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Submission
Relax at this popular, yet peaceful recreation area beside Beartree Lake complete with campsites, a picnic area, nearby trails and a scenic lake. Campsites are popular with tent campers since there are no hookups, but RVs are welcome and easily accommodated. Group sites are available with reservations.
The campground offers two fishing piers, and smallmouth bass, sunfish, rainbow and brown trout are all possible catches.
The Beartree Lake Trail, which circles the lake, is excellent for hiking. Half of the trail is paved for an easier walk.
Tent and RV campers are welcome. Drinking water and a water fill-up station are provided. A dump station is located on the left side of the road before the contact station as you enter the campground. Each site has a grill and picnic table, and most are secluded from other sites. The group picnic shelter accommodates 50 guests and most group sites fit 24 guests. (Group sites are closed for the 2021 season.)
The campground is located in diverse vegetation, and Beartree Lake is surrounded by dense trees that meet the shoreline.
The Mount Rogers Scenic Byway passes near the campground, highlighting the impressive valleys, mountains, forests and rural countrysides of western Virginia.
The Appalachian Trail, which extends more than 2,175 miles throughout the Appalachian Mountains and across 14 states, is accessible nearby.
From I-81 Southbound: Take exit 29 at Glade Spring, turn left at bottom of ramp and go about ¼ mile to traffic light at intersection of Rt. 91 and Rt. 11. Then proceed straight through the traffic light and follow Rt. 91 for 13 miles to the Beartree entrance on the left (paved FS 837).
From I-81 Northbound: Take exit 19 at Abingdon onto US 58 east. Go about 12 miles to Damascus. Continue on US 58 east another seven miles to the campground entrance on the left. From the entrance off US 58 to the entrance station is approximately one mile. The family campground loops are approximately three miles from the entrance station, and the group camping loops are approximately ½ mile from the entrance station.
$24 per single site per night (max 2 tents, 8 people, 2 vehicles). $48 per double site per night (max 4 tents 16 people, 4 vehicles.). $5 dump station fee (non campers). $55 group camping (reservation only). Discounts available for most sites for Senior Pass Holders.
Great place anytime of year. Can be difficult to reach in winter. Incredible views on fall. Great trout fishing. Camping, hiking, swimming, crystal clear lake.
Really enjoyed our stay. We had a scout troop. I was very impressed that everyone around us, minus the coyotes, observed the quiet hours from exactly 10pm to 7am. It was beautiful there. We took a hike up the trail to the old shelter on the Old AT trail. We were there for the Virginia Creeper Trail. The water looked dirty but we had water, no big deal. The guy doing the survey was so helpful, he gave us pointers as to the more interesting hike, so we took his advice and enjoyed our hike.
We decided to camp here for our week of vacation.
The camp hosts were very friendly and helpful.
Bathrooms and showers were kept very clean.
We had the park almost to ourselves for a good part of the week.
Very Peaceful.
Great hiking all around this area.
Don't miss the hike to Mount Rogers.
Beautiful place in dense Forrest. Most of the campsites you can't see your neighbors. Pretty quiet for the most part because of this.
Seems like the first turn in of the non-group camping was less crowded and better bath houses, probably because it's the side where the camp host lives, but he didn't bother us at all. Hot showers and TP in both bathhouses on this side of the park. Cool looking old school playgrounds at each camp sections.
Prices are pretty high if you are trying to rent a double campsite. Plenty of room on a single camp site. They all have a picnic table and a fire pit/grill.
The host rode around on his golf cart a few times, but didn't harass us.
You can get right on the Virginia Creeper Trail, Appalachian trail, and/or MTB trails right from the park without having to drive. A few water spigots around the park to wash you bike off if you need to. Might be good to bring a short piece of water hose to wash it off with, but we just used water bottles and our hands.
I want to give this place 5 stars for the sheer beauty and solitude of the campground, however there were some very serious issues that need to be addressed and was torn between 3 and 4 stars because of it.
The campground itself, fantastic! Large spacious sites, tall trees and lush foilage, a trickling creek right in our campsite, really, what more could we ask for? It was private, quiet, peaceful and with no hookups at all, it was dark and lovely.
Staff: What interaction we had was pleasant, helpful and friendly.
We knew this would be dry camping, and all information led to the impression that there would be water fill spigots around the park, bath houses with "hot showers", and a dump at the park exit. We are self contained and put a bit of fresh water in our tank before we arrived. It's sure good we did because the water from the spigots was a strange deep yellow color. The bathhouses in our entire loop were closed, no toilets other than porta potties and no "hot showers", in addition, when we checked out and tried to dump, the dump was a mess. It was full and there was "dump" and toilet paper all around. In addition, it's on the wrong side, so you have to try to turn your rig around and go in backwards to be on the right side... which of course doesn't matter because you can't use it.
We asked a volunteer about the bathhouses and yellow water. He replied that he'd been drinking the yellow water for a few months and was fine... hmmm... I'm not willing to take that chance. He also informed us that 1 of 2 pumps in the lift station died 4 years ago and was not replaced because they can't get the parts .. in 4 years???? Then last year the other pump died, so they are "working on it" .... for a year! That's unacceptable.
However, the beauty of the place overwhelms and makes it worth going if you just don't need the other stuff. Take your full tanks down the mountain to a place you can dump I suppose.
