SP Campground Review – Pocahontas State Park, Chesterfield, VA
A huge State Park with beautiful, forested and quiet sites just ~20 miles from Richmond VA
Link to campground here: Pocahontas State Park, VA
Link to map location here: Pocahontas State Park, VA
- Site Quality = 3.5/5
Mixed site quality here depending on which loop you end up in! On positive side all the sites are spacious with excellent separation & privacy throughout the campground. Sites are either gravel (the majority) or paved (a small selection) with nice “sitting areas” containing picnic table, fire pit and lantern hook. There is also a 20×20′ tent pad on each site. There are two long loops which are VERY different in both feel & quality:- 30A/water Sites (#1-65): This is the older section of the campground and the quality of the sites reflect that. The sites here are gravel, either very long pull-throughs or back-ins with 30A/water hookups. Great separation and lots of tall, mature trees in this section so tons of privacy throughout. Biggest ding is that sites are VERY unlevel, to the point that I would only really recommend them for smaller rigs (say 25 ft or so max?). The pull-throughs are the best here IMO (they are the largest/longest with best chance to get level) and there are a few somewhat level back-in sites, but the majority are very unlevel indeed with steep entries or very uneven pads. LOTS of privacy though! I’d say sites in this section rate 2.5/5.
- 50A/water Sites (#66-129): This is the newer section of the campground and the sites here are lovely! Not as many mature trees here as the older loop (so not all sites have *complete* privacy), but there is still lots of green, separation is excellent throughout, sites are super large (can accept any-sized rig) and they are all generally quite level too. We were parked in the “Pull Through 65′” section which were paved and nicely large sites (#66-77, the only paved sites in the campground), but were somewhat unlevel. We actually preferred the look & privacy of the standard gravel back-in sites (#78-129) and would chose one of those if we came back to the area (Note/ back-in sites are officially rated at 40 ft max, but are honestly large enough to fit just about any-sized rig). The only sites we did not really like in this section were the three sets of Buddy Sites (#89-91, #111-113, and #124-126) since they share space. They are meant for group bookings, so they’re not really for individual RVers anyway. Other than this every site in this loop was lovely. Sites in this section rate 4.5/5 for us!
- NOTE1 – Reservations: At this park you currently book a TYPE of site (e.g. 30A, Pull-Through 65 etc.), but not a specific site number. So you simply drive around and chose an open site after you’ve checked in. Site-specific reservations ARE coming however and will launch in 2018. Campsitephotos.com has a photo of each and every site in THIS LINK, so I recommend utilizing that resource when site-specific bookings open up next year.
- NOTE2 – Cabins & Yurts: In addition to the RV sites there are 6 cabins which are small but looked nice as well as 4 yurts which are built up on large platforms. The yurts were really private and looked really interesting!
- Facilities = 4/5
Very nice facilities here. Several buildings around camp with flush toilets and spacious individual walk-in showers with adjustable temp, bench and pegs for your clothing. The only reason the facilities didn’t rate 5/5 is that the showers were hit and miss. The disabled showers with removable heads were so-so (low water pressure, not very warm) whereas the regular showers with fixed shower heads were FABULOUS (great pressure, great temps). So, if you’re showering go for the ones with the fixed shower head. There is also on-site laundromat (nice, large, clean machines $1 wash) and on-site dump station. - Location = 5/5
The State Park itself is just amazing here. It’s huge covering ~8,000 acres and has tons of recreation opportunities with over 64 miles of trails. There are ~33 miles of multi-use trails as well as separate biking & hiking trails (so you can do either in peace) plus there are over 25 of dedicated mountain biking trails which are rated from easy to difficult to suit any level of rider. In addition there are 3 large lakes, fishing & boating, a CCC museum, an aquatic center (with swimming pool!), horse-riding trails and day use areas. There’s even hunting in a separate area of the park (in season). It’s impressive and there are enough recreational activities inside the state park to keep any outdoor lover busy for weeks! Nearby Chesterfield (just ~5 miles away) has groceries and basic needs, while Richmond (~20 miles away) offers sightseeing and more. - Pet Friendliness = 5/5
Great place for doggie! Lots of space in camp, plus miles & miles of trails (all dog-friendly and accessible directly from camp) to enjoy inside the State Park. No on-site poo bags however.
