philpott lake

This is a great lake- BIG LAKE, GREAT to take your boat and let the kids tube or knee board. Water is clear and cool. We go every year!

There are several parks on the lake and Philpott Park is just above the dam. There are a series of little wooden benches with a great view of the lake and then there is a big, stone observation deck. Just up the path a few hundred feet, there is a visitor's center with a nice little museum in it covering the lake and indigenous wildlife.

Stayed here at Goose Point on Philpott Lake and loved it!! Beautiful level sites with mature trees all around to provide the ultimate shade. Not too heavily lighted on the A loop which makes for such a peaceful experience...just us and the stars! Nice and quiet and you can get assistance from the very friendly staff at any time. Biggest word of warning (which they will tell you upon check-in), the entry gate closes at 10pm so if you have a situation and have to leave, make sure to stay outside or be prepared to park outside the gate and walk in. The bathhouse is very clean and the shower stalls nice and roomy. Water pressure in the showers, however, is very strong...almost too strong. We had an amazing time and will definitely return!

Well worth the drive when ur in the Radford areaCheck out photo from Philpott Dam I tookVery peaceful and relaxing !!!!

Visited Jamison Mill in May. Clean facility, quiet grounds, LOTS of trails, fishing/camping permitted, bath house near entry. We were hiking that day and opted for the North Access Trail. This particular trail was approx .5 mi round trip. My husband and I had our 4 beans along with us (10, 9, 6, and 2) and this was a pretty good hike for them. The start of the trail has a lot of roots/rocks/slippery spots, but beyond that, it's pretty flat and easily hiked. You're under a thick canopy of trees the entire time!! It was humid and on the warm side (temps) the day we visited, but being under all those trees, you really didn't notice the warmer temps or humidity as much. The switch backs that take you up the mountain "climb" at a minimal pace, so there's no "straight up" hiking or anything too strenuous. There is no fee for admittance, only for camping. I think we've found a hidden gem here, and will definitely be back for more!!

Philpott Lake and state park is a great family lake to go to on a hot summer day. It is never crowded, always clear calm waters and plenty of parking for boat trailers. The best thing about Philpott is it's run by the corp of army engineers and there are no homes built on the lake so the shore line is open around the whole lake. Deepest level runs around 110 feet, there are plenty of coves to explore and go swimming in and because of the low amount of traffic the waters are always calm never choppy from over crowding.

This is truly a secret gem in the Collinsville, Martinsville area. the vista from the Dam is breathtaking, I went in September when the leaves were starting to change there was fog and mist on the lake just beautiful. Being from Washington State this was an amazing eperience to compare with our blue lakes and mountains.

I have stayed at Fairy Stone Cabin #1 several times and have gotten spoiled with the lakefront view. On a return trip to the area, with all the Fairy Stone Cabins booked, I said, no problem - I will camp. One night at the Fairy Stone campground was enough for me. It is wooded with no views and constant drive throughs by the staff, even in mid September. I did not feel it was very private or scenic. A couple walking their dog told me about Goose Point just six miles away. What a difference in campgrounds! Three loops to choose from - one with no hookups. The most popular loop is lakeside and pretty crowded it seemed. I chose Loop B which is for tents and sits up on a knoll. There is a somewhat obscured view of the lake, through the trees, from several campsites in Loop B. Certainly not crowded in this area after Labor Day. Restroom/Shower building is a short walk and it is new and beautiful. Staff is very friendly and does not do constant drive throughs the park. Cost of non electric site is $20. It is a Federal Park site so no extra charge for the dog as was the case at Fairy Stone Virginia State campground.

We were fortunate enough to get a great spot over the weekend at Goose Point. We had such a great weekend! Very quiet, relaxing weekend. We were in Loop C-spot 13, not a lot of shade in that spot, but was right on the Lake and we had a beautiful view for the weekend. We will definitely go back as soon as we can. Beach area was very nice, Bath house was very clean.

Philpott is our favorite lake to camp at..We take our boat so the kids can kneeboarding and tube.. water is very calm!.. We camp at Goosepoint and have for several years..Not much to do close by, but we love to stay in the campground and relax..very quiet campground.

Visited Philpott Lake many times in the past to take advantage of the several sandy "beaches" used for swimming, but this time, we opted to tent camp overnight at Horseshoe Point. Just 3.5 miles up from the more popular Salthouse Branch of Philpott Lake, Horseshoe Point offers standard and electric w/ water hook-up sites,several being right along the lake's edge. We were fortunate enough to score one of the beautiful water's edge sites (non-elec)! Plenty of room for our minivan and 10 person tent. Lots of neat nooks and crannies for the kiddies to "explore," and even a small set of steps leading down to the bank side (@ our particular site). Grills large enough to prepare food for the average size fam (and then some - we have a fam of 6) at one time, bathhouses w/in a short walk of most sites. We stayed at site 20 - WOW! What a gorgeous view to wake up to of the lake, and the bathhouse was just a 30 second walk! Of the two branches mentioned, we found the attendants of Horseshoe Point to be much friendlier than Salthouse Branch. There's not a heck of a lot of privacy at either branch, but having your vehicle parked "in" your site and once your tent is up, they do offer somewhat of a barrier. Large dumpsters on site for disposal of your larger trash. CLEAN beaches, CLEAN park. Two cars max per site, $25/night (tent camping, as of June 2013). You are in the woods, so don't forget your OFF! =) Definitely a hidden jewel and great close by jewel, rather making the 6 hr+ drive to the beach!!

We live exactly 2 miles from the lake but we still go camping at least 4 times each year. Our oldest daughter, who turns 4 next week, starts hollering in dec"when we going camping?" The campsites at salt house and horseshoe are wonderful. We try to get the same campsite each time we go because its big enough for the camper, 2 cars, and still enough room for the kids to have room to play. As well as enough room for us to play corn hole. Both campsites are well maintained and if you have any problems the tenants at the guardhouse are quick to fix the issues. There are playgrounds for the kids, and swimming areas (which we use only for the youngest (being one) since I don't let her in the water while out on the boat)

Stayed at Goose Point Park for the first time Memorial Day Weekend and it will be the last time. Very disappointed with the closeness of the RV sites (we were in a pop-up camper), the lack of showers in the upper loop, the ongoing problems with the toilets in the upper loop and the lack of water pressure on Sunday. Told a park ranger Saturday the toilets were once again broken and he says "it's after 5pm - there is no one to fix them". Also do not inforce the limit of vehicles per site. The motorhome two sites down had 3 -4 cars lining the narrow path all day and evening. Nothing like staying at a State park where the rangers and attendants keep an eye on things.

We camped in our RV at the Army Corps of Engineers Goose Point Park. We used our Senior National Park pass and got half off camping. It was very well cared for and has nice amenities right on the lake.

We love Philpott lake. We prefer it over Smith Mountain lake. It's not congested. Not houses. I can bring my dogs to the campgrounds. The sites are nice and they just built a new bath house near the camper camping!