Cumberland Valley Appalachian Trail Club

SAVE THE DATE:  July 1 – 8, 2011

Get out your personal calendars and reserve the week of Friday, July 1 thru Friday noon, July 8, 2011 to attend Virginia Journeys 2011, ATC’s 38^th Biennial Conference.

The seven A.T. maintaining clubs of Central and Southwest Virginia invite you to join other ATC clubs and members at historic Emory & Henry College, a small liberal arts college located just off Exit 26 on Interstate 81.  Exits in Virginia are numbered by mileage, from the Tennessee border north.  Enjoy the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia while participating in a wide variety of hikes, excursions, workshops and other interesting activities, including ATC’s membership business meeting. More information will be available at www.virginia2011.com and presented in future issues of AT JOURNEYS so keep looking for the latest news. 

RV, Camping and Motel/Hotel Information 

Plenty of convenient tent sites will be available on the campus of Emory & Henry College. 

However, RV's must use alternative locations for RV camping at local state parks, U.S. Forest Service facilities or commercial campgrounds.

There are two state parks in the vicinity, Hungry Mother State Park, located in Marion, VA, approximately five miles from Exit 47 on I-81, and Grayson Highlands State Park, about an hour’s drive from the Emory & Henry campus. RV campers should make reservations as early as possible since sites fill up quickly over the Fourth of July weekend. Electrical and water hookups and some sewer hookups are available at both parks.  State Park reservations can be made 11 months before the required date.  For a July 1, 2011 site, reservations can be made on August 1, 2010.  Reservations for any state park are made either by phone (800-933-7275), or on-line at http://www.reserveamerica.com/campgroundDirectoryList.do?contractCode=va) but not by mail.  Call center hours are 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM, Monday through Friday.  A fee of $5 is charged for reservations made by telephone. 

Several Forest Service campgrounds are in the vicinity.  Those that take reservations are Beartree, Grindstone, Raccoon and Stoney Fork.  Reservations for Forest Service campgrounds can be made six months in advance by telephone (877-444-6777) or on-line at (http://www.recreation.gov/) and selecting "Virginia".  Check to be sure the desired hookups are available at the campground you select. 

A commercial RV campground, “Interstate Campground” is available at Exit 39 on I-81. It offers 16 sites with electricity, water, sewage and cable hookups.  As of this writing, they do not accept checks or credit cards.  Their telephone is 276-646-8384 and their address is P.O. Box 239, Chilhowie, VA 24210.  They do not have a website or an internet address.  Reservations are accepted.

The motels closest to the Emory & Henry campus are at Exit 19 on I-81 in Abingdon, VA.   A list of hotels, motels and B&B's in the area can be obtained from The Abingdon Convention & Visitors Bureau by calling 800-435-3440, or writing to 335 Cummings Street, Abingdon, VA 24210, or visitingwww.Abingdon.com. No special group rates are available at this time. Hotel and motel listings will also be posted on the conference website: www.virginia2011.com,

If you plan to stay off-campus, please make your reservations early, particularly if you plan to arrive by RV.     

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