Virginia State Parks: Fairy Stone State Park
Stuarts Knob - 4/11/24 – 1.8 miles
It’s a bit unsettling how quickly the birthdays come nowadays. Still, turning 66 is a good reason to hike! This year Jim and I bundled it into a weekend at Virginia Tech and the annual Run In Remembrance honoring the victims of the April 16, 2007 campus tragedy. VT and Blacksburg are very special places for us, and every time we visit we add to the storehouse of memories.
Lately I’ve been interested in exploring the state parks in Virginia (my home state) and will use any excuse to take a scenic route to include one. Today rain was falling lightly but steadily as we made our way to Fairy Stone State Park.
But why are we stopping at the post office in Stuart, VA? Well, it’s just 20 minutes from Fairy Stone SP, so we should check out the mural there, part of the Federal Arts Project by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) following the Great Depression.
The Stuart mural was installed in 1942 by artist John E. Costigan. The title of the work is “Receiving Mail On the Farm.” Read more about Costigan and his other murals here.
Built in the 1930’s by the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps, also a New Deal program after the Great Depression), Fairy Stone State Park is Virginia’s oldest state park. Prior to that, the area was a site for mining magnetite iron ore, especially on Stuart’s Knob. (Mining was hard, though, and when that industry declined folks from the local town took a turn at moonshining, until the land was donated to the state and everyone had to move out.)
Fairy Stone State Park is 4,741 acres of amazing! In addition to hiking and biking trails, there are horse trails, playgrounds, and fishing and boating on Fairy Stone Lake. Want to stay awhile? There are comfortable cabins and tent camping. Need a conference center for a meeting or retreat? Heck, this is even a great location for weddings.
Now, about those fairy stones: read about the legend and geology of them here.
Upon arrival at the park, while there was a brief respite from the rain, Jim and I stopped at the “fairy stone hunt site” where you can look for fairy stones, but no digging please. We didn’t find any (no surprise, we are not the first people to look) but there are some for sale in the gift shop (also no surprise).
Oh, yeah, we are here to hike Stuart’s Knob. (Note: it is a prominent hill, not a high mountain peak and not to be confused with Stuart Knob in West Virginia which is a big ‘un.)
Four pedestrian-only trails combine in various ways to reach the top of Stuart’s Knob. The shortest route is about 1.8 miles, but the hike can be extended by also hiking the Whiskey Run Trail.
Spring green emerging
I love big burls and I cannot lie
A short hike on a damp day, happy to be one year older and still living my best life outside with my favorite person. What could be better?
How old would you be
if you didn't know how old you are?“
~Satchel Paige
