Events in Virginia State Parks

For Clean the Bay Day 2026, park rangers at Widewater State Park will be leading a volunteer shoreline cleanup from kayaks along the Aquia Creek!  Nitrile gloves and trash grabbers will be supplied by the park, but they are in limited supply.

Fancy a spot of volunteering this Spring?    Saturday, April 25th : Waterway Cleanups Spring Cleanup on the Aquia Creek  Join this Stafford-based non-profit as they help keep Aquia Creek clean of trash and debris via kayaks in their Spring cleanup at the park.

Get knee-deep in the Shenandoah during Fly Fishing 101!  Join us for an introductory fly-fishing program designed to teach you all the basics you need to start catching fish on a fly.

Join Douthat State Park and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation for the 2026 Clean the Bay Day Event.

Did you know Twin Lakes State Park is in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed?

Join us as we open the doors to the old Norfolk and Western caboose 518517.

Enjoy the clean fresh air and beautiful views provided by the park's riverside forest, and help clean it up along the way!

Help us keep our park clean!  Join us for a trash pickup along the Bluebell Trail and the shoreline along the picnic area.

Join Leesylvania State Park Rangers and volunteers to help keep the park and Chesapeake Bay clean.

Help our rangers and volunteers keep our park clean! Westmoreland State Park beaches and waterways are full of marine wildlife, fossils, shells, birds, and more!

Get in the water and help Cedar Creek and the Chesapeake Bay downstream in this multi-part cleanup event.  Team up with park rangers to remove litter and debris from Cedar Creek and its tributaries.

Chippokes State Park is proud to partner with the Chesapeake Bay Foundation for Clean the Bay Day!

Would you like to help preserve the Chesapeake Bay for future generations? Join Kiptopeke State Park and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation for the 2026 Clean the Bay Day Event.

Let's make a difference together by participating in Clean the Bay Day at Holliday Lake, nestled within the stunning Chesapeake Bay Watershed.

Join us for Clean the Bay Day and help make a difference in your park and surrounding waterways!

Each year on a bright Saturday morning, thousands of Virginians simultaneously descend on the rivers, streams, and beaches of the Chesapeake Bay watershed to remove harmful litter and debris.

Participate in the annual "Clean the Bay Day" initiative by helping park staff with a roadside cleanup effort on Saturday, May 2nd from 9:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. "Clean the Bay" is sponsored by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation in which volunteers from around the state help clean up trash affecting waterways and tributaries within the Chesapeake Bay Watershed of which Sailor's Creek Battlefield is a part.

First Landing State Park invites you to participate in a Chesapeake Bay tradition by volunteering in Clean the Bay Day, an annual event organized by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF) to promote and protect the health of our Bay watershed. Volunteers are invited to help collect litter along our shorelines and to collect data to help CBF promote environmental stewardship of our waterways.  Registration is now full for both park sites, but you can find more cleanups on the CBF website.

The health of the Chesapeake Bay begins right here along the beautiful James River — and we need your help to protect it!

Join us for a rewarding morning of gardening with fellow plant lovers.

Join York River Rangers and Volunteers for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation's 2026 Clean the Bay Day.

The Smith Mountain Lake Triathlon is the first open water swim triathlon in the western part of the state of Virginia.

Clean the Bay Day is sponsored by the Chesapeake Bay Foundation and is an ongoing effort towards creating a clean and healthy Chesapeake Bay.

If you’ve mastered spotting birds by sight, take your skills to the next level by learning their songs.

The Chesapeake Bay is a cradle of our nation's infancy.

Take a spring walk of exploration with two Virginia Master Naturalists in this first of a series of seasonal walks planned for children.

Do you want to help make a difference?

Take a guided hike to several views of the park’s streams: Sweet Run and Piney Run.

Join a ranger in the Education Room at the Visitors Center at 10 a.m. for information about Belle Isle's wetlands, creeks, river, and watershed and learn the many ways you can decrease pollution in our waterways.

With warmer wetter weather comes springtime fungi!

Did you know that the Chesapeake Bay watershed reaches all the way to the Allegheny mountains?

Experience the anticipation of seeing what lies around each "bend" of the North Fork of the Shenandoah River from a kayaker's point of view.

Show your love for Lake Anna by volunteering with us for Clean the Bay Day!  Stop by our information booth between 10:00AM and 1:00PM to pick up trash bags, trash grabbers, and gloves, and to learn how you can do your part to keep our local watersheds clean. Please return to the booth before leaving so your trash can be weighed and recorded.   Please dress appropriately for the weather and wear sturdy walking shoes that can get wet. Sunscreen, bug spray, and drinking water are highly recommended.   Pre-registration is not required. Open to volunteers of all ages.

Get ready for a day of discovery!

Meaningful, spontaneous conversations can inspire curiosity and foster deeper engagement with community programs!

Walk in the footsteps of moonshiners from decades gone by.

Practice casting a fishing pole, no hooks required!

Go back in time in the historic village of Foster Falls.

Did you know that Sky Meadows is in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed?

Where does your water go?

Join us as we build a beaver to find out if their teeth, and other body parts, are useful, or just a cruel joke played by Mother Nature.

Without pollinators, people and all of Earth's terrestrial ecosystems would not survive.

Whether you're fascinated or a little rattled, snakes are a vital part of healthy ecosystems, and they’re not as scary as they seem.

Join our rangers for a guided tour of Mulberry Hill, the plantation home of Judge Paul Carrington, Virginian and Founding Father. This month we will focus on the American Revolution and its impact throughout Southside Virginia.

Happy spring!

Learn the legend behind the naturally occurring stone cross formations and travel to the special location in the park to search for your own "fairy stone." After a short presentation on what you will be looking for, we will head to the site.

