Forest System Trails · George Washington and Jefferson National Forest · Virginia · Updated June 2026
Double Ditch (USFS trail 553D) is a 0.6 mi trail in George Washington and Jefferson National Forest, Virginia. Mountain-bike use here is accepted but discouraged in USFS data, with Class 1 e-bikes also designated.
Can I bike Double Ditch?
| Use | Status | Season on record |
|---|---|---|
| Mountain bike | Accepted but discouraged | — |
| Class 1 e-bike (pedal-assist, 20 mph) | Allowed | January, Apr–Dec |
| Class 2 e-bike (throttle, 20 mph) | Allowed | January, Apr–Dec |
| Class 3 e-bike (pedal-assist, 28 mph) | Allowed | January, Apr–Dec |
Zooming out: across George Washington and Jefferson National Forest, 90% of rideable trail miles are open to mountain bikes — a Bike Access Grade of A.
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About this trail
Double Ditch (USFS trail 553D) runs 0.6 mi through George Washington and Jefferson National Forest in Virginia. This profile summarizes what the official US Forest Service trail record says about riding it: how long the trail is, what it's built on, how steep the route grades out, and which forms of bike use the agency has designated. USFS records list its surface as native material. Based on slope, this is a Advanced trail (grade band +12-20%); that reflects steep gradient and is not the same as a technical MTB difficulty rating. Note that mountain-bike use here is discouraged in USFS records — confirm with the ranger district before riding. The record additionally permits Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bike use, January, Apr–Dec; recall that Class 1 is pedal-assist, while Class 2 adds a throttle and Class 3 a higher cutoff speed. The route is mapped as USFS Trail Class 3 on the agency's 1-to-5 development scale, where 1 is the most primitive, minimally maintained tread and 5 is the most developed. For day-of certainty on closures or seasonal orders, check directly with the ranger district, since this reflects the USFS data as of the latest refresh.
Frequently asked questions
- Can you mountain bike on Double Ditch?
- Mountain-bike use on Double Ditch is discouraged in USFS records, though Class 1 e-bike use is designated. Confirm current rules with the managing ranger district.
- Are e-bikes allowed on Double Ditch?
- Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bikes are designated on Double Ditch in the USFS data.
- How long is Double Ditch?
- Double Ditch measures about 0.6 mi in total, summed across its mapped National Forest System segments.
- What is the surface of Double Ditch?
- USFS data records the tread surface of Double Ditch as native material.
- How difficult is Double Ditch?
- Its grade-based difficulty is Advanced (grade band +12-20%), derived from USFS slope data. This reflects steepness, not technical mountain-bike difficulty.
How we read this data
Grade-based difficulty above is the USFS grade (route steepness), not a technical mountain-bike rating — a gentle-grade trail can still be rocky or technical, and vice versa. Bike and e-bike status come verbatim from the USFS managed-use fields for this trail; we never infer access we can't cite. See our methodology for how the dataset is built and what each field means.
Where it is
Approximate location of George Washington and Jefferson National Forest (USFS trail geometry isn't mapped).
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