Mountain Camping VA

There is so much to love at Virginia State Parks!

Virginia State Parks are all abuzz with recreational activities, from history, culture, outdoor competitions, to arts, crafts, fishing, natural history, geocaching, workshops and festivals!


There are 35 State Parks in the VA Department of Conservation & Recreation System.  There is something for everyone at a Virginia State Park, from the mountains to the seashore.   Here is an abbreviated list of activities currently happening at your Virginia State Parks:

1. Can you Canoe?
2. Camp Chat
3. Prim-Tech to Hi-Tech
4. Music from the day
5. Geocaching
6. Tracks and Scats - Signs of the Times
7. Astronomy with a NASA Space Embassador
8. Invert Alert
9. Birding by Boat
10. Marsh Madness Canoe Trip
11. Walk in the Woods
12. Fish Printing
13. Family Play Day
14. Make a Hiking Stick
15. Full Moon Canoe Trip
16. Tall Tales Campfire
17. Full Moon Kayak Trip
18. Hayrides
19. Wild about Wetlands Canoe Trip
20. Sunset Kayak Trip
21. Eagle Tours
22. Kayak with the Eagles
23. Owl Prowls Hayrides
24. Wagon Ride
25. Ask a Ranger
26. Let's Go Fishing
27. Jones-Stewart Mansion Tours
28. Fossil Walk
29. Evening Paddle
30. Junior Rangers
31. Drowned in the Past
32. Crayfish Crawl
33. Campground Scavenger Hunt
34. Going Batty
35. Night Hike
36. Skin and Bones
37. Tree Cookies
38. Snake, Rattle and Whoa
39. Quest for Cache
40. Animal Bites
41. Leave it to Beavers
42. Mystery Box
43. Frog Hop
44. Bat Kapers
45. Bear Kapers
46. Roost in Peace
47. Appalachian Antic
48. Flyfishing 101
49. The Scoop on Poop
50. Owle Pellet Adventure
51. Campfire Cookery
52. Toad Abodes
53. Basic Twionometry
54. Frog Slog
55. Butterfly Kapers
56. Railroad Tales
57. Pine Cone Bird Feeder
58. Sandy Shorts
59. Fairy Stone Hunt
60. Rock n Rockets
61. Canoeing with Ghosts
62. Salamander Meander
63. Quicksand!
64. Gnome Homes
65. Luma Plena: Full Moon
66. Swamp Stomp
67. Seaside Creatures
68. Staying Found
69. Night Hike
70. Crabbing
71. Young Naturalist
72. What's in the Nets?
73. Geoquest
74. Scales to Tales
75. Wonder Bugs
76. Moonlight Movies
77. Talons of Terror
78. Relay on the Beach
79. Touch of Nature
80. Predators and Prey
81. Owl Call Canoe Tour
82. Civil War Campfire
83. Nature's Nocturne Hike
84. Critter Crawl
85. Made in the Shade
86. Owl Wisdom
87. History Flows Through it
88. Feeding Frenzy
89. Panning for Gold
90. Storytime in the Woods
91. A Stitch in Time
92. Creepy Crawlies
93. Pond Play
94. Lovely Ladybugs
95. Make Tracks for Home
96. Majestic Eagles
97. Cherokee Run
98. 1175 Frontier Life
99. Fishing at the Falls
100. The Bear Facts
101. Aquatic Insects
102. Roving Reptiles
103. River Float
104. Gone Batty
105. Owl Prowl
106. Snakes Alive
107. Toad Abodes
108. Gyotaku (Fish Printing)
109. You too Can Canoe
110. Stump the Ranger
111. Civil War Kids
112. Mystery in the Mountains
113. Ugly Bug Contests
114. Natures Paint Brush
115. Corn Husk Dolls
116. Tree ID
117. Catch 'em in the Creel
118. Pirates, Privateers and Patriots Trip
119. Going N Seine
120. Roaming Ranger
121. Pick your Paddle

Do I have your attention yet? How do YOU spell Fun?  There is so much to love at Virginia State Parks.

