The good, the bad, and the, well, not so good.

It is just one of those luck of the draw, or, lack of it.

The day before we are to leave to camp at Sherando Lake campground I get an email saying they were having water leak issues and there would be no water available at the beach bath house, nor, in the campgrounds.

No water...as in, none, zero, zilch.

Bathrooms and showers would be closed. No water spigots would be cut on. Pit toilets would be provided. Well, great timing. Awesome weather forecasted after enduring a heatwave with 102-104 heat indexes.

Putting on the positive face: only two night stay, can bring bottled water, can make do with pit toilet, and, bring wipes/wash with a bottle of water. Not the best, but, trade off for great forecast.

The tent site was lovely. Close to the pit toilet, but, far enough away to not be found by an odor trail, close enough to get to quickly, and, out of sight behind the bath house which was closed. Not as visually appealing as a flush toilet, but, it got the job done.

No potable water. Bottled water and the cooler sufficed.

No shower. Probably, the hardest to wink at. Though having hiked the AT, a wipe bath was not foreign and, again, got the job done. We did pack up on day two in the evening and after hiking the upper lake trail, left. We opted to forego night two since we had enjoyed the campsite, hiked both the lower and upper lake trails, enjoyed the beach and walked in the water to the island. I, also, had walked the campground we stayed in.

We basically had finished what we came to do and once home a shower was very welcoming.

The weather was pleasant; it actually was a tad cool when wet and the sun was behind the clouds.

We arrived on Sunday and it reminded me of when I first came up out of the Subway onto the streets of New York: there was a buzz of people. The parking lots were full; the picnic area, beach, lake, and shaded area in front of the beach pavilion was humming with people. There was still places to put an umbrella, or, sit in the shade; but, it was a hum of activity as people were in the water, on the beach, in the shade, and in the picnic area.

We hiked the lower lake trail which for one mile was a good way to start our stay.

The lake nestled in the mountains makes for picturesque views.

We headed back to our campsite to burn our Mighty Tote log (so, quick and easy to get a fire going), roast hotdogs, and eat watermelon.

Day two was spent at the lake. What a difference a day can make. If Sunday was New York, Monday was small town America.

Thunder rumbled close by in the later afternoon, so, we packed up our stuff at the lake and headed to the campground.

I think the threat of packing up the next morning wet if a storm came, coupled with the feeling we had finished for the day, motivated the decision to pack up and leave.

It took a while to get an unanimous vote, but, we packed up.

On the way out, we went to the Upper Sherando Lake. The sun was fully out and it was obvious with a more unobstructed view of the sky that the storm threat had passed away from the campground.

The views and atmosphere at the upper lake were awesome. We hiked the Upper Sherando Lake trail.

We then headed home.

All in all, the trip was memorable and enjoyable: less the porta potties, unavailable water, and, unavailable showers.

The luck of the draw is not always in your favor for all things.

We just got back from our first time visiting Douthat State Park.

Upon arriving, we stopped at the guest check-in to pickup our reservation confirmation and other park info.

The desk attendant was friendly and helpful.

When I asked her about certain trail details, she highlighted the trails on a map as she showed them to me.

When I asked about elevation details, she showed me another map with elevation info.

We talked about our different Appalachian Trail exposure and experience.

From the check-in, we went to our campsite.

We tented in White Oak Campground.

We were able to get on site before 4:00pm, which may explain the noise around our campsite, as they were mowing and weed-eating.

We set up our tent and electric supply.

The bathhouse was very clean, as was the whole campground.

We, and, possibly one other, were the only tent campers in White Oak Campground.

During our stay, rv's of various types and sizes were definitely the majority.

The campground was extremely quiet at night.

Campers had fires, went to shower, etc. and then I could not even hear other campers conversing from their campsites; very quiet, tranquil, and peaceful.

We hiked around Douthat Lake our first day in after setting up.

It was a nice, leisurely walk.

The grounds were clean; we enjoyed the sights.

The next day we hiked from White Oak Campground up Tobacco House Ridge Trail to Blue Suck Falls Trail, and on to Tuscarora Overlook.

It was 8.37 miles with 2,049 elevation gain according to my stats.

Blue Suck Falls had a little water flow. It was a nice spot to rest, sitting on the rock chair.

Tuscarora Overlook was worth the trek. The view was tranquil.

