Sky Meadows State Park — Attraction in Marshall

I arrived around Noon today, Saturday, and it was busy that I was directed to park in the picnic area. I remember hiking to the parking area from the visitors center the last time I was here. After finding a parking space, I saw a BBQ grilled and assumed it was making an entrance of a trail, and I was right. Actually, it took me to the children playground where I found the Cpl Morgan trail, which took me to the visitors center. It was a little less than a mile hike. The trails are well marked. The highlight of this park is the historic home. The trails the pastures with cows, and goes through the woods in some area. Do wear hiking shoes because the trails can be rocky and uneven. The view is amazing no matter where you are at this park. The easiest way to locate the trailheads is head to the park office, a little white house located on the other side from the historic house and the parking lot. Facing the park office, turn left if you want to see the overlooks, and turn right to go to the picnic area and children's playground, where I parked. When you reach the picnic area, you will be greeted by a BBQ grill and a picnic table on your right. If you want to go to the children playground, you will need to turn right, leaving the trail, cross the picnic field, cross the unpaved road, and the playground is right there. The playground is located in the center of all the parking areas for the picnic area. One tick got on my dog's leg. Recommend checking your dogs for ticks after your hike. I need to come back to hike the trail to the overlooks. Didn't do it today because where I had to park. A bit too much hiking for my 2 little dogs.

Four years ago -- Entering the park cost $5 per vehicle up to 8 people, or more depending on the type of vehicles and number of passengers. The visitor center located in the historic site is on the left, a distance from the entrance. On the right is the park office and the farm. The trails begin at the park office. I recommend studying the trail map before going. I didn't and wasn't sure where the 5K trail would take me. I hiked to the picnic area, about a mile from the park office, and turned back. The picnic area has several picnic tables and bbq grills. I believe there are restrooms there, too. The view, with the lake, behind the visitors center and the historic site is beautiful... Amazing. It's a must see. I can easily spend hours at this park walking all the trails. The gift shop and unisex restrooms are located in the same building as the visitors center, which looks like a trailer at the back of the historic area. I love that I get to see farm animals during my hike. I saw cows, and not sure if...

We visited in early November 2024 on a Sunday in the early afternoon. This was our 29th Virginia State Park for the VA State Park Trail Quest.

We only live about an hour away and driven by many times by never stopped. We are so glad we worked this into our last road trip. When we arrived the main parking lot in front of the visitor center was completely full. We ended up parking on the side of the road back up the road a bit and walked over.

You're in a giant meadow if not obvious by the name of the park. It was beautiful in the late autumn. Not all the leaves had fallen yet and there was still some color. We first stopped by the "LOVE" sign near the parking lot and took some pictures. Then made our way over to the gift shop.

The gift shop was larger than we expected and also had some exhibits inside. This is where we picked up the junior ranger books for the kids and also pit stop for bathrooms which were located just outside. They also had porta-pottys. I'm guessing because they expect pretty large crowds this time of year. We didn't have any issues with crowding personally.

We then decided to visit the Children's Discovery Area and also hike the Hadow Trail adjacent to it. The kids had a lot of fun in the Discovery Area and then a nice little hike around. They offered ranger guided hikes too but we wanted to do it on our own without too many people. This is also part of the Track Trails for those who do it. Unfortunately most the brochures were empty or broken but you can still do it online.

We finished the junior rangers and took it back to the Gift Shop to turn them. At the same time we bumped into a staff/ranger (Patrick) who we happened to be talking to about us attempting the Virginia State Park Trail Quest. We mentioned that the day before we were at Seven Bends State Park but that their concessions trailer was closed at the time and we weren't able to purchase our merch for our Trail Quest Collection. A few mins later he approached us and asked if we would give him our address so that he could mail us a pin from Seven Bends. We gladly agreed and Patrick said he was do his best but that he would be out that way in a couple days anyways. A couple weeks later WE GOT THE PIN IN THE MAIL!!! Patrick is the man and also the rest of the Sky Meadows Team. We proudly added it to our Virginia State Parks Pin Board. We were sad we never got Patrick's contact in order to thank him properly.

Overall a great time at the park and even better experience interacting with the staff. We hope to return for some of their programs they offer as well as we can only imagine what the stars look like...

Fantastic Park, But Do NOT Camp Here

Our primary reason for visiting was to camp overnight, and it was a major disappointment. I'll start with the one unexpected positive: the stargazing here is genuinely incredible. We noticed the park has very low light pollution and wide-open horizons, making it a 5-star feature.

Unfortunately, that's where the praise ends, because the campground itself is a disaster. This is a serious warning for anyone considering an overnight stay.

Here's why you should avoid the campground: The Hike-In is Brutal: You have to haul all your gear on a 30-minute trek from your car. If you forget something or have an emergency, you're out of luck. There is absolutely no vehicle access for loading/unloading or emergencies. Unnatural Terrain: Instead of a natural campsite, the tent areas are on gravel pads. This completely ruins the feeling of camping in the woods and is uncomfortable to sleep on. Multiple Safety Hazards: The whole camping area is unsafe. It's a major tripping hazard with large rocks lining the paths, and it's surrounded by thorny bushes, making it a nightmare for kids and difficult to even pitch a tent without getting scratched up. Camp Area Facilities are Awful: No running water, and the one outhouse was disgusting. The closest toilet and running water were a 20 minute hike!

My advice: Go to Sky Meadows to enjoy its trails and beauty for the day, but absolutely go home to sleep. The campground is simply not worth the effort or the risk. Maybe there are other camping areas in the park that are different, we stayed at group site Washington with 18...