Sky Meadows State Park

Sky Meadows is a great park in terms of size and ability to go on long hikes away from any roads. They really could use more bathrooms though and not port-​a-​potties. The port-​a-​potty on Jan. 1 near the Bridle Trail was quite clean though. oh, and since horses use some of the trails, you need to watch your step. I like that the trails are kept considerable clean of litter unlike the county parks of Northern Virginia.

Great trail markings, great views. I warn you against going up the South Ridge Trail, but it great to go down. The trail is a steady grade.

The campsites at the hike in campground were really, really nice. There was a great area to pitch two tents, a nice firepit, and a picnic table. It was a bit of a hike in, but not bad. So why the low rating? There was a group of young «adults» (quotation marks intentional) across the campground who were incredibly noisy. Quiet hours are supposed to start at 10pm, but they were playing loud music and yelling still around 10:15pm so I called the ranger. He apparently didn’t know what time it was, because he replied that «quiet hours don’t start until 10pm». When I told him it was past 10pm, he said he was just heading out to walk through. I’m guessing he talked to them, because they quieted down a bit around 10:45pm. But sure enough, it was much past then that they got loud again so I finally called the ranger again around 12:45am. He said he would try to do so something, but didn’t really. I walked around the campground at 1:45am and must have looked ranger-​like enough for them to finally shut up. I would have gone to their site, but it was so far off the path, I couldn’t find it. Other than for them, the campground seemed to be full of families. So if you want to be able to sleep, I recommend a campground where the rangers are a bit more active. Also, there was no firewood for purchase the second day. We ended up skipping the second night, even though the noisy group left, and eating the cost of the reservation. No firewood and little sleep from the night before would have just made the second night too difficult. Trails were nice, though, and no ticks this time of year.

I can’t believe I’ve lived an hour away and just discovered Sky Meadows this weekend.
The entry fee was $ 5/​car and there was ample parking.
In addition to hiking, they had fall activities this weekend: kids crafting, corn maze, pumpkin patch, animals, music and tours of the home and kitchen with yummy, Colonial-​era samples.
We hiked the Piedmont Trail and enjoyed phenomenal views. The weather was perfect and leaves were beginning to turn.
The staff members were friendly and helpful. There are two restrooms in the visitors center. Many brought their dogs, too.

Went here on an early spring weekend for a hike. The trails were pretty empty, which was nice. I prefer the less traveled spots. There weren’t many water views, but it was a beautiful hike with some nice views.

Not a great park for hiking with dogs. A lot of the trails are in full sun and to get to the trails there is a lot of sun. Don’t think it was worth the $ 5.00 entrance fee. Trails can be accessed for free further up the road. Nothing special here. Won’t be back.

Ticks in abundance. Not sure why Virginia cannot get a handle on this health concern. Be safe everyone.

I love the great outdoors and this is no exception!
This is the closest park to my family’s home and it has become my «gym». There are short trails and long trails, hards trails and easy trails!
The state park pass is 40 or so for the year and if you will be going any number of times it beats the $ 5 weekend entrance fee.
The sights and views are amazing, the butterflies abound. Depending on the time of year the cows graze there.
The rangers are very nice and very helpful and they seems to have many different types of events!

This campground is spectacular. It is beautiful, wild and well worth the mile hike-​in. Heard coyotes last night– quite a few of them. Numerous deer roam the land and hills around the park. Well laid out sites with room between each one. Sites are nice– flat tent surface, picnic table and fire pit. Non-​potable water via pump, usually. But the pump wasn’t working at all (April 2015). Only basic, non-​flushing toilet. Love it. The old farm at the park often has fun activities on the weekend. Downside: TICKS. LOTS of them.

I love the outdoors, Virginia history, hiking, quietude, state parks, and– well, you know the story. Read the reviews and you will find that most folks come here for a day hike. If that is your intent then you will be well served by the beauty and convenience. If, however, Sky Meadows was billed as a user-​friendly place to hold an event or camp for multiple days with, say, Boy Scouts… then I would recommend you seriously research the amenities and layout.
We showed up on a Friday night at 7:30 after having arranged to be let in by the Ranger. No one was there and everything was locked. No one would answer any of the «Help Lines» that were offered. Parking lot was a muddy mess.
So, after hiking in all our gear (about 1.5 miles on moderately maintained trails), we set about finding potable water. No dice. The «no freeze» spigot was frozen and broken. Bathrooms were locked.
Next morning at 8 we found the gate open but no occupancy in any facility. No phone contact. Visitor center should open at 10 says the sign. Not this weekend.
Finally see a ranger in his SUV and stop him. We explain who we are and our situation. «That’s really awful and too bad. I don’t know who told you that you could use this facility for Scouts and Highland games. We decided not to allow equipment to be dropped at any of the grounds except the picnic area and that’s day use only. As for the water– you are welcome to drive to any of the local restaurants to get some. Better luck next time and stay warm!»
We paid $ 100 dollars a night for a flat place to sleep, expensive firewood, and a crap attitude from a paid public servant.
The scenery is beautiful (but litter strewn from naughty day hikers) and the historical nature of the grounds impressive. Stick with a day visit, though. If you want worthwhile longer term camping around the Shenandoah I would recommend Harper’s Ferry, Bull Run, Luray, or Front Royal.

