False Cape State Park is unique among Virginia’s state parks in that it’s inaccessible except through Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge. You have to bike or walk to get there. Similar to other barrier islands the eastern side faces the ocean and the western side faces the bay. Because Back Bay doesn’t have overnight parking, you have to park at Little Island Park and pay an overnight rate (around $10). A mile of the beach between the city park and the refuge is off limits, which means you start and end the trip with a road walk into/out of the refuge. But once you are in the refuge proper, you see lots of
I had big plans that we’d do around 17 miles on Saturday and around 9 on Sunday. The goal was to reach the VA/NC state line and loop back north to the campsites. Because we got a little later start than I’d hoped and had a couple people suffering injuries early into the hike, I decided to adjust course. If Plan A was a backpacking trip near the beach, Plan B would be enjoying a beach trip accentuated with a little backpacking. Plan B worked out fantastically.
A little over half way we relaxed at the ranger station, getting sodas, ice cream, and filling up on potable water. Next we went to the beach where people enjoyed a swim or meandered south to the campsite (also on the beach). Two of us chose to make camp at the official campsite, with everyone else choosing to set up tents on the beach itself (there are designated areas nearby). The campsites had decent privies, a small shelter to cover a picnic table, and a water pump (with sign saying the water isn’t drinkable). Two people both had issues getting their esbit stoves to light in the high winds on the beach, but I think the views of the crashing waves were probably worth the additional effort.
Sunday we rose early to watch the sun rise over the ocean. It was an incredible spectacle that I cannot recommend highly enough. On our way back to the cars, we checked out the bay, made another stop at the ranger station (ice cream for breakfast). One person in the group hitched a ride back to the cars from a park ranger since their condition from Saturday was worsening. Everyone else hiked back either on the trail or the beach.
Notes for a future organizer of this trip: This trip was awesome but not without its challenges. The biggest challenge is that it’s over 200 miles away from DC. This will be a four or five hour drive from DC, depending on stops/traffic. The eastern, beach-facing sites seem superior to the western, bay-facing sites; the beach is windy but the bay is buggy. You have to call the state parks reservation system in order to book a campsite, they don’t allow online reservations because of all the logistics involved. With all that in mind, I do think making it more of a beach-focused trip made it a lot better than trying to push for a lot of miles. Maybe there’s a way to do it as more of a choose-your-own adventure style thing (some can check out the VA/NC state line, spend most of the day at the beach playing in the water, check out historical sites, paddle on the bay, etc.).
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