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Gordon, the preeminent chronicler of the 1864 Overland Campaign, will conduct a walking tour of every foot (or very nearly so) of designated Park Service trails on the Wilderness and Spotsylvania battlefields (two full days on each), interpreting the ground as we go. This is a unique opportunity to get a comprehensive, ground-level view of the two opening battles in the monumental clash between Grant and Lee, in conversation with the most knowledgeable guide available.
Battlefield tour itineraries are often abbreviated or condensed in order to fit in all of the highlights, and to cover as much ground in whatever timeframe is allotted. There's rarely enough time to see everything. The idea for this tour came about on our recent four-day Overland Campaign excursion. While we saw a great deal, too many times Gordon was compelled to pause along a path and say something to the effect of, "if we had more time, I would take you to the end of this trail to see the earthworks in the woods." To remedy that, we determined to create a new tour devoting two full days to the Wilderness, and two more days to Spotsylvania, and make a proper hike of every trail in the system. The tour will be headquartered at a Fredericksburg hotel (details to be posted shortly). Registration will include opening night "pizza reception" in our hotel conference room, and a presentation by Gordon setting the stage for the touring to follow. Also included: four full days of battlefield tours, transportation, and box lunches for each day.
Registration$785
Registration includes opening night Pizza Reception and presentation, and a seat on the bus for all four days of battlefield tours. Also included: 4 box lunches (picnic on the battlefield). Lodging is not included. General Itinerary |
Above: Gordon Rhea leading our group during a visit to Spotsylvania, June, 2022 ("The Overland Campaign" tour).
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May 16 (Tuesday): 6:30 p.m. Meet in our Fredericksburg hotel conference room for pizza reception. 7:15 p.m: hear a presentation by Gordon Rhea to set the stage for our 4-day adventure. We'll depart the hotel at 8:30 a.m. each day, and return by around 5:00 each afternoon.
May 17–20 (Wednesday through Saturday): will be devoted to hiking the battlefields, with many stops along the way as Gordon outlines the action that occurred there. See list below for description of most of our hikes.
May 17–20 (Wednesday through Saturday): will be devoted to hiking the battlefields, with many stops along the way as Gordon outlines the action that occurred there. See list below for description of most of our hikes.
Wilderness Battlefield
Spotsylvania Court House Battlefield
- Wilderness Crossing Trail (pdf): 1.5 mi (2.4 km) round trip. Start: Ellwood's driveway. Explore the plantation grounds and dusty crossroads that defined this break in the Wilderness. When Ellwood is closed, park at the Ellwood gate, walk .5 mi (.8 km) to the trailhead.
- Gordon Flank Attack Trail (pdf): 2.1 mi (3.4 km) loop. Start: Wilderness Battlefield Exhibit Shelter, Tour Stop 2. Follow the historical earthworks remaining from a crushing Confederate flank attack late on May 6, 1864.
- Vermont Monument Trail (pdf): 0.4 mi (.7 km) loop. Start: Brock Road-Plank Road Intersection, Tour Stop 8. Walk the same ground as the renowned Vermont Brigade and see the memorial to this unit which bore the brunt of the fighting in this area.
- Widow Tapp Farm Trail (pdf): 1 mi (1.6 km) round trip. Start: Tapp Field, Tour Stop 6. As the battle hung in the balance on the edge of this field, Confederate reinforcements arrived here just in time to save the Army of Northern Virginia.
- Federal Line Trail (pdf): 7.2 mi (11.6 km) round trip. Start: Picnic area south of Saunders Field, Tour Stop 3. Walk the length of the Union line, featuring remarkable earthworks and artillery positions.
Spotsylvania Court House Battlefield
- Bloody Angle Trail (pdf): 1.1 mi (1.8 km). Start: Bloody Angle, Tour Stop 3. Walk the ground where, on May 12, 1864, Union soldiers launched a massive assault against a bulge in Confederate works called the Mule Shoe Salient. The 22 hours of hand-to-hand combat that followed lent this place its name, the Bloody Angle.
- Spotsylvania History Trail (pdf): 5.7 mi (9.2 km) loop. Start at any parking area intersecting with the trail. This trail weaves throughout most of the Spotsylvania Battlefield, passing much of the 14 miles of earthworks on the battlefield and covering the majority of tour stops.