It was time for our mini-challenge. During our quest to hit every Virginia State Park in 2016 we came up with a plan to see clusters of parks that are too far to visit in a normal weekend dubbing them "mini-challenges."

We had our first mini-challenge in July, visiting 6-parks in 6-days, checking Grayson Highlands, Wilderness Road, Natural Tunnel, Southwest Virginia Museum, Breaks Interstate, and Hungry Mother State Parks off our list.

So we thought that Thanksgiving weekend would be the perfect opportunity for a second mini-challenge, given that we already have the days off work and it's a great way to #OptOutside for the Holiday.  The next few installments will from our second mini-challenge, 4-parks in 4-days, beginning with Claytor Lake State Park.

We decided to #OptOutside this Thanksgiving at Claytor Lake State Park

November 23-26, 2016 Claytor Lake State Park 

We arrived the evening before Thanksgiving having braved the intense traffic on the busiest travel day of the year. Claytor Lake State Park is a mere 3-miles off of I-81, but the surrounding hillsides keep this proximity a secret as even in November the noise from the interstate doesn't travel to the lake.

We enjoyed our Thanksgiving weekend at cabin #1

We happily arrived at cabin #1, a nice 2-bedroom with screened in porch, lake views, and easy access to the cabin area’s dock.

In the morning we took a bike ride along the 0.8 mi Lakeview Trail past the park's extensive shoreline filled with a swimming beach, boat launch and rentals, gazebos, and plenty of picnic shelters. We hopped on the 0.66 mi Shady Ridge Trail, an easy hike once you get over its initial hill and a great start to our Thanksgiving morning. The Shady Ridge Trail also happens to be part of the “TRACK Trail Adventure” program geared towards helping kids explore nature with easy interpretive guides. 

This park has plenty of water access and a beautiful beach for summer swimming 

After putting together a perfectly sized 2-person feast, and enjoying our Thanksgiving lunch at our cabin picnic table overlooking the lake we decided to walk off the turkey while exploring the park some more.

Claytor Lake State Park is relatively small, with just over 5-miles of hiking trails total. Its purpose is clearly written in the many entries of our cabin journal, "This Park is the place to be for a summer on the water!"  Since we had no desire to swim in late November we decided to explore the park on foot and partake in our favorite hobby: hiking. 

Thick with fallen leaves, we enjoyed our November hikes at Claytor Lake State Park

We started out on the 1.55 mi Claytor Lake Trail at its trailhead right next to our cabin. The weather was a perfect cool temperature with a warm breeze blowing through the trees and bright orange leaves contrasting nicely with the intense blue of the distant lake in the early-afternoon sun.

One of the many guest docks for the cabins and lodges 

The Claytor Lake Trail brings you on the edge of a ravine while hugging the shoreline of the lake with stunning elevated views. We debated on how much of a lake-view you would have from the trail if visiting in mid-summer, but a well-placed overlook makes this walk worth it in any season.

A scenic view off of the Claytor Lake Trail 

To continue on our route we connected to the 1.1 mi Bent Tree Trail hiking the bottom half of its loop while weaving through the forest and finding ourselves in a dense pine-grove, quite unlike the rest of the woods we'd seen yet. The trail quickly changes from fallen oak leaves to fallen pine straw and we were elated by the sudden difference. This trail connected to the 0.8 mi Poplar Leaf Trail which we followed back to the Claytor Lake Trail and our cabin to relax the remainder of the evening.

The thick pine forest was a surprise discovery;

hike the Bent Tree Trail to see it for yourself

Another adventure awaits for tomorrow as this park was our hub for the next 2 days; we hope you read our next blog to see what park lies ahead. 

 

Guest Bloggers Peter Radlowski and Sarah Sumoski planned to tackle all 37 Virginia State Parks in 2016, as the series continues to be published into the New Year we shall see if they did? Come along for the adventure.

Editor's Note: A favorite destination for swimming, camping, hiking and picnicking, Claytor Lake is well known for sport fishing and boating activities. The Park has a full-service marina with boat slips, supplies, fuel, boat rentals and more. Water's Edge is a meeting facility that is perfect for weddings, receptions and reunions, and wedding packages are available (click here to learn more).

Learn more about the cabins and camping at this park here, or call 800-933-PARK.