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1. Bear
Creek Lake State Park - 804-492-4410
Location:
From
U.S. 60, north on Route 622 and then west on Route 629.
Nestled in the heart of
Cumberland State Forest in central Virginia, this park offers
the amenities of larger parks without the crowds. Activities
center on the 40-acre lake with a boat launch, fishing pier,
boat rentals, and swimming beach, as well as lake-side camping,
archery range, picnicking, bike rentals, playgrounds, hiking, and
a 14-mile multi-use trail.
10. Fairy
Stone State Park - 540-930-2424
Location:
Near Martinsville. Access by Route 57 from Bassett
or from the Blue Ridge Parkway via
Routes 58, 8, 57.
Home of the lucky fairy stones,
Fairy Stone State Park is well known for its 168-acre lake
adjoining Philpott Reservoir just minutes from the Blue Ridge
Parkway. Park attractions include cabins, campground, group
camping, a new conference center, a new lodge that sleeps 16,
hiking trails, beach swimming, rowboats, canoes, paddle boats,
hydro-bikes, picnicking, and two playgrounds, including one in
the water.
16. Holliday
Lake State Park - 804-248-6308
Location:
Access via State Route 24 between Appomattox and
U.S. 60 and from State Routes 626, 640
and 692.
Just minutes from the famous
Appomattox National Historical Park, Holliday Lake offers a
scenic 150-acre lake amid rolling hills. Activities include
fishing, boating, swimming, picnicking, camping, and hiking.
19. James
River State Park - 804-933-4355
Location: Buckingham County.
From Route 60 west, turn right
on Route 605 at the James River Bridge.
Go 7 miles and turn left at Route 606. One
of the state's newest parks, visitors can canoe, fish, or camp
along the banks of the historic James River or around scenic
Branch Pond. The park features 1,500 acres of rolling farm
meadows, quiet forest, and beautiful mountain vistas, as well as
three miles along the banks of the James River. Facilities
include three picnic areas with six large shelters, two boat
launches, two primitive campgrounds, equestrian camping, and a
universally accessible fishing pier.
27. Occoneechee
State Park - 804-374-2210
Named for Native Americans who lived in the area
for hundreds of years, Occoneechee is on the John H. Kerr
Reservoir, better known as Buggs Island Lake. Facilities include
campsites, picnic areas with shelters, an amphitheater, a
playground, a Wildlife Management Area, and boat launching ramps.
The visitor center with displays
designed by the Virginia Museum of Natural History introduces
visitors to native American culture and the indigenous
Occoneechee people.
Special Events: Native
American Heritage Festival and Powwow, May 13, 2000.
30. Pocahontas
State Park - 804-796-4255
Location: Chesterfield County.
Take Interstate 95 to State
Route 288 north, then State Route 10 east to
Route 655 (Beach
Road) west.
Just 20 miles from downtown
Richmond, Pocahontas is a convenient getaway with plenty to do.
Pool swimming, boating, bicycling, and individual and group
camping are long-time favorites. The Civilian Conservation Corps
Museum, dedicated to the Depression-era volunteers who helped to
build the state's park system, is one of the few of its kind in
the nation.
The park's two group cabin areas
are available for day and overnight use. The new Heritage Center
is available for meetings and events and for seasonal
performances. The renovated Heritage Amphitheater, built
originally by the CCC, seats 5,000 on a sloping hillside.
31. Sailor's
Creek Battlefield Historic State Park - 804-392-3435
Location: 5 miles east of Farmville.
Take State Route 307
north to Route 617 north or take State Route
307 (connecting
highway between U.S. 360 and U.S. 460 at Farmville) to Route 617
north.
In the early evening of April 6,
1865, as Confederate General Robert E. Lee's battered Army of
Northern Virginia retreated southward, two days after abandoning
Richmond and Petersburg, Union Generals Horatio Wright, Andrew
Humphreys, and Phil Sheridan attacked. Nearly a quarter of Lee's army,
more than 7,700 men, were killed, wounded or captured, and eight
generals were captured, including one of Lee's sons. Lee
surrendered his army three days later at Appomattox Court House.
