We recently enjoyed the most lovely, peaceful visit to Belle Isle State Park. Located in Lancaster, VA, this 892-acre park just celebrated its 30th birthday. Though it is known for its seven-mile stretch of shoreline along the Rappahannock River, Belle Isle is also flanked by Deep Creek, Mulberry Creek, and several smaller inlets. In addition, the park boasts boat and bike rentals, a campground, two guest houses, a playground, and ten miles of trails.
Our first stop was the park’s visitor center. We were surprised to have it mostly to ourselves for the duration of our visit. The space felt modern, light and open, and the exhibits offered a great mix of informative displays and interactive elements tied together by a decidedly nautical theme.
My daughters’ favorite part of our visit was the little dress-up area. Children can don fishing gear and pose for photos on a real wooden dock that merges with the photo of a nearby fishing village. Both girls got a kick out of dressing as fisherwomen and collecting realistic-looking blue crabs.
After leaving the visitor center, we hopped back in our car and drove over to the park’s playground, which is located just behind one of Belle Isle’s three picnic shelters.
The playground is composed of two swings and a play structure with several options for sliding and climbing. My girls are twelve and two years old, respectively, so it can be hard to find common ground in terms of entertainment, but fortunately they both love visiting playgrounds. We probably spent about an hour playing at this one.
The playground was just a few hundred feet from a little riverside beach. I found a peaceful place to sit and rest my broken toe while the girls explored the sandy area next to me.
At one point, I wandered a few paces from the beach and found myself face to face with one of several small inlets. The little path dead ends at the vegetation seen in the photo, and the scenery from that vantage point is quite picturesque.
After returning from the beach area, we decided it was time for a “hike”. My initial plan involved hiking a portion of this loop suggested by Erin Gifford of Go Hike Virginia (by the way, I highly recommend her book about child-friendly Virginia hikes). However, my doctor insisted that I stay off my foot as much as possible so soon after injuring it, so I knew we would have to come up with an alternate idea. Instead, we opted to meander along the much shorter Porpoise Creek Trail, whose trailhead is accessible from the playground’s parking lot. It’s not so much a path at first as it is a grassy area along the tree line.
A few hundred feet past the trail post above, we came to a sign for an observation blind pointing into the woods, so we decided to follow the little trail spur.
True to its word, the sign led us to a weathered but whimsically painted hut along the shores of Porpoise Creek (which I’m assuming is so named because it appears to be shaped like the head of a porpoise on the park’s trail map).
We paused to take in the views. My tween found a bench to sit on, while my toddler wandered around, picking up pine cones.
My favorite part was checking out the physics-defying root systems of the cypress trees that lined the water’s edge.
Although this isn’t the trail I initially would have picked, it actually worked out great for us. The observation blind area offers the perfect amount of exploration for a toddler, and it’s also a nice option if you are short on time but would like some unique views.
Overall, we had a wonderful first visit to Belle Isle State Park. The combination of visitor center, playground, beach, and trail provided the perfect formula to keep everyone happy, entertained, and in awe of the natural beauty around us. We’re so glad we ventured out to this gem of a park, and – like I always say – we hope to return!
Do you have a favorite trail, adventure, or experience from your time at Belle Isle State Park? Fee free to tell me about it in the comment section below!
Old Dominion for Young Virginians 