How did a railroad give hope to a community and how does the creation of a park continue to offer that hope?

History usually tells us how the battle ended.

Are bees the only pollinator?

Step into the shoes of a 19th-century farmer and help care for our heritage breed chickens and goats!

Make a splash this Clean the Bay Day with a fun, hands-on creek adventure. Families will grab a seine net and wade into the water to catch fascinating macroinvertebrates—tiny critters like mayfly nymphs and crayfish that live in our streams.

Step inside the Discovery Center to learn from a park ranger about local wildlife, the park's history, and the New River! All ages welcome.

This archery session for beginners and provides shooting time for the more experienced. It begins with instruction time on archery equipment, technique, and safety.

The health of the Chesapeake Bay starts right here at Seven Bends State Park!

Teens and adults are invited to slow down, step outside, and discover how nature journaling can change the way you notice the world around you.

Westmoreland State Park is home to four different ambassador animals: Reba the corn snake, Stevie the king snake, and two red-eared sliders, Venus and Jennika.

Do Something Different This Summer!

Get up close and personal with the wildlife of Natural Tunnel State Park, without ever seeing a live animal!

Want to save the bees, butterflies, birds, and more?  Just plant native!  Even the smallest pollinator-friendly patch will make a difference.  At our pollinator garden workshop, you'll learn everything you need to know to get started and receive a planning packet to help create your own pollinator habitat at home.

Help park rangers keep the park and the lake clean with this Litter Patrol.

Parents, you spoke, and we listened!  We're excited to introduce our first toddler series: Little Wanderers.

Watershed is the process by which rainfall and lake water at the park finds their way to the Chesapeake Bay.

Experience the anticipation of seeing what lies around each "bend" of the North Fork of the Shenandoah River from a kayaker's point of view.

Murders over moonshine rocked the town of Fayerdale in the 1920s and 30s, leaving a dying town remembered for tragedy rather than the mining operations that once made it a boom town. Moonshining (illegal whiskey making) was quite prevalent in and around the Fairy Stone State Park area in the early 1900s. Jealousy, greed, and competition often led to feuds, brawls, and even killings.

Join a ranger to look for butterflies.

Enjoy a relaxed afternoon walk with HMSP volunteer Mike Evans while we search for birds in a diverse section of the park that includes multiple mini-biomes.

Ever wonder where rainwater goes after it hits the ground?

Create a hand-made, nature-inspired souvenir to take home.

Trees have magical qualities that provide us with many important everyday items, as well as a large portion of the oxygen we breathe.

Ever wonder where rainwater goes after it hits the ground?

Description: Join a ranger for an eye-opening look at nature’s clean-up crew!

Not all bugs are created equal!

Gather your loved ones, pack your blankets, and immerse yourself in a night of music, food, and wonder under the moonlit skies.

When a tree falls in the forest, what happens next?

Get ready for an unforgettable journey into the world of birds of prey and other avian wonders.

Ever wondered what stories Douthat State Park holds?

What will we scoop up this time?

Experience the park in a whole new way.

Join astronomy volunteers as they share the stories written in the night sky.

I spy with my little eye...a shorebird!

Take a 4-hour guided tour through Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge and False Cape State Park!

After the iron industry moved away from the area, residents of Fayerdale went from mining to 'shining.

Fancy a spot of volunteering this Spring?    Saturday, April 25th : Waterway Cleanups Spring Cleanup on the Aquia Creek  Join this Stafford-based non-profit as they help keep Aquia Creek clean of trash and debris via kayaks in their Spring cleanup at the park.

"Wisdom from the Wild" is a monthly series that will lead you on wonder-filled journey to recovering your sense of belonging and finding your truest self, rooted in the rhythms and raptures of nature.

Come watch our resident snake enjoy his mealtime in the Visitor Center!

Get down and dirty with this two-hour wild cave tour.

Have you ever wondered about the birds in your area?

It’s Mother's Day, and our trails are full of mother animals taking care of young.

Did you know Westmoreland State Park has a beach where you can find AND keep fossils?

Have you ever wanted to identify the different birds in your yard or even start bird watching as a hobby?  If so, this program is for you.  We'll go over the basics of finding and identifying birds, the basic equipment you might need, as well as some tips to help you make the most of your birding adventures!

Learn the legend behind the naturally occurring stone cross formations and travel to the special location in the park to search for your own "fairy stone." After a short presentation on what you will be looking for, we will head to the site.

Would you use a fork to eat soup or a spoon to cut a steak?

History usually tells us how the battle ended.

Westmoreland State Park is home to four different ambassador animals: Reba the corn snake, Stevie the king snake, and two red-eared sliders, Venus and Jennika.

Try your hand at panning for gold in the James River while discovering Virginia’s unique geology.

Humans aren't the only ones who build amazing structures.  Insects, birds, and mammals are among the many animals who create complex homes for themselves.  Let's take a look into the world of these master builders of the animal kingdom.

Enjoy a naturalist-led hike learning all about what's blooming and growing around you.  This easy hike will take visitors through our park's deciduous woodlands along the river granting an opportunity to see some of the New River’s native wildflowers and trees in one of the most biodiverse places on the planet! Please wear comfortable walking shoes, dress for the weather, and bring plenty of water and snacks.

Join the Southern Piedmont Master Naturalists for a hands-on workshop creating native plant seed bombs!  Learn why native plants are essential for pollinators and local ecosystems, then make your own seed bombs to help restore habitat in our community.  Small seeds can make a big impact!

Do you have a passion for nature, environmental education, and wish to make a difference?

Spend a relaxing afternoon surrounded by plants and fresh air in the Jean Livingston Brown Demonstration garden. Learn about pollinators, starting seeds, weeding, composting and more. .