Best Glamping near Buena Vista, VA

We used this in the offseason as is was one of the only ones in the area that stays open for most of the year. This is not a primitive/secluded campground if you are looking to get away and spend some time in nature. It would make a great group/family glamping campsite as is has all of the amenities, including playgrounds, a pond with a "beach" and golf cart rentals to get around.

Campground Review

As a Ranger on The Dyrt, I sometimes receive compensation for reviewing campgrounds like this one. Middle Creek Campground is the perfect place to use as a base camp for all of the outdoor activities in the area. Getting here was a lot easier than expected. The campground is only 6 miles off the I-81 Arcadia exit. We were quickly in the Jefferson National Forest where the road winds through the forest along Jennings Creek. It was absolutely gorgeous. Around every turn we saw fishermen wading into the water or sitting on the banks.

Check-in is at the fully stocked camp store where you'll likely be greeted by the two resident dogs. They mostly lazed around all weekend and watched people coming and going. The RV sites are directly across from the camp store, but the tent sites were tucked back into the woods. The upper tent campground was closed for renovations during our stay, so we chose from the 8 or 9 sites located in the lower tent campground. All of the sites were roomy and featured a small fire pit, picnic table, water, and electricity. Several of them even had a pull-through site and would work well for a small pop-up. Bonus: most of the lower tent sites have direct access to the creek! There were only four other tent sites occupied the whole weekend. It was very quiet and peaceful.

We chose site #76 because the creek wound around the back of the campsite and had a gentle slope leading down to the creek. We knew our dogs would love splashing around in it! Once we got everything set up I realized that the site was bigger than I'd originally thought. There was more than enough room to set up our Kingdom 4 tent, 10' canopy, and camp kitchen to glamp in style. We brought a 15' lead for the 2yo beagle so he could go down to the creek on his own or hang out with us. Even at the end of his lead he was nowhere close to the road. Check out the video below for a 360' view!

The bathhouse was at the back of the camp store. Like the rest of the campground, the facilities aren't fancy, but they are functional and clean. Both men's and women's featured two showers where the water was nice and hot! There are even washers and dryers around the corner.

Firewood is available for purchase onsite. We paid $7 for a bundle at the camp store, and it was delivered to our site just a few minutes later. The bundle was huge! We had more than enough wood for two cooking fires.

Because our visit was so early in the year, we weren't able to access most of the amenities. There is a good-sized pool and pavilion on a hill behind the camp store. Right beside that is the swimming pond with two large slides in the middle, plus a small beach. There is another lake at the front of the campground designated for fishing. There are no trails in this campground, so if you want to hike, you'll need to drive about a mile out to where the Appalachian Trail meets Jennings Creek. Or, drive to one of many trail heads within the National Forest. There are also plenty of pull-off spots along the road if you want to wade into the creek.

During our stay, we observed the staff cleaning, fixing, and getting ready for camping season. The bathrooms got a fresh coat of paint. The roads through the campground were recently groomed with new crushed gravel. All of the picnic tables and sidewalks were being power washed. The game room was also being renovated! Downside: we didn't have water at our site the first day. About half-way through the second day one of the workers came around to let us know they were turning it on and to let it run for a bit since it had been off all winter. That made it much easier to wash dishes in a bucket at camp. There isn't a wash station in the campground for doing dishes, so we had to improvise the first night. The biggest turn-off for us at the campground was the RV section right across from the camp store. It seemed like the sites were really packed in there, one on top of the other. I've never been RV-ing before, so I'm not sure if this setup is typical, but I wanted to point it out.

All of the staff that we came into contact with were super friendly and helpful. We were immediately made to feel welcome. It felt like spending the weekend with friends and neighbors instead of strangers.

Product Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time - today I am testing Nature's Coffee Kettle with Colombian Arabica Coffee. I am completely unable to start my day without coffee even when I'm sleeping in the woods. Nature's Coffee Kettle is a packable system that provides you with delicious, pour-over coffee in the backwoods. The "kettle" is a specially designed pouch with two sections. The top section holds the pre-filled coffee filter in place while you slowly pour hot water over the grounds. It features a zip-top so you can close it up while you're waiting for the magic to happen.The bottom section is the reservoir that holds all of that coffee goodness. Coffee refills are also available separately. The entire system packs flat for storage in a camp tote or in your backpack.

The directions on the back of the bag are super clear and even contain pictures. The key to making the perfect brew with Nature's Coffee Kettle is time. Don't rush it. This is not instant coffee. It is the real deal and will be worth every minute. Slowly pour 1 cup of hot water over the filter, zip up the top and let it sit for a minute or two so the grounds can soak up all of that water. This is the most important step. Then, unzip the top, and keep slowly adding the rest of the water. How much water? I used my coffee mugs to measure out the right amount of water into the kettle before boiling. After you've poured all the water into the bag zip it up again and let it sit. Then, just twist off the cap and pour!

The pouch is reusable, so don't toss it out. Dispose of the filter and rinse out the pouch. It will be ready to go the next time you need some caffeine. Nature's Coffee Kettle comes in a variety of coffee flavors as well as orange pekoe black tea, apple cider, and hot chocolate.

Great all around virginia campsite

A favorite of our for years! All types of sites and hookups plus cabins. Fishing, lake swimming, hiking, educational opportunities galore. Security is good but not overwhelming. Virginia is for lovers and camping lovers!

