First there was flooding (there are still sites we can't open). When it was clear that the water just wasn't draining off the sites and we took action to block the sites from rental, we realized we had already booked more sites than...

First Landing State Park is a truly unique camping destination.  It is a 2,888 acre natural area set within the coastal urban area of Virginia Beach.

Worried that oil from the BP disaster will sully Atlantic beaches...

The end of last week we shipped out 33,000 cards for our park staff to hand out to visitors to let them know about our partnership with WildObs.

Saturday, June 5th is the 22nd Annual Clean the Bay Day sponsored by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.

Recent research published in England indicates that getting outdoor exercise can significantly improve your mental health and well-being within FIVE MINUTES of being outdoors!! 

Thanks to weeks of fairly dry weather, we are going to be able to open another chunk of campsites at First Landing State Park. You may recall that most of the campground has been under water since the winter.

Saturday May 15th was a beautiful spring day and just perfect for Bear Creek Lake State Park's 70th Anniversary Celebration.

On Saturday, May 15, 2010 a crew of ten active duty sailors will attempt to row and sail a 26-foot long Monomy Pulling Boat across the Chesapeake Bay from First Landing State Park to Kiptopeke State Park and back.

As a child I enjoyed crocheting. It probably started with one of those pot holder weaving kits when I was even younger, but I enjoyed the feel of the yarn and the satisfaction of being creative.

On Friday, April 23rd, participants from Bear Creek Academy, the Friends Of Bear Creek Lake State Park, and park staff worked together to plant five trees in Bear Creek Lake State Park's picnic area.

For the first time, the “Gathering in the Gap” Music Festival, which takes place at the Southwest Virginia Museum on May 29, 2010, will include a new Songwriting Contest.

Smith Mountain Lake State Park Boat Ramp saw extra business last Saturday, May 1st.

The Friends of Bear Creek Lake State Park is one of Virginia State Parks newest Friends group.

This has been a bad spring at First Landing. As many of you know, the park had most of its campsites under water this winter.

On May 15, Bear Creek Lake State Park will celebrate its 70th Anniversary along with the grand opening of the newly renovated trail system.

Many thanks to Odwalla and those who took part in its 2009 Plant a Tree program.

On Saturday, April 24, 2010, Holliday Lake State Park celebrated Earth Day with a special tree planting ceremony.

A little bad weather didn’t stop the volunteers at Leesylvania State Park from doing their best for Earth Day.

I am the Marketing Manager for Virginia State Parks and was asked by Fort A.P. Hill to come to their Earth Day celebration on Thursday, April 22 to share with school groups and military families some...

Local schools were invited to participate in Douthat State Park’s Twelfth Annual Earth Day Celebration which was held on Friday, April 16, 2010.

Spring is nearing full bloom here at Wilderness Road State Park and thanks to the Odwalla Plant a Tree program, we are happy to be able to host ...

The Friends of Pocahontas State Park will host a weekend-long volunteer event Saturday, April 24th and Sunday, April 25th at Pocahontas State Park.

Odwalla donates funds to purchase trees in area State Parks through a national internet competition in which Virginia State Parks came in second.

When many people think of a quilt, they envision something that you throw on a bed to help keep warm on a wintery night or something you cuddle up under when you’re under the weather.

Think about it, you deserve a little more “me” time.

Jim and Patti Gerhart, members of the Friends of Smith Mountain Lake State Park, submitted this great story

Looking for a change in venue now that spring has finally come to the Eastern Shore of Virginia?

A warm 70-degree afternoon set the perfect Spring stage for our first-ever rain barrel workshop at Wilderness Road State Park

Kiptopeke State Park, Natural Heritage and Chesapeake Bay Foundation teamed together today planting trees and shrubs creating wildlife habitat while conserving natural resources.

Every college student dreams of sandy beaches and warm sunshine for spring break, but there are some that put service to their communities above this thought.

