The city of Richmond, Virginia lies along the James River, a long, winding, and historic tributary of the Chesapeake. Its James River Park System is ripe for adventure, with biking and hiking trails, whitewater rapids, fishing spots, and even a piece of ruins perfect for rock climbing. What’s especially unique is that just about all all of these opportunities on the river are also within sight of Richmond’s downtown buildings.
When Virginians found themselves at a loss for what to do this past weekend with social distancing strongly recommended, they took to the trails, island, water and rock wall. Chesapeake Bay Magazine’s Michael Kucera is a Richmond resident, and captured the images below in just one afternoon.
The 60-foot Manchester Wall is a remnant of the Richmond and Petersburg Railroad Bridge.
Richmond is home to the only urban class 4 rapids in the US. 
A hickory shad caught from the James. 
A couple under the city’s floodwall. 
Virginia’s Capital Trail connects Jamestown and Richmond with a 52-mile paved greenwall. 
Colorful murals at the city’s Canal Walk. 
Social distancing on Brown’s Island is better with a dog.
Says Kucera, “Richmonders are active people with an affinity for the great outdoors and the Chesapeake Bay watershed so when we were given the social distancing directive, what did we do? We went outside, of course!”
Note: Because the COVID-19 response is rapidly changing, please verify that individual locations are still open to the public before going to visit.
