We spent a weekend in Fancy Gap, Virginia where we discovered the ultimate dog-friendly campsite, a unique hiking trail, and a charming ice cream spot.
Table of Contents
Where We Stayed
Fancy Gap/Blue Ridge Parkway KOA
The Campground
Fancy Gap/Blue Ridge Parkway KOA has 65+ RV sites, 8 cabins, and a handful of tent sites. They have back-ins and pull-throughs; some with patio furniture and others with an elevated deck. They have two sizes of cabin, as well as a lodge with 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, and a full kitchen.
They have a small playground and a dog park.
There’s also a pond for fishing, a ping pong table, and what I’ll call a giant pool table. Picture balls the size of volleyballs. I’ve never seen anything like it.
Their camp store has packaged ice cream bars/pints; lots of fun toys/gifts; and camping supplies.
Outside the store is a pretty patio area with tables and chairs for eating.
Even the stairs to get from the pool area to the seating area and camp store are pretty.
There isn’t a lot in the way of restaurants nearby, but included in our check-in materials was information about Dave’s Smoke House. The options include beef brisket sandwich, pulled pork sandwich, smoked hot dog, pizza, and more. All of it can be delivered to your campsite. We didn’t try it, but it’s nice to know it’s an option.
Also, I always appreciate businesses with personality and a sense of humor. Outside the camp store was a “Blind Date with a Book” box. For $5, you get a book to enjoy, and the money is donated to Care Camps.
This marker in the side of a hill looks like a memorial of some kind. However, when you get close enough to read it, you’ll see it says “At this very location on April 12, 1861, absolutely nothing happened.”
| Campground Name | Fancy Gap/Blue Ridge Parkway KOA |
| Location | Fancy Gap, VA |
| Dates | May 30-June 1, 2025 |
| Site Number | Site |
| Site Surface | mostly grass with a small gravel spot |
| Hook-ups | Full hookups |
| Cost | $93 per night (including taxes and fees) |
| Water Pressure | 55 psi |
| Voltage | 114-126 V |
| Campground Wifi | 0.23 Mbps down; couldn’t get it to run after that |
Our Campsite
The site was pretty unlevel. We really needed the side-to-side levelers, but we made it work.
Our site had a little more privacy than many of the others. We had a neighbor to our left, but the right side of the site bordered a campground road, and there were trees between us and the road, so it was perfectly fine.
For those who travel with dogs, you might be interested in the site type we had. Behind the site was our own fenced pet park! Aiken and Corona weren’t terribly interested in hanging out in there without us, but it made it easier to pack up on Sunday. Instead of me tripping over them while I tried to get things ready inside, they got to enjoy some off-leash time outside while Jesse worked on dumping tanks and packing up outside. We didn’t have to worry about them tangling up long leashes.
There are three sites in a row with their own fenced area, and Aiken was able to see our neighbor’s dogs, but they barked more than he did, and he soon lots interest.
What We Did
Black Ridge Trail
We drove about 40 minutes to the Rocky Knob Visitor Center and found a large lot with plenty of parking spots. If you park in the back of the lot, you’ll be closer to the beginning of the trail.
Black Ridge Trail is a 3-mile loop and is considered a moderate hike. I thought it was a lot of fun, but I would not recommend this trail for little kids or dogs with mobility issues. Portions of the trail were fairly steep, and the terrain was very uneven. There were a lot of rocks/roots to navigate. In one spot, it felt more like we were hiking up a dry ravine than an actual trail.
There’s also a water crossing!
The trail was very narrow in some spots. In others, it was very overgrown. Sometimes, it was both. Because of the overgrown parts, I’d recommend wearing long pants and bug spray.
This is where the trail got exciting. Part of the trail actually goes through a cow pasture! About halfway in, the trail intersects the Blue Ridge Parkway. Across the road, you can see stairs that go over a fence into an open pasture. Yup, that’s where you want to go!
If you’re hiking with dogs, it’s good to be aware of these ahead of time. Some dogs will be able to manage the stairs by themselves, but others will have trouble. Aiken did pretty well getting over once he figured out that was what we were doing, but Corona needed help. You’ll actually encounter two of these ladders, one to get into the field and one to get back out.
We didn’t see any cows while walking through their field, but we saw plenty of cow patties.
There were multiple trail markers to tell us where to go, mostly in the form of blue arrows on posts.
Along the way, we saw so many deer! We also found blackberry bushes.
The Go Hike Virginia website has a page about this specific trail that details the route and what you can expect at various points. If you want more specific info about the trail, it’s probably worth a look at this page.
CC Camp Lane, Rock Castle Gorge
After Rocky Knob Trail, we drove about 15 minutes to Rock Castle Gorge.
After turning onto CC Camp Lane, you’ll drive past a few houses, and the road will become unpaved. It got pretty bumpy, but we made it!
Eventually, we came to a small parking lot. (The coordinates of this parking lot photo are 36°48’28.0″N 80°19’51.5″W, according to Google.)
We didn’t do much actual hiking here. We mainly wanted to give the dogs a chance to get in the river.
However, there are plenty of hiking opportunities from this spot (in addition to several spots to go in the river).
There were more bugs here than on the other trail, but they weren’t terrible.
On the short section of trail we did take, we found this marvelous tree! Corona included for scale.
Where We Ate
Fancy Gap Country Store
If you’re craving ice cream while you’re at the Fancy Gap KOA, I highly recommend you make the 0.4-mile drive to the Fancy Gap Country Store.
This place has one of the most creative ice cream menus I’ve ever seen. Flavors include “exhausted parent,” “kitty kitty bang bang,” and “yippee skippee.”
We ordered a scoop of vanilla with sprinkles and a scoop of Zanzibar chocolate (in cups) for $11 and change.
If you can’t decide on the flavor you want, consider getting an ice cream flight. You choose four flavors of ice cream and get four slightly smaller portions of each. For $9.75, it seems like a great deal. Alone, it might be a bit too much ice cream, but it seems like just the right amount to split with someone. Sadly, we didn’t see them until after we had paid for our ice cream, so this will have to be on the list for next time.
Also, they had color-changing spoons. For me, that’s one of those details that’s completely unnecessary, but lots of fun! (Note the green and purple on the tips of the yellow and pink spoons.)
It’s worth noting they do sell some real food here. The menu included pulled pork, hot dogs, wings, and more.
Wildlife
So many deer! We saw them driving. We saw them on the trail.
More Photos
Happy travels!
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