Rent a cabin, rent a lodge, rent a tent site for a night or a week, or full hook-up site or a shelter for a family reunion or church picnic (you know how we all love Sunday chicken!)  Some Virginia State Parks even have conference centers available for your use.  Book the conference center and a "canoogle" of canoes, guaranteed you will have a blast! 

You can reserve online TODAY or see what is available here.  Search for specific amenities for the park that is just right for you or view a PDF amenities grid comparing all Virginia State Parks at once.

Virginia State Parks Rock!
I am tellin’ ya they roolly do!

I am pleased to be able to share more posts from Daniela and her dog Shawnee as they visit Virginia once more. You may have seen the earlier post: Serious Hiking at Douthat State Park. This time they used Hungry Mother State Park as their base camp and took advantage of some of the best hikes in that part of the world.



Their week long visit included 56 miles of hiking in four states and in the hottest June I can remember.

Good hiking information is hard to find. Even if you invest in the best topo maps, there is always uncertainty in the mix. These posts are so detailed that even the most novice hiker should be able to set out for an enjoyable day of hiking.

During their stay in Virginia, they visited three of our parks: Hungry Mother, Grayson Highlands and Wilderness Road. Additionally they hiked at Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, Jefferson National Forest, and Stone Mountain State Park (North Carolina State Parks).

Many of our family friendly Virginia State Parks are adjacent to other public lands that have excellent hiking or are a short drive away.

Here are the posts from this trip:

Hungry Mother State Park, VA

Jefferson National Forest - Crawfish Valley (Rural Retreat, VA)

Grayson Highlands State Park and Mount Rogers, VA

Stone Mountain State Park, Roaring Gap, NC

Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, VA-KY-TN and Wilderness Road State Park, VA

Be sure and check out Gone Hikin' to read of their other hiking excursions usually in New Jersey, New York and Pennsylvania. Or, for a different perspective, you might enjoy Shawnee's blog The Shenanigans of Shawnee the Shepherd. The accompanying posts from this trip can be found in Hiking with Shawnee Shep - Southwest Virginia. 

Back by popular demand is the delightful hiking exploits of Shawnee Shep and her mom. This time they ventured from New Jersey to Hungry Mother State Park. From their cabin at Hungry Mother they were in reach of some of the best hiking in southwest Virginia and they hiked 56 miles in one week and in four different states!

Not all of the hikes are in one of our Virginia state parks but many of our parks are excellent base camps for other hiking destinations on public lands. They visit three of our parks: Hungry Mother, Grayson Highlands and Wilderness Road. Additionally they hike at Cumberland Gap National Historical Park, Jefferson National Forest, and Stone Mountain State Park (North Carolina State Parks).

Get ready for some great views, good hiking and delightful commentary. There are some special pictures in these posts taken by Shawnee Cam, a camera she wears on her collar.

Here are the posts from this trip:

Hungry Mother State Park, Marion, VA

Jefferson National Forest - Crawfish Valley (Rural Retreat, VA)

Grayson Highlands State Park and Mount Rogers, VA

Hungry Mother State Park, VA - Molly's Knob Trail and Lake Loop Trail

Stone Mountain State Park, Roaring Gap, NC

Cumberland Gap National Historic Park, KY, TN, VA, and Wilderness Road State Park, VA

I have to share some great blog posts on hiking Douthat State Park. Daniela and her dog Shawnee regularly hike weekends on public lands in New Jersey and New York. I invited them to come to Douthat State Park last weekend and try out some of Virginia's finest trails. If you are a serious hiker, I highly recommend Gone Hikin'. She gives all the information you need to find the trail heads and enjoy the hike.


She and Shawnee hiked 32 miles over the weekend. All but the last day offered some of the finest Virginia spring weather if a little on the hot side for this time of year. Her blog includes information that will also be helpful for visitors that would be interested in shorter hikes at Douthat.