We hiked back the way we came and were glad to be back at our campsite.

We enjoyed showers and grilled hotdogs.

We definitely look forward to coming back and have already reserved a cabin for October.

Douthat State Park is a lovely park.

We tent camped at Smith Mountain Lake State Park July 17-19.

The temperatures were high 80's with the high feel like temperatures in the 90's.

The lake water temperature was perfect. The water was so refreshing and a great escape from the July heat. Once out of the water and in the shade of our beach umbrella, the sun temps felt good while drying off.

The beach was clean and enjoyable, but, beware there may be a bee or two aggressively buzzing about you at times.

The concession area was a nice area with options of sun and shade for sitting.

I was pleased with the concession prices. I thought they were reasonable for a lake concession and our hamburgers were very tasty. The burgers had a good grilled flavor. The ice cream, slushies, and pretzels were all very good as well.

We took the free pontoon boat tour and it was informative and enjoyable.

We hiked the Turtle Island trail and it was nice to be on a trail in the woods, but, also nice that it was a short (1.4?) but scenic trail since the temps were still quite warm. It was an enjoyable trail.

The tent site we stayed at had electric and water and was just perfect.

The camping area was clean and quiet; the showers were really nice, and the bathrooms were clean.

I did hike the .5 trail from the trash dumpsters to the camping area twice when taking our trash out. It was a very lovely short trail that in places skirted the water with views.

We enjoyed our trip to Smith Mountain Lake State Park and look forward to returning again.

The good, the bad, and the, well, not so good.

It is just one of those luck of the draw, or, lack of it.

The day before we are to leave to camp at Sherando Lake campground I get an email saying they were having water leak issues and there would be no water available at the beach bath house, nor, in the campgrounds.

No water...as in, none, zero, zilch.

Bathrooms and showers would be closed. No water spigots would be cut on. Pit toilets would be provided. Well, great timing. Awesome weather forecasted after enduring a heatwave with 102-104 heat indexes.

Putting on the positive face: only two night stay, can bring bottled water, can make do with pit toilet, and, bring wipes/wash with a bottle of water. Not the best, but, trade off for great forecast.

The tent site was lovely. Close to the pit toilet, but, far enough away to not be found by an odor trail, close enough to get to quickly, and, out of sight behind the bath house which was closed. Not as visually appealing as a flush toilet, but, it got the job done.

No potable water. Bottled water and the cooler sufficed.

No shower. Probably, the hardest to wink at. Though having hiked the AT, a wipe bath was not foreign and, again, got the job done. We did pack up on day two in the evening and after hiking the upper lake trail, left. We opted to forego night two since we had enjoyed the campsite, hiked both the lower and upper lake trails, enjoyed the beach and walked in the water to the island. I, also, had walked the campground we stayed in.

We basically had finished what we came to do and once home a shower was very welcoming.

The weather was pleasant; it actually was a tad cool when wet and the sun was behind the clouds.

We arrived on Sunday and it reminded me of when I first came up out of the Subway onto the streets of New York: there was a buzz of people. The parking lots were full; the picnic area, beach, lake, and shaded area in front of the beach pavilion was humming with people. There was still places to put an umbrella, or, sit in the shade; but, it was a hum of activity as people were in the water, on the beach, in the shade, and in the picnic area.

We hiked the lower lake trail which for one mile was a good way to start our stay.

The lake nestled in the mountains makes for picturesque views.

We headed back to our campsite to burn our Mighty Tote log (so, quick and easy to get a fire going), roast hotdogs, and eat watermelon.

Day two was spent at the lake. What a difference a day can make. If Sunday was New York, Monday was small town America.

Thunder rumbled close by in the later afternoon, so, we packed up our stuff at the lake and headed to the campground.

I think the threat of packing up the next morning wet if a storm came, coupled with the feeling we had finished for the day, motivated the decision to pack up and leave.

It took a while to get an unanimous vote, but, we packed up.

On the way out, we went to the Upper Sherando Lake. The sun was fully out and it was obvious with a more unobstructed view of the sky that the storm threat had passed away from the campground.

The views and atmosphere at the upper lake were awesome. We hiked the Upper Sherando Lake trail.

We then headed home.

All in all, the trip was memorable and enjoyable: less the porta potties, unavailable water, and, unavailable showers.

The luck of the draw is not always in your favor for all things.