The Lion's Tale

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Accessible trail through forest. Photo by Lions Club: Basye-Bryce Mtn.

Accessible boardwalk. Photo by Lions Club: Basye-Bryce Mtn.

One of the braille interpretive signs on the trail. Photo by Lions Club: Basye-Bryce Mtn.

Trailhead sign with NRT logo. Photo by Lions Club: Basye-Bryce Mtn.

Lop Ears, your friendly guide. Photo by Lions Club: Basye-Bryce Mtn.

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The Lion's Tale is a .5-mile accessible loop trail designed for the visually impaired in George Washington National Forest. It is a sensory adventure into the woods that encourages the hiker to feel, smell, and listen. High-contrast interpretive signs with Lop Ears, the friendly mountain lion guide, are imprinted with braille and tell the story of the forest and how to experience it using different senses. Embedded wooden boards on the surface of the barrier-free trail alert the impaired hiker to a nearby sign.

Benches provide places to sit and feel the sun, listen to birds and insects or the babbling of a stream, and smell the wildflowers or the boggy areas. Feel rounded river stones, a cold running spring, the different textures of tree bark, exposed roots, a rotten log, and even play in a stream.

The trail, originally known as the Braille Trail, was constructed in the 1970s through a partnership between the Forest Service, the Lion's Club, and the Virginia School for the Deaf and Blind.

Recovery efforts focused on repairing the trail's path and bridges. The Lion's Tale is a cooperative project of the Lions Clubs of VA and the Forest Service. It is open year-round. There is no fee. Handicap-accessible toilets are available in the parking lot.

Allowed Uses:

Other Activities

• Fishing
• Wildlife viewing / observation

• Certified as an NRT
  Nov 15, 1979