Here are the links to her great posts:

Douthat State Park, VA  Long Weekend Hiking Trip

Douthat State Park, VA  Blue Suck Falls/Tuscarora Overlook/Stony Run

Douthat State Park, VA  Beards Mountain/George Washington National Forest

Douthat State Park, VA  Middle Mountain/Douthat Lake

If you are interested in more information about trails in Douthat and other Virginia State Parks, please visit the new Virginia Outdoors site. Click here to be able to see individual park trail maps and view information and pictures about the trails. This is a great hiking trip planning tool.

Reservations for camping and cabins at Douthat State Park are available through our reservation center at 800-933-7275. The Center is open 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. Or, you can book on line.

While this visitor post from Karen in Forest, Virginia is not specifically about a Virginia State Park visit, I am posting it because Karen does a great job describing one of the intrinsic values of parks - parks as a tonic for the mind, body and spirit.

I spent a wonderful time by the creek in the local park.. Being one of my favorite places to visit, it is where I was automatically drawn to last week. With the passing (unexpectedly) of my very best friend I just needed to get away for some peace and solitude. Although I enjoy camping and hiking in the mountains this time just "reflecting" will always hold a special place in my heart for visiting. Even though the weather had been chilly up til now this particular day was a "picture perfect day" to be in the mountains. My friend (Sharon) had been diagnosed with cancer several years ago (was in remission) and then I was diag. with Lyme in April of 2009. Although we often talked about staying in one of the cabins when we both felt better it never came to pass. She loved the outdoors and the mountains and I will never visit again without knowing in my heart she isn't far away. My prayer for everyone is to enjoy life, enjoy the outdoors and teach your children about all of the beautiful memories nature has to offer. God has given us a beautiful gift every time we look at the trees, watch birds, and enter a state park. Thank you to all the people that take care of the day -to -day maintenance that allows us to be able to continue the opportunity to enjoy all the beautiful state parks our wonderful state has to offer.

Hello everyone!  My name is Kristen Uerz and I am the new receptionist for the central office for Virginia State Parks.  Even though I am new to this department I am not new to the state parks.  I have camped and stayed in cabins at several of the state parks over the years, from my personal favorite Smith Mountain Lake  tucked away in Huddleston, VA to the always exciting First Landing in Virginia Beach. 

My main goal is to stay at every state park in Virginia and my next cabin trip to Occoneechee, at the end of February, will put me closer to that goal.  While at Occoneechee I plan on geocaching and checking out a few of their trails.  I was also introduced to the Virginia State Parks Trail Quest Program in which you can sign up for free and log your visits to the state parks.  You are rewarded with prizes for visiting the state parks simply by finding the Secret Park Code and logging it on your account.   I am excited to be a part of such a great department and I can't wait to share all of my stories with fellow state park lovers. 

The crew at Shenandoah River State Park has got to be looking forward to spring! After recently coping with clean-up from the flooded river with help from their Friends group, park staff was just beginning to get things back to normal.

Then Mother Nature delivered another surprise. Let's just say it’s been quite an unusual winter for the staff and volunteers at Shenandoah River State Park. While the northern Virginia Park nestled between the Massanutten Mountains to the west and the Blue Ridge Mountains to the east is used to snowfall in the winter, they’ve never seen anything like this!

Washington’s famous “Snowmageddon” February 12th and 13th dropped over 30 inches on top of snow left behind from a system earlier in the week. Snowmageddon Part 2 later in the week left another 6” or so for the hardworking crew to clean-up.



During the “big one” the park lost power for over three days. This includes power to the residence of the Park Manager, Tony Widmer and his two sons Josh and Ben. The family found themselves literally snowed in at the park and cut off from the outside world. That’s when they set to work. Josh and Ben logged many volunteer hours working with their dad and using the park’s equipment to begin clearing the roads.



