Riverbend Park

Great Falls, VA

A Fairfax County park on the Potomac immediately upstream from Great Falls - river rapids, blue heron rookeries, and quiet woodland trails just 20 miles from DC.

Photography Guide

Best Time: golden hour
Crowds: Quiet
Shot Types: landscapewildliferiver
Best Seasons: springfall

Practical Tips

The riverside trail below the park center overlooks a major great blue heron rookery in spring. River views from the bluffs are best in winter when trees are bare.

Gallery

Nearby Places

Hidden Gems

Potomac, MD

C&O Canal at Great Falls

The original 1830s stone locks and lock house at Great Falls form a perfectly preserved 19th-century industrial waterscape along the canal towpath.

golden hourspring · fall

Overlooks

Potomac, MD

Great Falls - Billy Goat Trail

The Great Falls of the Potomac is one of the most dramatic waterfall scenes in the eastern US - churning whitewater rapids cutting through billion-year-old Mather Gorge.

golden hourspring · fall

Photogenic

Potomac, MD

Great Falls - Olmsted Island

A series of boardwalk bridges connects the Maryland shore to Olmsted Island, putting visitors directly above the churning Great Falls gorge - the closest vantage to the falls.

anyspring · fall