Parks, Camping Sites Around the Valley

If your idea of camping is donning a backpack and hiking a remote trail, you are in luck. The Appalachian Trial and many other mountain pathways in the George Washington and Jefferson National Forests offer opportunities for sleeping under the stars away from the crowds a short drive from Roanoke.

Maybe, to you, camping is parking a long and sleek recreation vehicle close enough to a cable TV hookup to catch a movie on HBO. There are camping facilities nearby where you can do that. The region offers opportunities for everything from camping in a wilderness area to parking an RV where a miniature golf course is just outside your door. Here are some examples of camping opportunities in the region:

State Parks

The Virginia Division of State Parks operates nearly 40 areas across the state, about one-third of them offering facilities for campers.

Many parks offer vacation cabins in addition to camping. Advanced booking is required because of heavy use of these facilities.

Most state parks also feature hiking trails, visitors' centers, nature programs, swimming, horseback riding and boat rentals.

Here's a list of some of the facilities nearest to Roanoke:

• Claytor Lake State Park is a water-oriented facility, with about 150 campsites and a swimming area that includes a sand beach, marina and boat-launching ramp. Some campsites are equipped with water and electricity. The park is just off Interstate 81 at Exit 101.
• Douthat State Park embraces the beauty of the Allegheny Mountains near Clifton Forge in Alleghany and Bath counties. The facility contains about 75 campsites - some wooded, others on the waterfront. Take Exit 27 off Interstate 64 and follow Virginia 629 north to the park entrance.
• Fairy Stone State Park is nestled in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains near Bassett in Patrick and Henry counties. It is home of the nugget-like stones shaped in the form of a cross, for which the park is name. The park has its own 168-acre lake, and nearby is Philpott Reservoir. There are about 100 campsites. The facility is reached via Virginia 57 from Bassett or Virginia 58, 8 and 57 from the Blue Ridge Parkway.
• Smith Mountain Lake State Park contains 50 sites in a wooded area on a hillside away from the waterfront. There are hiking trails, a visitors' center, a popular swimming beach and bank and pier fishing opportunities. A launching ramp gives boaters access to the 20,000-acre lake. The park is reached off Virginia 626 near Moneta in Bedford County.

Blue Ridge Parkway

There are nine campgrounds along the 469 miles of this National Park Service scenic byway which follows the crest of the Blue Ridge into the Roanoke Valley.

Camping is classified "primitive," but that doesn't mean visitors must rough it. Each campsite has a picnic table and fireplace, but there are no electric or water hookups. Drinking water and comfort stations generally are a short hike away.

Camping is on a first-come-first-served basis.

Looking north to south, the following campgrounds are located along the Virginia stretch of the parkway: 

• Otter Creek is near the James River south of Glasgow (at milepost 61). The facility has about 40 tent and 25 RV sites. Fishing is available at nearby Otter Lake. There are nature trails and a visitors' center.
• Peaks of Otter is a popular camping area near milepost 86 about 30 miles north of Roanoke. In the shadow of lofty Sharp Top Mountain, a popular hiking attraction. The campground has about 90 tent and 60 RV sites. A restaurant, fishing lake and visitors' center are nearby.
• Roanoke Mountain, near popular Mill Mountain, is the nearest public campground to the Roanoke Valley. It also is one of the least used in the region. There are about 75 tent and 30 RV sites. Hiking is available and weekend programs often includes bluegrass groups.
• Rocky Knob is south of Roanoke near milepost 167. It offers about 80 tent and 30 RV sites. Mabry Mill, a well-known tourist attraction, is nearby.

National Forest

The George Washington and Jefferson National Forests provide organized campgrounds as well some of the best opportunities to backpack into the wilds, where a primitive camp can be established most anywhere you wish.

Backpacking

For backpackers, one of the region's finest treats is the Appalachian Trail and the Mount Rogers National Recreation Area. The Mount Rogers area, south of Marion, offers some of the best backpacking in the Eastern United States.

Philpott Reservoir

This 2,280-acre U.S. Army Corps of Engineers impoundment, in Henry County, has three campgrounds with a total of 203 campsites on its 100 miles of shoreline. The camps range from primitive areas reached by boat to well-developed sites that provide hot showers. The scenic lake, near Bassett, provides fishing, boating and water skiing. There are hiking opportunities along the shoreline.

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