The family worked tirelessly to clear the way for employees to get to work and reopen the park. Josh and Ben even recruited another friend, Kenny Burke to help with the effort. Then instead of a hot shower at the end of the day they were roughing it without power at home. Tony says it wasn’t all that bad though they even cooked eggs and bacon on a cast iron skillet in the fireplace and I’m sure they had worked up an appetite.





VDOT showed up at the park on Tuesday and assisted with clearing the main roads. By Friday afternoon the park was reopened to the public. While its probably not a time I'd enjoy mountain camping in Virginia. Tony says there have been a few cross country skier out to enjoy the unique Northern Virginia outdoors opportunity provided by the back to back snowfalls.






See Related post Rivers Flood

As the fog lifted off the river on Saturday, Sept. 12, at James River State Park, participants started rolling in to enjoy the James River State Park Little-Big Adventure.

The Little-Big Adventure was an adult/child triathlon which included 0.5 mile canoe, 3.5 mile trail bike ride, and 1.5 mile run.  All teams had to compete in all three events and finish together.

Teams consisted of an adult and a child who was between the ages of 7 and 17.  There were approximately 15 teams per heat and a total of 70 teams.  This was an increase from 39 for the 2008 race.

Results from Saturday’s race:

Team More Cowbell won first place with 53:26 in the girls 7 and 8 year old division.  Team Acts won first place with 40:58 in the boys 7 and 8 year old division. 

Team Passing on Your Left won first place with 48:53 in the girls 9 and 10 year old division.  Team Galaxy won first place with 37:21 in the boys 9 and 10 year old division. 

Team Go Dog Go won first place with 43:55 in the girls 11 and 12 year old division.  Team The Speedsters won first place with 42:36 in the boys 11 and 12 year old division. 

Team Ginger won first place with 41:52 in the girls 13 and 14 year old division.  Team Roaches won first place with 46:11 in the boys 13 and 14 year old division. 

Team Beauty and the Beast won first place with 52:33 in the girls 15 through 17 year old division.  Team Double Turds won first place with 38:05 in the boys 15 through 17 year old division.

James River State Park is located six miles down river from Bent Creek.  The park features three miles of river frontage and 1,500 acres of rolling farm meadows with 17 miles of multi-use trails, quiet forest, three fishing pods, beautiful vistas, boat launches, bathhouse, primitive camp sites, RV camping, cabins, picnic shelters and canoe livery service.  James River State Park is 60 miles west of Richmond and approximately 45 minutes from Charlottesville and Lynchburg.

Sponsors for the event are Merrell, Blue Ridge Mountain Sports, American Family Fitness, Osprey, Clif Kid, and Peak.

Visit www.runningkids.net for more race information.

For general park information go to www.virginiastateparks.gov, contact the park office at 434-933-4395 or e-mail James River State Park at JamesRiver@dcr.virginia.gov.  James River State Park is located at 751 Park Road, Gladstone, VA 24553.

Visit www.virginiaoutdoors.net for other park information.

Overnight reservations can also be made by calling 1-800-933-PARK (7275) or by booking on line.

On Saturday, Sept. 12, 2009, enjoy the James River State Park Little-Big Adventure starting at 10 a.m.

The Little-Big Adventure is an adult/child team adventure triathlon located at James River State Park.  The triathlon includes 0.5 mile canoe, 3.5 mile trail bike ride, and 1.5 mile run.  All teams must compete in all three events and finish together.

Teams must consist of an adult who must be 18 years or older and a child who must be between the ages of 7 and 17. Team divisions will be based on the age and gender of the child member of the team.  The divisions are: Boy: 7-8, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-17; Girls: 7-8, 9-10, 11-12, 13-14, 15-17.

Registration is $95 through Sept. 10 and $100 on Sept. 11 and Sept. 12.  Registration forms can be found online at http://www.runningkids.net/.  Registrations can be sent to P.O. Box 3593, Chester, Va. 23831 if mailing before Sept. 5.

Champion Chip timing technology will capture each leg of the race and finish times for each team. Teams will pick up their chip the morning of the race between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m.  Chips will be immediately turned in after crossing the finish line.

