Our trails are open for Friends of the Clifton Institute and Fauquier County Public School teachers every Tuesday and Saturday from mid-January to mid-October (the exact dates are on our calendar). A donation of $40 or more makes you and your family Friends of the Clifton Institute for a year starting on the date of your donation. When you donate $40 here you will be emailed a parking pass to put on your dashboard on open-access days. Friends also receive discounts on selected programs and at our biannual plant sales; just select the Friends price at checkout when you register for a program on our calendar. Thank you for supporting our programs!

If you have any questions about being a Friend or if you need a replacement parking pass please email Managing Director Eleanor Harris at eharris@cliftoninstitute.org.

By attending an open-access day, you are affirming that you have read and agree to our liability release policy (click here). There is a trail sign in the parking lot at the farmhouse at the end of the driveway. An online trail map is available here. Please note that some trails are in the process of being built and many are not marked. Please stay on the trails, use common sense, and proceed at your own risk. There are port-a-potties available in both parking lots. We do not have trash collection services here and there are no public trash cans; please pack out what you bring in.

As you walk our trails, you can help us take care of the field station by keeping your eyes and ears open to help us learn about the ecosystem we’re a part of and by enjoying and respecting the plants and animals that live here. If you take any photos of your discoveries, please upload them to our iNaturalist project, where we are trying to document every species that lives on our property. You can also visit the Chronolog across the Upper Pond from the farmhouse and add a photo to our timelapse.

We reserve the right to deny access to our property to anyone who does not obey the rules posted below or is otherwise disruptive to our field station operations.

• On open-access days, you may park either at the lower parking area (“the Gap”) or at the farm house.
• You are welcome to bring friends and family with you on open-access days. All children under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult.
• No dogs or horses are permitted.
• No fishing, swiming, boating, or any other entry in the ponds is permitted.
• No hunting.
• No horses, bicycles, automobiles, ATVs, or any other vehicles are allowed on the trails.
• No drones are permitted.
• No alcohol is permitted.
• Take nothing but photographs. We use our trails to teach kids about the environment and their experiences are much richer if there are still feathers and bones and everything else for them to look at.