National Tourism Week is May 8-16, 2010 and as part of the celebration, the City of Virginia Beach is hosting the Virginia Beach National Tourism Week Hospitality Awards on Friday, May 7th.

It is the 77th anniversary of the Virginia Garden Club premier event: Historic Garden Week.  Once again, Chippokes Plantation State Park in Surry, Virginia will be a featured site during the event

March brings many things like longer days and more sunshine.  It also means it is spring break time.  One group of college students is spending their spring break at Hungry Mother State Park volunteering.

Spring is just a short time away and many people are already planning their vegetable and flower gardens.  Their biggest obstacle throughout the year is water or, to be more precise, lack thereof.

A trip to the beach or manual labor doing work around a Virginia State Park?  That is the choice 11 college students are making for their spring break this year.

Girls weekends are one of my favorite adventures because you never know where you’ll end up or who’ll you’ll meet, which is the fun of the weekend anyway.

At a time when we could sure use the revenue and our visitors sure could use an escape from cabin fever, the winter weather has conspired to put a damper on early spring camping.

The crew at Shenandoah River State Park has got to be looking forward to spring!

Our Friends Groups are all about supporting our state parks. The Friends of Sailor's Creek Battlefield Historical State Park demonstrated their support for the park by donating funds they have raised in support of two important projects.

First Landing is facing a crisis related to the destruction of the park's natural forested area due to prohibited off-trail use and the creation of cut-throughs, short-cuts, and unofficial trails.

Spotsylvania couple active in projects, new technology for state parks here and elsewhere

The Virginia Master Naturalist Program is a statewide corps of volunteers providing education, outreach, and service dedicated to the beneficial management of natural resources and natural areas within their communities.

Cold weather has created ice sheets across the Bald Cypress Swamps at First Landing State Park.

Governor Kaine announced that his ambitious goal to conserve 400,000 acres in the Commonwealth was reached at the new Thomas Jefferson Visitor Center near Charlottesville on Friday, January 8th.

The Biscuit Run property in Albemarle County has been acquired by the Commonwealth of Virginia for $9.8 million for use as a future state park.

A discussion with Lynn Davis about the Virginia Association For Parks.

Thanks to the 2002 State Parks and Natural Area Bond, we have had a number of new and significantly remodeled visitor centers opening.

Ethan and Max will transform First Landing State Park into an "alternate earth" for their sci-fi thriller called, Atlantis Down. The parks' elegant water ways, Spanish-moss laden swamps,  and sandy dunes might just steal the show!

Several members of the Blue Ridge Foothills and Lakes (BRFAL) Chapter of the Virginia Master Naturalist Program recently installed new interpretive signs along the Oak Hickory Trail at Fairy Stone State Park.

The Sixth Annual Foster Falls Festival of Lights was a huge success at New River Trail State Park this past Saturday, Dec. 5.

Douthat State Park is offering an ornament making contest for students through Monday, December 14, 2009.

If you were in Leesylvania State Park on the morning of Saturday, November 21, you might have seen a sight that is increasingly rare these days: children having fun while being active outside.

Leesylvania Elementary school children were invited to get outside and experience Northern Virginia nature on Nov. 21, 2009 at the Turkey Trot.

Discover an event 400 years in the making.

Johhny Finch, President, Virginia Association for Parks (VAFP) announces rennovation of VAFP website, its new companion virginiaoutdoors.net and dates and location for the 2010 Spring Conference.

National Public Lands Day is the nation’s largest hands-on volunteer effort to improve and enhance the public lands Americans enjoy.

Virginia Beach is a great destination year round and First Landing State Park makes an excellent base for visiting that resort city and the surrounding cities.

26 state park volunteers participating, two fantastic canoe companies, our Park's chief ranger and two other rangers, and even an ace reporter from the Warren County report collected 1340 lb of trash from the river.

National Park Service and Virginia State Parks getting together to take on the collective challenge to get our children and families in to the outdoors.