Team entry fees include high tech t-shirts, use of one ankle chip per team for chip timing, insurance coverage, canoe use, free lunch tickets, finishers ribbon, tickets for random prize drawings, and sponsor giveaways.  No T-shirt is guaranteed after registering Sept. 1.


Medals are given for the top three finishers in each division. One lucky participant is going to win a Ripper kayak/paddle package, compliments of Blue Ridge Mountain Sports & Running Kids, and you must be present to receive the prize.  Other great random prize drawings include $150 Merrell gift certificates, Osprey backpack, and more!

After the race a complimentary lunch will be provided for all race participants and volunteers.  Spectators can purchase food as well.  There will be a number of sponsor booths and activities near the finish area.

James River State Park is located six miles down river from Bent Creek.  The park features three miles of river frontage and 1,500 acres of rolling farm meadows with 17 miles of multi-use trails, quiet forest, three fishing pods, beautiful vistas, boat launches, bathhouse, primitive camp sites, RV camping, cabins, picnic shelters and canoe livery service.  James River State Park is 60 miles west of Richmond and approximately 45 minutes from Charlottesville and Lynchburg.

Sponsors for the event are Merrell, Blue Ridge Mountain Sports, American Family Fitness, Osprey, Clif Kid, and Peak.

Visit www.runningkids.net for race details and a registration form or call 804-706-1038.

For general park information go to www.virginiastateparks.gov, contact the park office at 434-933-4395 or e-mail James River State Park at JamesRiver@dcr.virginia.gov.  James River State Park is located at 751 Park Road, Gladstone, VA 24553.

Overnight reservations can also be made by calling 1-800-933-PARK (7275) or by booking on line.

Days 1 and 2

Smith Mountain Lake State Park in Huddleston, VA is located on the second largest freshwater lake in the state. They offer a full range of water related activities, picnicking, a visitor center, camping and cabins. Hike the trails, learn about nature, and cool off at the park’s swimming beach. You will find boat rentals and a public boat launch area in the park.

Day 3

A visit to Staunton River State Park in Scottsburg, Virginia is sure to offer something for the entire family to do. One of the original six state parks, Staunton River opened to the public on June 15, 1936. More than 11 miles of multi-use trails, picnic shelters, access to the Staunton River, Dan River, and Buggs Island Lake, a seasonal Olympic-sized pool, nature programs, and many other activities are sure to fill your day with fun.

With so much to see and do at the park, you may choose to spend the night in their campground or cabins.

IN-THE-KNOW PIT STOPS

Bedford, Virginia, about twenty miles from Smith Mountain Lake State Park, is home to The National D-Day Memorial. Learn about the soldiers’ experience and about life on the home front during World War II or take a moment to remember and reflect. Stop by he Bedford Visitor Center for information about area attractions, including wineries, antique shops, and more.

MORE INFORMATION

For more information and reservations, please call our Reservation Center at 800-933-7275. The Center is open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Online reservations are available by clicking here.

Can't remember who said it but some celebrity (obviously not using Twitter) wanted to know whether if you used Twitter it made you a Twit. I am not a Twit, but I will confess to being a Twitter-holic.


My husband has me pegged as a workaholic. Probably accurate. I come by it naturally, my father always had a business on top of his full time career and after he retired he started another business and when he retired from that he drove a school bus (thankfully for him, he was pretty deaf) and a tram at Busch Gardens Williamsburg. I know, someone seriously unable to enjoy themselves outside of work. So what's wrong with that?

I found Twitter over the holidays when I decided Virginia State Parks could use a good dose of social media. 1,500 followers later and I sure am hooked. You can say what you will about all of the celebrity Twitteratti, but my experience is that I have met some really neat people.

If you don't know what Twitter is, it's described as a micro-blogging site. Micro because each tweet (a posting in Twitter) is limited to 140 characters. Don't be misled by the Twitter "What Are You Doing" which greets the user as you log in. I have heard of people who actually tweet every mudane daily activity but I don't follow them.

