I drove 40 minutes out to Reston, Virginia to walk around this lake. The lake Thoreau Loop, Trail has got to be one of the most disappointing trails I’ve ever walked on. This is not a scenic walk as the website claims. This trail goes through people’s backyards and all you really see are a bunch of houses that you’re reminded you can’t afford. Who wants to walk through people‘s backyards on a trail? You almost never even catch a glimpse of the actual lake. Because the lake is commercialized and the lakefront is polluted with people‘s homemade docks and brightly colored canoes. From a distance, It just looks like there’s a bunch of trash, aligning the outside of the lake. All of these people’s boats and canoes take away from what could be very beautiful nature scenery. To say the least, this was an incredibly disappointing afternoon that I traveled almost an hour to see, and also only proves how humans destroy nature on a regular basis. I’d give a rating of zero if I could.

Beautiful with the changing leaves. Nice variety of trees and plants. Easy to navigate pathways. We had an elderly person and a pregnant person in our group of 4. So the pathway being easy to navigate so we could all go together was great. Path was busy with people and dogs enjoying the weather and scenery.

The lake Thoreau loop is a nice one but doesn’t really live up to its name. There are mostly roads and trails through residential areas. It does loop around the lake though and offers a few nice views.

We walked lake Audubon in the snow Friday and it is a nice walk. It would be nice if it was closer to the lake in more areas but a nice walk of about 2 miles all the way around. And you can end the walk at south lakes shopping center for a reward at Starbucks or one of the nice restaurants there.

We live on Lake Thoreau and this is a great trail to walk the dog. About 2 miles in length it takes less than an hour at a leisurely pace.