Virginia Public Lands
9.1% of Virginia is federal land: 2,321,799 of its 25,496,320 acres (2024 data). The largest federal land manager in Virginia is the U.S. Forest Service, with 1,674,033 acres, 6.6% of the state. This guide covers 45 state parks, 20 National Park Service units, 1 national forest, 24 wilderness areas, and 16 national wildlife refuges.
Explore Virginia public lands by type
- Virginia state parks 45 parks, 26 with camping, 17 with swimming
- Virginia national parks 20 National Park Service units, 1 with developed campgrounds
- Virginia national forests George Washington and Jefferson National Forest
- Virginia wilderness areas 24 areas
- Virginia national wildlife refuges 16 national wildlife refuges
Virginia public land map
- National forests
- National parks, recreation areas and monuments (NPS)
- National wildlife refuges (FWS)
- State parks
- Wilderness areas (dashed)
Land managed by (switch layers on or off)
Land ownership: USGS PAD-US 4.1, dissolved by manager and simplified (parcels under about 2 square km not shown). Unit boundaries simplified. Not for navigation or legal boundaries.
List of all 106 places on this map
State parks (45)
- Bear Creek Lake State Park
- Belle Isle State Park (Virginia)
- Caledon State Park
- Chippokes State Park
- Claytor Lake State Park
- Clinch River State Park
- Culpeper Battlefields State Park
- Douthat State Park
- Fairy Stone State Park
- Falling Spring Falls State Park
- False Cape State Park
- First Landing State Park
- Grayson Highlands State Park
- Hayfields State Park
- High Bridge Trail State Park
- Holliday Lake State Park
- Hungry Mother State Park
- James River State Park
- Kiptopeke State Park
- Lake Anna State Park
- Leesylvania State Park
- Machicomoco State Park
- Mason Neck State Park
- Natural Bridge State Park (Virginia)
- Natural Tunnel State Park
- New River Trail State Park
- Occoneechee State Park
- Pocahontas State Park
- Powhatan State Park
- Sailor's Creek Battlefield Historical State Park
- Sailor's Creek Battlefield State Park (park)
- Seven Bends State Park
- Shenandoah River Raymond R. "Andy" Guest Jr. State Park
- Shot Tower Historical State Park
- Sky Meadows State Park
- Smith Mountain Lake State Park
- Southwest Virginia Museum Historical State Park
- Staunton River Battlefield State Park
- Staunton River State Park
- Sweet Run State Park
- Twin Lakes State Park (Virginia)
- Westmoreland State Park
- Widewater State Park
- Wilderness Road State Park
- York River State Park
National parks, recreation areas and monuments (NPS) (20)
- Appalachian National Scenic Trail
- Appomattox Court House National Historical Park
- Assateague Island National Seashore
- Blue Ridge Parkway
- Booker T Washington National Monument
- Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail
- Cedar Creek & Belle Grove National Historical Park
- Colonial National Historical Park
- Cumberland Gap National Historical Park
- Fort Monroe National Monument
- Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park
- George Washington Birthplace National Monument
- George Washington Memorial Parkway
- Harpers Ferry National Historical Park
- Maggie L Walker National Historic Site
- Manassas National Battlefield Park
- Petersburg National Battlefield
- Prince William Forest Park
- Richmond National Battlefield Park
- Shenandoah National Park
National forests (1)
Wilderness areas (24)
- Barbours Creek Wilderness
- Beartown Wilderness
- Brush Mountain East Wilderness
- Brush Mountain Wilderness
- Garden Mountain Wilderness
- Hunting Camp Creek Wilderness
- James River Face Wilderness
- Kimberling Creek Wilderness
- Lewis Fork Wilderness
- Little Dry Run Wilderness
- Little Wilson Creek Wilderness
- Mountain Lake Wilderness
- Peters Mountain Wilderness
- Priest Wilderness
- Raccoon Branch Wilderness
- Ramseys Draft Wilderness
- Rich Hole Wilderness
- Rough Mountain Wilderness
- Saint Mary's Wilderness
- Shawvers Run Wilderness
- Shenandoah Wilderness
- Stone Mountain Wilderness
- Three Ridges Wilderness
- Thunder Ridge Wilderness
National wildlife refuges (FWS) (16)
- Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge
- Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge
- Eastern Shore Of Virginia National Wildlife Refuge
- Featherstone National Wildlife Refuge
- Fisherman Island National Wildlife Refuge
- Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge
- James River National Wildlife Refuge
- Mackay Island National Wildlife Refuge
- Martin National Wildlife Refuge
- Mason Neck National Wildlife Refuge
- Nansemond National Wildlife Refuge
- Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge
- Plum Tree Island National Wildlife Refuge
- Presquile National Wildlife Refuge
- Rappahannock River Valley National Wildlife Refuge
- Wallops Island National Wildlife Refuge
Who manages Virginia's land
| Agency | Acres | Share of Virginia |
|---|---|---|
| Bureau of Land Management | 805 | 0% |
| U.S. Forest Service | 1,674,033 | 6.6% |
| U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service | 133,527 | 0.5% |
| National Park Service | 307,533 | 1.2% |
| Department of Defense | 205,901 | 0.8% |
| All federal land | 2,321,799 | 9.1% |
Source: Congressional Research Service, Federal Land Ownership: Overview and Data (R42346), 2024 data, checked 2026-09-30.
Camping on Virginia public land
National parks
National Park Service land has its own camping rules, set by each park unit: see Blue Ridge Parkway for campgrounds, fees, and backcountry permits.
State parks
26 of Virginia's state parks have developed campgrounds on record; compare them in the Virginia state parks table.
Common questions
- 9.1% of Virginia is federal land: 2,321,799 of its 25,496,320 acres (2024 data).
- 805 acres, less than 0.1% of the state (2024 data).
- The largest federal land manager in Virginia is the U.S. Forest Service, with 1,674,033 acres, 6.6% of the state.
- This guide lists 45 Virginia state parks and recreation areas, 26 of them with camping on record.
- congress.gov (accessed 2026-09-30)
- blm.gov (accessed 2026-09-30)
The sentences on this page are generated by software from the sourced records above, not written by hand. How this content is made.