Been to Sky Meadows several times, and like it more each time! Beautiful — great hiking. Bring a picnic and spend the day enjoying this awesome place. There are several winery’s right on the same road that you can hit on the way home if you like :).

Beautiful, calm, serene and quiet. Never have I come and found it crowded. Love coming here and just relaxing. Space for kids to run sound, kick a ball, fly a kite.

Sky Meadows is like a hidden gem for DC people — about an hour away (well, without traffic — it took us nearly three to get there last weekend) it’s a quiet rural oasis. What’s more, the camping there is wonderful! There are only a handful of sites and you have to hike 1 – 1.5 miles to get to them, which means NO RVs!!! Perfect for tent camping, and very quiet and verdant.
The trails are very well marked and clear. If you do the whole outer loop, it’s close to 10 miles I believe, but it’s way less traveled so very nice to get away from people. That trail gives you great views, meadows, and forested paths, so it’s got the best of all worlds. Your pooch will love it there! The biggest downside is the massive amount of ticks you will deal with afterwards. We found two on us, and so far 11 on the dog (and counting now that we’ve been back two days).
The check-​in process for camping leaves something to be desired if you arrive after 4pm. The directions are enough to confuse anyone, and if you have no clue where you’re going, good luck! We were lucky to find another person staying there that could tell us where to go. Once you know the set up, it’s no problem… but for first timers, it’s a bit nerve racking.
Virtually all of the sites in the Red area (individual campsites versus group sites) are great. Some are a bit better than others, but you can’t go wrong. You can buy $ 5 of logs there which will be more than enough, and the pit latrines are clean enough. No potable water is here, so you must pack it all in. No showers, either.

4 stars for camping, 1 for hiking
Great place for real camping. If you dont mind hiking a mile to your campground this is it (make sure you pack as light as possible for this reason!). The trail paths were well marked and mulched at various points even, all the way to get to the campgrounds which is more than some rustic campgrounds I’ve hiked to before. For those that prefer rustic instead of city style camping. Here your away from vehicle headlights circling the campground, noisy families in RVS. The fireflies seemed brighter, sparking all over the woods was almost magical. The campsites were decently spread out for privacy and it was very peaceful and quickly quiet after about 11 pm. Its only an hour away, beautiful views and plenty of other stuff to do nearby (river, wineries, fruit u-​pick farm next door, etc.). The campsite is situated in the woods– fortunate since its so hot in July and I was worried it would literally be in the meadow. Also firewood is provided $ 5 for 10 logs right on site in a pile next to the primitive toilet outhouse (pay via honor system). This is a good thing since no one wants to haul wood for a mile in addition to everything else.
It was nice to feel like your actually back to nature except when it came to hiking the next day. The camping trails were all fine but when I decided to do a meadow hike I quickly became disgusted with the TICK INFESTATION and abandoned the idea of continuing the hike. The meadow grass trails were literally teeming with them! I had read one Unilocal review about this and was hoping it wasnt really all that bad, but it was. I found at least 5 ticks crawled on me from walking through the meadow for under 10 minutes, and then discovered at least another 5 in my clothes, on my shoes, in my car for the next few hours and am frankly, still feeling disgusted and paranoid about then. Ick! Not sure about the life cycle of a tick, but maybe in cooler fall weather its a better time for hiking here?

Set on an old farm, Sky Meadows is one of my favorite parks. Camping, hiking and horseback riding, oh my! Coupled with the fact that Sky Meadows usually gets passed over by people on their way to Skyline Drive, Sky Meadows seems to be relatively untouched. I love this.
A word of advice: Make sure that when you do the Gap Run loop, you are going the right direction and NOT going UP the hill. The first time I came to Sky Meadows was during a 101 degree day in August, 2005, and I stupidly tackled the hill (and you’ll know which one I’m talking about if you’ve been there) at the beginning of the hike. I think you can tell where I’m going with this– I made it to the top, all right, but I promptly flopped right down on the hot grass to catch my breath. Beautiful sight at the top though, but wind your way through the loop the proper way and you’ll be rewarded with a glorious view of the Blue Ridge.
Come for the astronomy nights, too!

Love this park! I had been before, but went for the first time with my puppy over the weekend to enjoy the fall foliage. I like to take him hiking places where he can accompany me off leash… it gives him the chance to get a little more exercise than if he were attached to me, as well as to be a dog for a while! There were signs indicating dogs must be kept on leash at all times, but us dog-​owners know that can basically just be lip service at many places. Once we got past the entry area which was more crowded, I let him off on the trail and had no problems – with fellow hikers or park police (I didn’t actually run into any park police). I encountered 3 or 4 other groups/​couples who also had their dogs off leash, and advised me that past the more crowded area at the start of the trail, it is generally fine to have your dogs off leash here. So, for that reason alone it is a win for me!
Aside from the dog-​friendliness of the park, I find it to be beautiful, removed from the hustle and bustle which I appreciate, well-​marked and well-​maintained, and easy to navigate. When you pay the $ 4 entry fee (for the day), you get a map that details all of the trails. I didn’t even use my map because I found it so easy to just sort of keep heading in one direction, and on the way back, just keep going downhill (the hike up to the wooded part of the trails is basically up one big hill, so be prepared for a little work-​out!).
The scenery is obviously beautiful, and the views from the top of the above-​mentioned hill of the sloping hills and horse-​country are breathtaking (and perfect for photo ops!).
All in all a beautiful, easy to find, easy to get-​around hike in a gorgeous part of the state that can be an awesome spot to get some good exercise/​do hill training and just get away from it all!

