Culpeper, VA Outdoor Activities

Jimmy Crews, Roger Nelson, and Stephanie Tyson grew up on the James River, paddling along its tree-lined banks to find the most scenic spots and best fishing holes. Now the masterminds behind Howardsville Canoe Livery, the trio outfits outdoorsmen for their own explorations by renting tubes, 10’ Perception Pescador kayaks, and 16’ Old Town Camper canoes. Most trips go down the James River, though adventurers can also explore the Rockfish and Tye Rivers when water levels permit. Abundant wildlife roams the banks, including the occasional bald eagle. Though trips are self-guided, one of the livery’s team members can join groups for a guided tour, narrating in the group’s choice of accent about the rivers’ rich history, geography, geology, and fishing spots. Though all trips include shuttle service, staff can also give a lift to those who already own a tube, kayak, or canoe.

A massive figure floats across the sky, roars, and sends fire into the air as it elevates higher and higher. The creature soaring above the Shenandoah Valley isn't a common dragon—it's one of D&D Ballooning's hot air balloons. Since 1981, the company's steadfast pilots have welcomed children and adults into their floating baskets to feast upon views of lush forests and rolling mountainsides. D&D's colorful aircrafts take off just before sunset or sunrise, letting passengers gaze at a sky painted with rich reds, bright oranges, and pinks delicate enough to pad a princess's walls.

Kings Dominion boasts family entertainment ranging from thrill rides to kids' areas, a water park, and live entertainment. Over 17 roller coasters and high speed attractions await groups, such as the all new Windseeker, which plants riders on a 301-foot tower in swings that travel up to 30 miles per hour. A Peanuts themed kids' area entertains with Snoopy rides and discount psychiatric advice, while a 20-acre water park includes high-speed water slides, lazy rivers, and dual wave pools. Guests seeking to take a break can sit back to watch live entertainment, or prepare for zombie uprisings with the Kings Dominion annual Halloween Haunt.

Sometime in 1952, Gilbert and Vernie Kingree stood in front of Stoney Creek Park—the combination grocery store and dance hall they owned—watching a friend skate up and down the street on his new roller skates. The Kingrees, the parents of five children, immediately saw how roller skates could entertain the whole family. They quickly decided to add a wooden roller rink to their facility, and that’s how Stoney Creek Roller Rink & Fun Center was born.

Since that day, the owners have continued to add new attractions in an effort to entertain familial units. These attractions include bumper cars, laser tag, and an arcade with more than 85 games, only half of which are actually sleeping robots. Visitors still glide around a classic roller rink on rented rollerblades or skates, but they can also putt on a nine-hole green-turf miniature-golf course. Smaller visitors hop inside a ball pit after navigating plastic tubes and slides in the indoor play area, and guests of all ages refuel with oven-baked pizza and hot wings served in an onsite restaurant.

In an annual event at the captivating World Heritage site, community members gather to taste local wines, listen to live music, and wander through Monticello’s restored vineyard, staterooms, and cellar. Representatives from nearby wineries fill glasses with samples of their signature varietals, while attendees can sip slowly on the estate’s West Lawn while soaking in views or nibbling on fruit and cheese.

Teams of recreational combatants assemble in tactical formations across the fields at Southern Maryland Paintball, using obstacles and fortifications to their advantage as they engage enemies in fast-paced matches. Six fields with three distinct styles present diverse battlegrounds—from the wooden partitions that dot the open space at the Castle field to the menagerie of inflated obstacles and out-of-work parade floats that populate the Airball field. Players that excel in stealthy maneuvers will thrive at the Village field, where tiny huts obscure ambushers approaching from multiple angles. Each match is regulated by an experienced referee who shouts down those who shirk the rules. Southern Maryland Paintball keeps its fields mired in a barrage of colorful ballistics year-round, and also offers nighttime play on lighted fields on the weekends.

Away from the frenetic pace of organized matches, guests can soothe itchy trigger fingers and practice their marksmanship at the paintball-shooting range. Southern Maryland Paintball also encompasses a mini-golf course for those who prefer to compete in a game where their only enemies are subtle slopes and territorial windmills.