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Facing the Potomac River, the park is six miles northwest of Montross and just off Route 3. From Fredericksburg (I-95), take Rt. 3 east, go about 40 miles to the park's entrance, turning left onto Rt. 347. From Tappahannock, take U.S. 360 East to Warsaw. Turn left onto Rt. 3 west at the second stop light. Stay on this road until about six miles past Montross. Turn right into the park's entrance on Rt. 347. From Richmond, take U.S. 360 East, then follow Tappahannock directions. From Tidewater, take 17 north to Tappahannock. At the second light, past Lowrey's Restaurant, turn right onto 360 east, then follow Tappahannock directions.
If you're into finding shark's teeth and fossils, this is defentily a place to visit. Easy hike to Fossil beach from Big Meadow Trail. The trail is .6 miles. They have camping grounds as well. The visitor center is very nice and has two different snakes on display. They offer a junior ranger program as well.
we had an awesome time staying in Cabin 2. It’s clean, cute, and built by the CCC in 36.
pros:
- fossil beach. we didn’t find any shark teeth but it was fun to look for them! i found a baby crab and some little fossils. i recommend bringing a colander and being prepared to get wet at the beach (we weren’t).
- the “efficiency” cabin is still an awesome cabin! it’s advertised as cinderblock, but it’s an authentic log cabin. fully renovated kitchen and bathroom, both of which featuring copper fixtures to add to the vibe.
- trails. all the trails were well maintained and had scenic views. despite only having about 15 miles in trails, it was still awesome and pet friendly.
- wildlife. if you want to find some osprey or waterfowl, this is the park for that! deer hang out in the open fields in the park and can be seen during the day.
- helpful signs. tree ID, butterfly info, trail maps, etc were all legible and easy to read
- quiet and dark. the cabins are so so so quiet, quiet enough that our yappy dogs never barked at anything. all the curtains in the cabins are blackout and awesome if you’re trying to take a nap in the middle of the day.
- interpreters. all the park interpreters (we only ever saw Ranger Luna) were very friendly and helpful. The programs were on the “fun” - less educational - side, but that’s okay!
- cell service. it seemed to work everywhere.
cons:
- it seems like everything was closed! the pool is closed, the cliffside cabins are closed, the camp store would randomly be closed throughout the day. i think this park has seen better days, but still had a bunch of visitors everyday we were here.
- we think our cabin had fleas. not a big deal, they’re hard to get rid of and i wouldn’t expect perfect conditions from a cabin in a park. i got eaten up by them every night sleeping on the couch since we had three people.
- fishing in the freshwater pond is spotty. i had my fly rod and only caught bluegill, but i love catching those suckers so it’s alright. the pond had hundreds of red eared sliders, so if you like to nature watch or chill on picnic tables, the pond is perfect and a short walk. lots of frogs too!
Went on a Friday so it was $7 entrance fee. It's a really nice park with plenty of picnic areas and nice beach areas. We went to fossil beach and let our kids dig and sift around for a few hours. It's a gorgeous location and nice little beach. It wasn't crowded when we were there but there isn't a whole lot of room if it gets too busy. Went to the visitor center afterwards and got ice creams to eat out at the picnic tables to cool off and relax.
• We visited in the early afternoon on a Friday in late December 2023 (after Christmas).
• There was no one at the front booth so payment is the honor system here. We have a VA State Park annual pass so we were not concerned.
• We drove straight to the visitor center. There were 5 or 6 cars in the parking lot at the time. Although no one was in the visitor center so they must have been outside somewhere. You enter the visitor center into his atrium area where the bathrooms are to your right and the store/visitor center is to the left. I wonder if they do this so people have access to bathrooms but there may not be staff inside the store or visitor center.
• The visitor center was quite large and had a nice big bank of windows in the back. There were 2 snakes and a turtle in a large indoor pond enclosure. There was merch and food available for purchase. I wonder if this double also as the park’s camp store.
• The kids got to talk and interact with a range inside the visitor center and there was another staffer who helped us check out. We grabbed a couple hiking medallions and pins.
• We then headed over to the Discovery Center which had 2 people staffing it. They were super good with interacting with the kids. Asking them questions and answering questions as well. They were super knowledge about the park and the animals that inhabit the park. It was cool to also learn about all the cool fossils that could be found at the fossil beach before actually heading down there. Definitely worth a visit. There were hands on materials and informational posters all over the walls and tables. The two young ladies did a great job.
• We then went down Big Meadows Trail just off the parking lot to fossil beach. It’s a well-maintained trail but it’s a little longer than you’d probably think and also elevation changes along with a lot of bumpy roots so watch your step. I’d still classify it as a easy trail but it’s not flat.
• We got to the end and there is quite a bit of erosions and wash out. So be careful. Also we did not have the right shoes or anything for fossil hunting. There were people out there in waders and wagon carts. Apparently, there are serious fossil hunters here. Kids were kind of disappointed that they couldn’t get over to the nice area to fossil hunting, but we weren’t prepared either. I think it was high tide. If we came again maybe we would bring shovels, sifters and water shoes. It was also cold because it was Dec. We’ve been to one other fossil beach where it was just littered with fossils everywhere you stepped. It looked pretty cleaned and picked over here. Just need to management the kids expectations better next time to avoid major disappointment.
• We would definitely visit this park again if we were in the area. Many other cool trails to explore.
• This was VA park number 18 for us on our VA State Park Trail Quest.
RV camped here after the thanksgiving holiday and had a very relaxing time. The majority of the camping sites were empty and the other campers who were here were friendly as all out. There are both pull through and back in sites. The site spacing wasn’t too close to each other, and big rigs can get through. Water pressure was normal and the power was stable. I had plenty of space on my lot (A34) for my 21’ rig and full size PU truck. The bath house was clean and temp controlled, hiking trails good. Wish there had of been more trails near the water though.