Costumed volunteers re-enact the
battle of Sailor's Creek near the historic Hillsman House, which
served as a field hospital for northern and southern soldiers.
Various interpretive programs are scheduled throughout the year.
Motorists traveling along Lee's Retreat can learn more about the
battle by tuning their radios to AM 1610.
34. Smith
Mountain Lake State Park - 540-297-6066
Location: North shore of the lake in Bedford County.
From
U.S. 460, take State Route 122 south to
Route 608 east to Route 626 south.
Located on the second largest
freshwater body in the state, Smith Mountain Lake State Park is
a water enthusiast's paradise. In addition to a full range of
water-related activities including swimming, boat rentals, a
boat ramp, and a universally accessible fishing pier, families
can enjoy miles of hiking trails, picnicking, a visitor center,
amphitheater, and special programs.
Primitive camping is available,
and 24 sites have water and electrical hookups. The park also
offers one three-bedroom cabin and 19 two-bedroom cabins with
boat docks.
Special Events: Smith
Mountain Ruritans Bass Fishing Tournament in March; Friends of
Smith Mountain
Lake State Park Inc. Spring Fling in April; Smith
Mountain Lake Triathlon in May; and Aspiring Anglers
Junior
Fishing Tournament in June.
37. Staunton
River Battlefield State Park - 804-454-4312
Location: 18 miles east of South Boston.
Take Route 92 to
Clover. Go approximately 5 miles to Route
600 and turn left. Go approximately 3 miles and
turn right on Route 855.
This park is a 300-acre Civil War
historic site on which a ragtag group of Confederate old men
and young boys beat the odds and held off an assault by 5,000
Union cavalry on a bridge of strategic importance to General Lee's
army, under siege in Petersburg.
The visitor center, opened in
1995 as a unique partnership between the Department of
Conservation and Recreation, Virginia Power, Old Dominion
Electric Cooperative, and the Historic Staunton River Foundation,
features 1,800 square feet of displays on the history of the
area as well as on electric energy. It also has a
three-quarter-mile nature walking trail and two wildlife
observation towers overlooking a wetland enhancement project
built for waterfowl and other wildlife.
36. Staunton
River State Park - 804-572-4623
Location: 18 miles east of South Boston.
Take U.S. 360, then
Route 344 for 10 miles.
With acres of woods, broad
meadows, and a lengthy shoreline on Buggs Island lake, Staunton
River State Park has much to offer.
Freshwater fishing is popular
with local residents as well as overnight guests. Other park
attractions include a large swimming pool, Pollywog Pond (wading
pool), camping and cabins, tennis and volleyball courts, a boat
launch, riverfront picnicking and picnic shelters, miles of
hiking trails, a multi-use trail open to hikers, bicyclists, and
equestrians and a wide variety of special programs including the
Blue Grass Music Festival and Shakespeare in the Park.
39. Twin
Lakes State Park - 804-392-3435, Cedar Crest
Conference Center, 804-767-2398
Location: 5 miles southwest of Burkeville.
Take U.S. 360
west to State Route 613.
Located in the heart of central
Virginia, this historical park offers a full array of cultural,
environmental, and recreational activities. Through historic
photographs and interpretive signs, visitors to the Cedar Crest
Conference Center can learn of the park's history and two
segregated facilities prior to the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
Twin lakes was developed in 1950
as Prince Edward State Park for Negroes, a segregated,
separate-but-equal facility. Integrated in 1964, Prince Edward
formally merged with Goodwin Lake State Park and the new
facility was later renamed Twin Lakes State Park.
Overnight accommodations include
a full-service campground, group camping facilities, and
climate-controlled cabins. Cedar Crest Conference Center is
available for family reunions, business and training meetings,
wedding receptions, and other gatherings and meetings. Enjoy
swimming, fishing, and lakefront picnicking at Goodwin
Lake. Hikers, mountain bikers, and equestrians can take advantage of a
multi-use trail developed in conjunction with Prince Edward
State Forest.
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