Lake Fairfax Park — Attraction in Reston

My most recent visit to Lake Fairfax Park in July 2016 included several days at the campground with my family, with 2 of those days spent at the waterpark. My son and I had been to the Lake Fairfax Skatepark several times, which is how we came to know about both the campground and the waterpark. I'll break my review down by each area:

Skatepark - fairly easy to ride, with good flow. Most of the 15,000 square foot facility is made up of street elements, easy enough for younger and less experienced riders and nice flow for older veteran riders. At one end of the park is a cloverleaf bowl of varying heights. There are two small pavilions with vending machines and tables at the entrance to the skatepark. At the height of summer, those pavilions will be your best friend. The skatepark gets miserably hot.

Campground - my campsite was easily the best on the property, so my review may be a bit biased in favor of that. The only thing I didn't like about it was that it wasn't completely level, but it was shaded more or less all day, just as I'd hoped for. The hiking trails down the hill from us were easy to reach, and the restrooms and showers were only a few sites away. The fire pit was open on one side, with a built-in BBQ grill on the other. The showers were inside individual private restrooms, which was nice, and they were clean, but they did suffer from a vague, lingering smell of old standing water. It wasn't disgusting by any definition. It was just...there.

Waterpark - this was by far the highlight of our trip. We originally planned for one day there, and ended up spending the money for a second day. It's open to the public, not just campground guests, so it did get crowded, but it never really felt crowded. Built around a large pool and lazy river, the park has everything from zero-depth entry points for the youngest children to height-restricted high speed body slides for the thrill seekers in the family. Admission for 3 of us was about $45, so it was not only inexpensive, but worth every penny. One of the first things I noticed was that the lifeguards never stop moving and their eyes never stop scanning. I mean N.E.V.E.R.!!! It was a little unsettling at first, but once you get past that, it's clear that these are dedicated professionals at work. The waterpark has a couple of snack booths on-site, but they also offer readmission if you don't want to spend the money there or you're in the mood for food they...

I went to Lake Fairfax Park this morning for some drone footage I wanted to shoot. I got up early to beat the morning rush because the weather was agreeable, and this would be my first visit. The Lake Fairfax Park, located off of Baron Cameron in Reston, is a relatively large park with a large skate park, water rides, horse carousel, ball fields, and plenty of space for camping as well. On this day, I saw quite a few families with their campers staking their claim in this park. Right next to the lake that people could fish in a catch and release manner. The scenery was abundant with large trees with vibrant green leaves, making it very appealing to the public, and the lake was so still concerned that it was caring a reflection on itself. However, right by the skate park, there was litter; beer bottles, and takeout boxes left on the tables and floors. I mean, it was litter with a capital L. It was very disappointing because the park should have been cleaned up by those responsible in the first place. One could assume or give the benefit of the doubt that the people that left their trash would clean it up later, but that's akin to thinking dinner plates left in the sink will get cleaned up by the person that left then there in the first place. I am sure I won't be the only person who will see this and share the same feelings. I normally don't see trash like this in my many visits to different ones in Virginia. I left pictures in this post, but you are the judge. It's definitely not the caretakers of the park that are responsible, but unfortunately, they'll have to clean it up today. This is probably the first park I visited that was in this condition. So, I am split on whether I personally will return...

Stayed a few nights a the campground. Really nice camp hosts. Very friendly. Always walking and checking on things. However it's pretty expensive for not having any hookups at site. Only has electric. Friday night some arguing was going on by the skatepark. Could hear it where we were. The site next to us seemed to think it was ok to have lots of people and vehicles late at night with their headlights on shining right into our RV bedroom. Talking very loudly outside.

Saturday night took the dogs walking and for safety reasons we wouldn't go near the skatepark. It was dark and i could hear an illegal dump going on at the two large dumpster that are right there. When I woke Sunday morning, the mess they made was disgusting and so sad. Both dumpsters were filled (had been empty), and broken glass and bottles all over the ground. Trash and bags piled next the the dumpster on left. Someone left a beer bottle and carton in our campsite overnight Saturday. Too much garbage laying at some sites. Cups, straws. Just no reason for it.

Had to wait to fill water and dump our tanks at the station before leaving. Glad we left when we did. The line grew by the time we were done. We've never had to wait, or see a line form like this before. I think the earlier checkout has something to do with that.

It's a nice place, but we won't...