Life's Too Short: The Campgrounds That Are Not Our Favorites
I don't want to hate on Virginia State Parks, but there are so many to choose from that sometimes it's helpful to know which ones shouldn't be at the top of your list. Here are a few suggestions for Not the Top of Your List, with the caveat that the cabin experiences here are probably fine, and they're not horrible experiences, just kind of ... meh. All three of these parks have generally great Tripadvisor reviews but I would go elsewhere:
1. Bear Creek Lake State Park: These campsites are truly awful. We were in a tent, and camping with friends in an A-Liner. First, it wasn't until we got a camper that I looked back on this particular experience and wondered how on Earth our A-Liner friends ever managed to get their camper in this space. But also our tent space was so undefined with no pleasant place to set up that we ended up setting up in the "yard" of our friends' site. The sites are small, undefined, hard, rocky, unpleasant, and too close together. Also, the lake is so small that in the summer it's not so much "refreshing" as "human soup."
2. Twin Lakes State Park: This one wasn't as bad as Bear Creek Lake, but it just wasn't as good as other parks. If your choice is between Twin Lakes and another state park, go somewhere else (unless it's Bear Creek Lake!). If the choice is between Twin Lakes and not camping, go to Twin Lakes.
3. Holliday Lake State Park (Yes, It's Spelled That Way): This one was the least offensive of the three here, as the lake was bigger and therefore cooler and the sites were much better. The two issues we had here were 1) overzealous rangers (and as a former school safety patrol officer in 4th grade, I understand the appeal of law and order but folks are camping, for goodness sake, back off a bit); and 2) the 4H camp across the lake with target practice that lasted all day resulting in loud/echoing gunshots for the entire day Saturday.
1. Bear Creek Lake State Park: These campsites are truly awful. We were in a tent, and camping with friends in an A-Liner. First, it wasn't until we got a camper that I looked back on this particular experience and wondered how on Earth our A-Liner friends ever managed to get their camper in this space. But also our tent space was so undefined with no pleasant place to set up that we ended up setting up in the "yard" of our friends' site. The sites are small, undefined, hard, rocky, unpleasant, and too close together. Also, the lake is so small that in the summer it's not so much "refreshing" as "human soup."
2. Twin Lakes State Park: This one wasn't as bad as Bear Creek Lake, but it just wasn't as good as other parks. If your choice is between Twin Lakes and another state park, go somewhere else (unless it's Bear Creek Lake!). If the choice is between Twin Lakes and not camping, go to Twin Lakes.
3. Holliday Lake State Park (Yes, It's Spelled That Way): This one was the least offensive of the three here, as the lake was bigger and therefore cooler and the sites were much better. The two issues we had here were 1) overzealous rangers (and as a former school safety patrol officer in 4th grade, I understand the appeal of law and order but folks are camping, for goodness sake, back off a bit); and 2) the 4H camp across the lake with target practice that lasted all day resulting in loud/echoing gunshots for the entire day Saturday.