Hungry Mother State Park
Virginia State Park; One Of The Six Original 1936 Parks, Built By The Civilian Conservation Corps · Marion, Virginia
A hundred-and-eight-acre lake in a mountain hollow outside Marion, built by the Civilian Conservation Corps and opened on 15 June 1936 as one of Virginia's six original state parks. The name is the first thing anyone asks about, and the park tells the story on its own signage: a settler woman called Molly Marley is said to have escaped a raid with her child and wandered the mountains until she collapsed, and the child, found by a search party, could only say hungry mother - so the creek became Hungry Mother Creek and the mountain above it Molly's Knob. Whether any of that happened is another matter, but the names are real and the knob is the best walk in the park, a steep climb to a summit with the lake below and the Mount Rogers highlands on the skyline. The lake itself is the draw for most visitors: a genuine sand swimming beach with a bath house, boat rental, stocked fishing, and around it the CCC cabins, a restaurant, a campground and the Hemlock Haven conference centre.
2854 Park Boulevard, Marion, Virginia, 24354, United States
Park open daily, generally 8 AM to dusk with shorter winter gate hours. The swimming beach, bath house, restaurant, boat rental and camp store are SEASONAL, running mainly June to August - beach seasons have been shortened by staffing in recent years, so confirm before travelling. Cabins and camping by reservation. Separate charge for the beach.
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