Summer is many people’s favorite season, with good reason. And the North Carolina and Virginia counties along the Dan River are renowned for their four-season climate. They’re home to six state parks and a national parkway, all of which provide ample opportunities to play amid the region’s beautiful summer.
Hanging Rock State Park (NC)
Do this: Paddle on the Dan River. Ride 8.4 miles of mountain-biking trails. Go rock climbing (with a permit). Hike on more than 20 miles of trails that lead to expansive panoramas and plunging waterfalls. Stay at the park’s 73-site campground, and fish or go canoeing in its stocked lake.
For more information, visit the park’s page at North Carolina State Parks, or call 336-593-8480.
Fairy Stone State Park (VA)
Do this: Take a canoe, row boat, or paddle boat out on the park’s 168-acre lake. Hike trails. Play on one of the park’s two playgrounds. Look for cross-shaped fairy stones.
For more information, visit the park’s page at the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, or call 276-930-2424.
Staunton River State Park (VA)
Do this: Go horseback riding and stay at the 2,400-acre park’s equestrian campground. Hike or ride on 17 miles of multi-use trails. Fish or boat on Buggs Island Lake, Virginia’s largest lake. Play at one of three playgrounds or tennis and volleyball courts. Watch the cosmic ballet of the fall night sky in Virginia’s first state park to be designated an International Dark Sky Park.
For more information, visit the park’s page at the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, or call 434-572-4623.
Haw River State Park (NC)
Do this: Learn about nature in a program at the Summit Environmental Education and Conference Center. Enjoy the rolling Piedmont country on one of the park’s short loop trails. Wildlife watch and look for migratory birds from the wetlands boardwalk, which allows a close encounter with a unique North Carolina ecosystem and the headwaters of the Haw River.
For more information, visit the park’s page at North Carolina State Parks, or call 336-342-6163.
Blue Ridge Parkway (NC & VA)
Do this: Drive along Appalachia’s eastern ridge. View the Piedmont to the east and Mountain-Valley region to the west from one of the parkway’s numerous overlooks. Visit one of the numerous wineries along the parkway in Patrick County, Virginia. Feel a cool mountain breeze. Enjoy countless panoramas.
For more information, visit the Blue Ridge Parkway’s website.
Mayo River State Park (NC)
Do this: Fish in one of the park’s small ponds. Hike along the river corridor as part of a growing network of trails. Paddle on the Mayo River’s mild whitewater. Attend an interpretive program with a park ranger to learn more about the region and its ecosystem.
For more information, visit the park’s page at North Carolina State Parks, or call 336-427-2530.
Staunton River Battlefield State Park (VA)
Do this: Go fishing for walleye and smallmouth bass on the Staunton River. Bike on the park’s trails, or reflect on the landscape, which saw a battle between 700 Confederate old men and young boys against 5,000 Union cavalry on a bridge of strategic importance to Robert Lee’s army, then under siege in Petersburg.
For more information, visit the park’s page at the Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, or call 434-454-4312.