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wolf
09-01-2006, 20:29
we are hiking from front royal to harpers ferry ,we are planning to camp around sky meadows state park is there a camp site near trail?:-?

kncats
09-02-2006, 08:44
It depends on your definition of near, but there are campsites in Sky Meadows State Park. I think the blue blaze trail from the AT to the camping areas was about two miles with major elevation change. Need to make reservations through the Virginia State Park system (which you can do online). Also, there are shelters about equidistant north and south of the trail junction going to Sky Meadows. Seems like there was one about 6 miles south and 6 miles north.

veteran
09-02-2006, 19:43
You can camp on the Crest near either of these two springs, the area west of the road is not in the park, see map.
The spring to the north was an old shelter site.

Skyline
09-02-2006, 20:10
In the area of Sky Meadows State Park, the AT was rerouted in 2005 close to its "original" placement--on what the PATC calls the Ovaka tract. This takes the AT away from the green tunnel and up in a higher meadow with open spaces and some views. There is no camping allowed within this relo according to signage and what I read in PATC's newsletter last year.

There are semi-rustic walk-in campsites in Sky Meadows State Park, but it's quite a hike down (and back up). I've done it, but I bet few long-distance hikers would bother. If you were out for just a couple days, not trying to make AT miles, it would be a nice diversion IMHO. The state park has some nice historical features and a few decent trails of its own.

You can make reservations online. I chanced it and just hiked in, and got a site by paying the Ranger when he came by, but you take the chance all sites (there are only a dozen or so) will be taken. That's a lot of work to learn there is no room at the inn.

veteran
09-03-2006, 00:02
[QUOTE=Skyline]In the area of Sky Meadows State Park, the AT was rerouted in 2005 close to its "original" placement--on what the PATC calls the Ovaka tract. This takes the AT away from the green tunnel and up in a higher meadow with open spaces and some views. There is no camping allowed within this relo according to signage and what I read in PATC's newsletter last year.

Ovoka Farm Relocation Map (http://www.pecva.org/news/releases/2005.05.20.ovokaadvisorymap.pdf#search=%22%22Ovoka %20Farm%22%22)