Overall Rating = 4.4
BONUS ALERT = Camp in acres of quiet forest!
Summary: We chose this campground mostly just because it was on our path south, but we ended up loving it! This is a HUGE state park covering ~8,000 acres with over 64 miles of trails and just about every recreation activity you could imagine. The trail system is fabulous and includes dedicated sections for either hiking, biking or horse-back riding, as well as ~25 miles of mountain-biking trails rated from easy to difficult. There are also 3 large lakes, an aquatic center (with swimming pool), day-use facilities, fishing & boating areas, playgrounds, an on-site CCC museum and more. The campground is right in the center of the north section of the park, well-separated from the day-use areas in a wonderfully quiet, heavily forested area. All sites are large, gravel with excellent separation and nice “sitting areas” containing picnic table, fire-pit, lantern holder and tent pad. However they do vary quite a bit in quality between the older and newer loops of the park. The older loop (sites #1-65) offer 30A/water and have lots of mature trees, but are generally VERY unlevel. Tons of privacy in this section, but we would not be able to stay here in “the beast”. I’d recommend these sites for smaller rigs only. On the other hand the newer loop (sites #66-129) are lovely, large, mostly flat sites which are easily able to take any-sized rig. Less trees in this section but lots of greenery and separation is still fabulous, so you will not feel cramped. We were parked in the paved pull-though section of camp (the “Pull-Through 65′” sites #66-77) which were nice, but somewhat unlevel. We actually preferred the look & privacy of the non-paved (gravel) back-ins (sites #78-129) and would chose one of those if we came back to the area. We LOVED the park. Lots of space to hang out in camp, great separation and privacy throughout, super quiet and tons of fabulous dog-friendly hiking trails. We were only here a few days so we didn’t get to explore nearby Richmond, but we’d come back in a heartbeat.
Extra Info: Slightly weak cell signal (Verizon & ATT both had 1-2 bars LTE. T-Mobile worked) but it stabilized nicely for work with a booster. 129 RV sites, all reservable on-line (currently only the type of site can be reserved, but site-specific reservations are coming in 2018). Sites are either 30A/water (#1-65) or 50A/water (#66-129) and cost $35/night for non-residents, $30/night for VA residents. On-site dump station.
NOTE3 – Campsite Photos: You can see a photo of each and every campsite in Pocahontas State Park on campsitephotos.com in THIS LINK. So, check that out for choosing specific sites.
Excellent review Nina and Paul. Really appreciate it. We’ll be adding it to our list!
What an absolute shame they are changing their reservation system. They are going from the best type of system to the absolute worst. There is nothing more frustrating to me than going to a nice campground early in the week only to sit and look at the very best sites sitting empty all week because someone has reserved them for only Friday and Saturday night.
In my opinion, ALL campgrounds should do reservations the way Pocahontas SP park does (as all the SP’s in Georgia as well). In this way, everyone is guaranteed a spot, but each camper can get the best ones still available in the entire park depending on when they arrive. In my view, the later in the week (weekend) one arrives, the poorer the spot they would get. In addition, this also gives those staying for a longer period of time a better choice (as it SHOULD be) than those only there for one or two days.
How would you like to be the poor sap who ends up in site 32 at Pocahontas because they couldn’t possibly know how un level it is by when making a reservation? That spot should be the exclusive domain of those arriving late on a Friday or Saturday night.
OK. Rant over!
Hey I’m with you. Personally I MUCH prefer first-come-first-serve campgrounds and campgrounds where you can chose your spot upon arrival, but unfortunately site-specific reservation seems to be the trend. All the Virginia State Parks are going site-specific next year unfortunately.
Nina
Excellent review – very helpful. Thank you.