This park has some beautiful views of farmland and mountains and amazing meadows. Great hiking for those interested in grabbing a piece of serenity outside of D.C. It’s only about an hour away and you will find this oasis.
The entry fee is only $ 4 per car. There are several trails you can hike and that includes about 3 miles of the Appalachian Trail which we got a chance to hike on as well. We tied that in with a route that followed South Ridge Trail to North Ridge Trail and Old Trail to comprise 6.7 miles. There are some steep inclines along the way but the views from the top are totally worth the effort. I am sort of a novice hiker moving into an intermediate hiker and I had a rough go at first, but I think that was mostly because of the humidity!
Anyway, I recommend coming out to Sky Meadows and bring yourself a picnic. The trails have picnic tables and chairs at several scenic spots along the way that you can have your lunch and just enjoy the scenery. It’s also quite romantic if you want it to be :)
Get outdoors this summer D.C. and enjoy the nature that we are surrounded by!

Traipsing through yet another meadow offering spectacular views of farmland and mountains in the distance, it could not have been clearer how this state park came by its name. Sky Meadows State Park is a great place for easy, scenic hiking about an hour’s drive from D.C.
While the park itself is a bit on the small side, it does play home to about 3 miles of the Appalachian Trail, and one can cobble together a rather nice 6.7 mile hike inside the park with a nice mix of views. Indeed, we did just that. Our route followed the South Ridge Trail to the North Ridge Trail all the way out to the Old Trail by way of the Appalachian Trail. Coming back, we followed the Appalachian Trail again before taking the Ambassador Whitehouse Trail to the Piedmont Overlook Trail which ultimately returned us to the Visitor’s parking lot. How busy the trails was directly correlated with how far they were from the parking lot. The South Ridge Trail had a lot of people going for a short hike to take in a quick view before picnicking and heading home. This trail boasts the Snowden Manor Ruins and an easily accessible overlook. The Old Trail, by contrast, had no one on it the entire time we were on it. It’s a great place for some solitude and reflection. Even though it’s only early May, we did see no less than 4 thru-​hikers on the Appalachian trail. This is pretty impressive given that Sky Meadows is pretty close to the half-​way point for that journey. On the Piedmont Overlook Trail, there is a very nice overlook with a view of Paris (Paris, VA not the other one).
Obviously, one can opt for a much shorter hike if they like, but they may have have trouble cobbling together anything longer. All the paths are pretty free of rocks and water, so there is nothing technical to be concerned about. It is pretty buggy though, so you may want to double down on the insect repellant. And if hiking doesn’t interest you, they have a great new picnic area in the park. You really can’t go wrong with a picnic in a mountainside park on a warm day. Admission is $ 4 per car.

This is some of the best hiking in the DC area. It’s an hour and a half from DC (with some light traffic) and the pass for parking is only $ 4.
This park contains a sizable network of hiking trails and the map available through their website is great for planning your ideal route.
There are even short loops that are around a mile in length for folks who just want a little nature walk.
The trails are very well maintained, the signs are easy to find, the park staff are helpful and courteous, and trails are clearly marked with different color blazes. It is super easy to find your way around this park.
And the overlooks are glorious — bring a camera!

Took a trip to Sky Meadows yesterday with my gf and dog. We heard about a particular trail on
and would recommend it to anyone who wants to take part in a moderately difficult hike and take in some of the great views.
The cost to park at the park is a mere $ 4. There are plenty of trails from 1 mile loops to equestrian trails that are much longer. There is also a portion of the appalachian trail that runs past the park (though not on the park grounds, of course).
The trail that we chose was the Ambassador Whitehouse trail. The trail is mostly up hill for the first portion, maybe a third of a mile and isn’t easy and I wouldn’t recommend it for small children — there are plenty of other easy trails for kids. The park offers maps and so I wont describe the whole trail here. But what you wont see on the map is that once you reach the end of the whitehouse trail, you make it to a meadow and a very scenic overlook.
If you chose to not go back the way you came down the Whitehouse trail, you can take it (the trail is a mile) to the Appalachian trail. Its only a small portion, but being one of the most well known and famous trails in the country, its quite nice to take a stroll down it for about a mile or less. There are several ways to make your way back down to the parking lot, so you can take a map or follow the trails and signs posted along the way.
I highly recommend this park if you want to get away from DC and really feel like you are somewhere else. Its about 55 miles from D.C. and well worth the trip.