Last updated: May 8, 2024
Thing to Do
Go to a Ranger-led Program
The National Park Service (NPS) offers ranger-led programs from April to October. Topics may include the geography, peopling, and history of the Shenandoah Valley, including the Civil War and Battle of Cedar Creek.
The park calendar lists scheduled NPS programs and events. Check with our partners for other activities at their properties or outside the park boundary.
Outdoor programs may be cancelled or rescheduled in severe weather. Contact us ahead of your visit.
Ranger Program Descriptions
Cedar Creek & Belle Grove in a Box
Ranger Talk, 30 minutes
Meet the Shenandoah Valley landscape, its natural features, and long record of human settlement. A ranger talks about why it is dotted with Civil War battlefields and is home to this national park. Meet near the picnic area on Belle Grove’s front lawn.
Cedar Creek Battlefield Tour
Ranger-led Driving Tour, 2 hours
Drive Cedar Creek Battlefield to retrace events of October 19, 1864. Follow the ranger’s car to five or six key battlefield landmarks.
19th Corps Trenches
Ranger-led Walk, 1 hour 30 minutes
A woodland walk along Civil War trenches preserved by the Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation. A Confederate surprise attack overran the US 19th Corps in the early morning of October 19, 1864.
Star Party
Ranger-led Talk , 2 hours
Gaze at the night sky with the National Park Service and the Shenandoah Astronomical Society, on land preserved by the Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation. Telescopes will be provided for night sky viewing.
Partner Tours
Manor House Tours
Belle Grove Plantation offers regular guided tours of the 1797 Manor House at the region's premier authentic antebellum plantation. Visit bellegrove.org for more information.
Other Tours
Cedar Creek Battlefield Foundation and Shenandoah Valley Battlefields Foundation offer tours of area battlefields or other historic places. Visit them online for more information.
The Visitor Contact Station, where some programs start, is wheelchair accessible. Physical accessibility of trails and sites around the park varies. Parking is very limited in some places.
Check with our partners for programs and events at their properties or outside the park boundary.