This was a nice little campground, and my friends and I had a great time here. Originally I picked this place because most of the other campgrounds in the area were already booked up. We went in the middle of October when the leaves were changing in Virginia. It was a good place to stay overall. We stayed in one of the "primitive" campsites with no water or electric hook ups. For these you park at a small parking lot and walk a few hundred feet or so to the campsites.  The sites in this area were pretty close together, some closer than others. We stayed at site 7, which was a little closer to some other campers than I would have liked. It was flat and grassy and the woods were very nice though.  There were also some rv sites in the campground, which also seemed a little close together. 

I wold say the best thing about this place is how close it is to stuff. Crab tree falls and spy rock are both really nice hikes right in the area.  Bold rock hard cidery is about 40 minutes from the campground. All around a really awesome area with plenty to do.  I would recommend it.

This was our first camping trip to actually visit lake Moomaw in Warm Springs Virginia.  We had been close before but never made it to the lake itself.

First off, sorry for the audio on the video we uploaded.  It seems in March of 2021 I was diagnosed with having lung cancer and it is pinching the never of my left vocal cord so I'll I can use now is my right vocal cord.

Now, given that information, we decided to camp at Bolar Mountain Campground for a few days. We arrived the week before Memorial Day since it worked out better with my chemo treatments. We reserved site 34 and it was a perfect site. It's basically a corner lot which worked out great for us. It's little hike to the bathrooms but not to bad of an incline.

The bathrooms were clean and so were the showers. Everything was great. Access to a small store is not far away. The owner of the little store is very nice and helpful. Stop by and see him if you choose to come camp here.

If you have any questions or comments, please leave them below.

https://youtu.be/VIjZYIG58Ks

I selected this site. because it was near Natural Bridge and all that it has to offer. There were not a lot of options in the area so I bit the bullet and paid $30 for a site for the evening. While the facility was typical of a KOA I was not entirely impressed by the overall price to amenity ratio, especially after seeing other campgrounds in Virginia along this trip and their price being so vastly different.

Let me just give a full disclosure on this…. There are tent sites which cost less here, BUT there are only 5 of them in the entire campground so if you end up there on a weekend don't count on them being open at all. I even checked just for a reference of how booked they are and even checking some 2 weeks in advance on a random week day the same results appeared, NO BOOKINGS.

During summertime I can see how this place would attract a lot of people with the pool and various options, but in my opinion that does not offset the price point. And RV sites, which are more costly looked hard to get into with larger units.

My site was even and pretty basic despite having electricity. It was just across from the deluxe cabins and close to the restroom which I liked. Everything seemed well lit at night.

This campground being my hub only I did enjoy that it was very close to the town of Lexington itself as well as Natural Bridge, which is a pretty cool site with a lot of interesting history as well.

TIPS:

• If you want a primitive site book well in advance. These are apparently quite a difficult ticket to score at this camp.
• Call ahead about RV lengths to make sure you are booking the correct site for your size. I noticed more than a few people struggling with their units and some of this could have been avoided with proper booking.
• Check into local sites!! There is a zoo and dinosaur area as well as the Natural Bridge, hiking and a historic downtown.

We stayed in a Pull Through, Full Hookup site on the hillside. It was surprisingly very level. We just used this as a base for visiting Natural Bridge State Park, so it was only an overnighter. The bathrooms & private showers were amazing & clean. The laundry room looked just as nice, but we didn’t use it.
We didn’t use the pool, but the kids enjoyed the Gameroom! Of everything we used there, the only thing to mention that was dirty was the game room. But I’ll take that, we were very impressed with the playground, dog park & they even had chickens & a petting farm upon entry.
This KOA seriously restored my faith in KOA’s. I will renew our membership, (which is about to expire), based on this visit. There are great ones out there!

Great job building level sites in a hillside. Easy in and out. Clean facilities.

Remote not much to do. We don't have a toad. Not an area to ride bikes.

Great as a stop over.

This is a very typical KOA and, with one exception, it provides the services one expects from a KOA. However, it is rather small and it has some sites that are not level but can be leveled with some effort by the camper.

The office staff was very professional while still being country-friendly and helpful. Also, the KOA is just a few miles from Natural Bridge State Park. I found it to be worth the $9 admission fee.

I had excellent cell service on Verizon. Although the KOA offers WiFi, I was never able to get a strong enough signal to connect to the internet even though I tried several times during the afternoon, early evening, and late at night.

My biggest disappointment was that although the showers, sinks and toilets were very clean and well maintained, they did not meet my ADA expectations.

I was there on Tuesday, May2, 2023.

We had planned on staying for 2 nights and the move on to Nashville. Tennessee was pretty much shut down from Covid. We were glad we stayed! The campground was very nice as well as the owners and staff!! They even guided you to your site and help you level.

There is plenty to do around this area.

This campground is open year round and is right off the highway.  There is a gas station right next to it as well as a safari park.  The campground itself has a pool, open seasonally, a game room, and a playground.  It's an old school playground but the gkids love it.  They also have a couple of walking trails and a small dog park.  It is roadside so expect just that for this campground.  It has plenty of trees and sites for all different sized vehicles and tents.  The cabins and bathrooms are nice and clean.  The employees are always nice and helpful.  We have stayed here several times and have always had a good time.