4th Annual Lake Moomaw Kayaking/Camping Weekend
Fri, May 24 at 7:00 PM - Sun, May 26 at 10:00 PM, 2019
Lake Moomaw - Warm Springs
Bolar Mountain Recreation Area
4th Annual Lake Moomaw Kayaking/Camping Extravaganza!!!! May 24th - 27th Fri-Mon kayaking not required, canoes etc. welcome Dog Friendly (just be courteous) This will be one of those events that you will most likely want to stay a night or two because it is a two hour trip to get there from Roanoke or Lexington. We have the spot reserved from Friday till Monday this year!!! This year we will once again be at the group camping area at the Volleyball Net Picnic Area. We will be off to ourselves with No other campers nearby, so we won't have to worry about being too noisey. No one will need to make a reservation, we will all fit in this area. If you are bringing an RV or Camper, you can set it up in the parking lot. (no electric or water hookups available here) THE RED CIRCLE ON THE MAP IS OUR GROUP SITE. Search Lake Moomaw on google maps to get a better view. We will have the entire field and wooded area along with the picnic shelter area to ourselves. It has great water access. We can actually just pull the kayaks up in the field where we are camping. These are non-electric sites. There is electricity at the picnic shelter along with a male and female restroom. It is about a five-minute walk to the showers or you can drive to them. They are located at the beach. There are only a few cooking grills at this site, so you may want to bring a small portable gas or charcoal grill with you. There will be no pre-scheduled excursions. This is more of a laid back event. We will discuss possible trips, once people have arrived, Friday night. This way I will have a better idea for what people are looking for in a trip. There is plenty to do here including many hiking trails, fishing opportunities, a nice beach area, great roads for biking and much more. It is not unusual to see several Bald Eagles, deer, possible bears in the more remote areas and various other wildlife over the course of a weekend. If you like to fish, bring a pole. This is an excellent place to do some kayak fishing. There is a marina/store with limited supplies, but it does have ice. There is a grocery store about thirty minutes from the campground, but I would suggest bringing what supplies and food you need from home because it is a bit out of the way. **** There will be a pot luck dinner on Saturday night(about 6'ish). I will provide Hotdogs and buns. Each guest (if attending) is asked to bring a side dish or dessert along with their own beverages of choice. Be warned there is very spotty cellular coverage at this location, there is a pretty good chance depending on the weather and your service provider that you will have no coverage at all. feel free to bring cornhole boards or other games. *****SIGNUP PROCEDURE***** 1. RSVP on the meetup site 2. Email me at tds0766@hotmail.com (all lowercase) providing me with the following information. --A-- cell phone number or email address you can be contacted at if need be (prefer cell phone). --B-- Arrival date and estimated time. --C-- will you be staying in a tent or camper/rv. --D-- will you be bringing a dog. 3. Remit $25 per person payment via PAYPAL (tds0766@hotmail.com) VENMO (tds0766@hotmail.com) mail (PO Box 130 Selma, VA 24474 payable to Travis Snyder) Signup procedure must be complete and payment received by midnight May 20th. Failure to do so will result in you being removed from attendees list. If more than 20 participants should attend, then the new(lower) per guest fee will be calculated and refunds given at the event. It took $500 to rent the spot. CANCELLATIONS-- must be made before May 20th in order to receive a refund. If there are not at least 20 paid participants, I will have to cancel the event and in case that should happen, then fees will be refunded to all. If for some reason you must cancel, make sure and take yourself off of the RSVP list so others are able sign up. If you have any questions please feel free to ask me. tds0766@hotmail.com cellular 540-862-8449 If you need a kayak, the marina at the lake has some that it rents by the hour or day. Call 540-279-4144 for pricing and specifics. There is also a place in Covington called Covington Farm & Fuel (you pass it on the way) 540-962-1983 that rents them and are allot less expensive. The marina is 150 a day and the other place is only 30 a day. If you plan to bring young children, contact me first before rsvp'ing. *****DIRECTIONS***** ***Print these directions because you will lose cell service along the way.**** (once you get to Covington, Va.)---exit interstate 64 at exit 16A. turn left at bottom of ramp on Rt 220north/Rt 60west. continue on that road 1.3 miles (you will see a Hardee's on the left). There will be a traffic light, go straight on Rt 220 North(do not bear left). Stay the course on 220N for 20 miles to HotSprings (notice that huge building complex, it is the Homestead, a 5-star resort tucked away in the mountains, complete with water park and ski slopes), keep driving past it on 220N for another 5 miles to Rt 39 . go left on Rt 39w. stay on Rt 39w for 11 miles and turn left on state Rt 600. stay on Rt 600 for 7.5 miles. At this point you will see a sign saying the campgrounds are to the right on twin Ridge Drive( that would be Sugar Ridge campground, loop 1, Volley ball net group site, the beach, loop 2 and loop 3 in that order). If you continue straight on route 600 it will take you to the marina store&public boat dock and McClintock point campground. I know it sounds complicated but it really is not that bad and it is a beautiful drive, there's a huge waterfall(about 8 miles from interstate), the homestead and the hot springs to see along the way... ( if driving in the evening watch for deer, they love to run out in front of you, hit your vehicle and ruin your weekend of camping.) There is a shorter way which brings you through a gorge on a single lane dirt road. It saves about fifteen minutes on your drive time, but to me it is worth the extra time just to get to drive by and see the waterfall and the Homestead Resort. Plus, the longer route brings you right past the little grocery store (IGA) in Warm Springs (about 1.5 miles past The Homestead), that I had previously mentioned. **ShortCut Directions** be advised this is a very narrow dirt road that is not recommended if you are towing anything behind you (vehicle will get dirty if you take this route) - (once you get to Covington, Va.)---exit interstate 64 at exit 16A. turn left at bottom of ramp on Rt 220north/Rt 60west. continue on that road 1.3 miles (you will see a Hardee's on the left). There will be a traffic light, go straight on Rt 220 North(do not bear left). go about 3.7 miles and bear left on Rt 687.(There will be a sign for Lake Moomaw with an arrow pointing left)(this is the last Lake Moomaw sign you need to pay attention to until I mention them later in directions). Continue on for 17 miles then turn left (Rt 687 cuts off to the left... if you stay straight, it has become 615) You want to stay on Rt 687. continue for 2.9 miles then turn left on Rt 603 Richardson Gorge Rd. After 1/2 mile it will become a gravel road and very narrow(go slow). after 3 miles from turning onto Richardson Gorge Rd, you will cross a single lane bridge(beginning of lake). once you cross the bridge you can follow the signs to the campgrounds. SPECIAL NOTE-- Marina will be on your left about three miles from bridge. 1 mile past marina, you will need to turn left onto Twin Ridge Drive. The site is on Twin Ridge Drive. ****VERY IMPORTANT**** if you opt to use your vehicle or phone's navigation, DO NOT get on a road called Switzerland Trail. It is very narrow and has extremely sharp curves in it.