I started my Twitter account last Fall by following @VisitVirginia (in Twitter-land we refer to our "handles" with the @username). After a few yawns as I sat waiting for something new to pop up, I moved on to something else. But the world was abuzz about Twitter so I gave it another chance. That's when I found that the secret is to follow other Twitter users interested in what you're interested in. For @VaStateParks, I first followed the folks that @VisitVirginia was following - lots of destination/tourism sites. I started adding green/environmental issue Tweeters thanks to Adam Shake from Twilight Earth.

Of course we follow people who like nature, like to camp, hike, bike, mountain bike, fish, hunt, boat, .... anything outdoor. I often go to Twitter accounts like @GoParks and @CampingBlogger and start following people they follow.

That's when I got hooked. In addition to getting the word out about how great our parks were, I was treated to the wisdom and internet research of all the folks I was following. Not sure about you, but I don't spend a lot of time just searching the web on a variety of topics. The most I do is check out the headlines on Yahoo and dig around that way. The Tweeters I follow work in areas I'm interested in and tweet about their blogs and other articles and information posted to the web - the newest technology in solar panels, home-sized wind powered electric generators, etc.

As your followers respond to other tweets, you find new people to follow. In the Twitter world, most folks mutual follow. This grows your circle of followers. For a business or organization, as you develop relationships with people your Twitter buddies help you by re-tweeting your tweets. While my intent in tweeting for Virginia State Parks is to talk about our parks and events, I often respond to other tweets on subjects that have nothing to do with our parks. That's the way you start making connections.

By far our most loyal follower is @scooprandell. He re-tweets many of our postings and often tweets that Virginia has the best state parks on earth. His 3,000 plus followers see our tweets. We have about 1,500 followers but can reach 10,000 people as the result of these relationships. We have this blog automatically set up to tweet each new blog posting. All of the tweets also post on the VaStateParks Facebook and My Space pages. Thanks to Don Byrne in my office, we now have our events tweeting out two weeks before they are scheduled. So we can do a lot of automated stuff but that is only part of the big picture of relationship building. We could do only this business oriented tweeting but I think we would be less successful.

While I have a personal Twitter account and I also confess I Tweet for my dog (you'd be surprised how many non-humans tweet and how entertaining it is), I have found that I don't compartmentalize very well so @VAStateParks follows folks that I am personally interested in.

The other inspiring aspect of Twitter is that it seems to bring out the best in people. If you don't like what someone says or how they behave on Twitter, you can un-follow them and even block them. Blocking means they can't even see your tweets any more. Occasionally I see a snit between users but it's rare. Fridays are a Twitter love fest. That's #followfriday day. The # symbol called a hash tag in Twitter parlance is a tool tweeters use to easily search for tweets on a variety of subjects. You might guess that the hottest topic right now on Twitter is #swineflu. The #followfriday custom is to tweet references to your followers on who you think they should follow.

I've also participated in a Twitter on line scavenger hunt called #barkhunt. This activity is held every other Thursday evening at 9 p.m. and is run by @askspikeonline @bestbullysticks @fourleggedmedia @pawluxury. @VaStateParks is one of the sponsors. You can also be a Twitter DJ and tweet your favorite music using http://blip.fm/.

There are tons of Twitter applications that help you manage your followers; add a desktop display that lets you follow your twitter stream (tweets from your followers) and references to you as well as direct messages; a product that helps you manage multiple Twitter accounts; a variety of apps to tweet from your cell phone, Blackberry or PDA; applications to post pictures and videos, and the list goes on. And if you start a Twitter account, Mr. Tweet will help you find people to follow based on the kind of folks you already follow and you will be exposed to tons of Twitter how-to's. Give it a Twhirl.

And tomorrow, I'm going to Goochland for the opening of their Farmer's Market thanks to @ruralculture and for a visit to a real butcher shop (also recommended by @ruralculture).