Southwest Virginia is a land of superlatives — highest elevations, most remote wild places, and most biologically diverse rivers. There’s a reason why the people of Southwest Virginia call it the Mountain Empire. From the royal New River Valley west to Virginia’s rooftop at Mount Rogers National Recreation Area, then across I-81 and onward to the bucolic Clinch River Valley all the way to historic Cumberland Gap, Southwest Virginia has a lot to brag about.

Yet Southwest Virginia’s splendor can be found in other parcels, special tracts managed primarily for their flora and fauna — state-designated Wildlife Management Areas, which open a whole new set of outdoor adventures.

Use our guide to the Wildlife Management Areas in Southwest Virginia to find the ideal place for your outdoor adventure, plus things to do nearby. Consult the overview for tips about visiting a WMA. 

Big Tumbling Creek Falls

Big Tumbling Creek Falls, Clinch Mountain WMA

Photo Credit: Sunshine Sol @withsunshinesol

What are Virginia Wildlife Management Areas? 

Wildlife Management Areas are managed by the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources in order to enhance habitats for the state's undomesticated flora and fauna. They can be great places for outdoor recreation. Most are open for some type of hunting, fishing, birding, and hiking. 

Because of their central mission, you'll find WMAs to be more primitive than places like state parks. Don't expect to find visitor centers, campgrounds, or restrooms at your typical WMA. 

What to Know Before You Go

  • You'll need a pass to enter. All WMAs require either a daily access permit, a valid Virginia hunting or fishing license, a valid Virginia boat registration, a Restore the Wild membership, or a daily access pass to access the property. All are available for purchase on the Go Outdoors Virginia app and website.
  • DWR camping authorizations are mandatory for campers. You will need to obtain a free customer ID number if you have not previously registered with DWR’s Go Outdoors Virginia site. Camping authorizations are located under “Special Licenses” in the online license catalog. There is currently no charge for camping, but you must also have an access permit, fishing or hunting license, or boat registration to camp. Camping on WMAs is primitive, with no designated sites or facilities of any kind.
  • Know where you're going. Download the map for each WMA you plan to visit to help you when on the ground.
  • Leave no trace. Pack out your trash while visiting WMAs. 

Consulting the Go Outdoors Virginia app and website will be a great help to you when planning a WMA outing. The free app can help you secure permits and passes, plus let you browse nearby outdoor recreation opportunities. 

To help you get started, here are four rewarding WMAs in Southwest Virginia that you can discover, along with nearby destinations to keep the adventure going. 

Clinch Mountain Wildlife Management Area

Clinch Mountain Wildlife Management Area

Clinch Mountain WMA

Photo Credit: Meghan Marchetti @virginiawildlife

Nearest Town: Saltville
Potential Activities: Hiking, primitive camping, paddling, fishing, wildlife viewing
Why Go There: Fish, hike and play along 7 miles of Big Tumbling Creek
What You Need to Know: This is the most biologically diverse WMAs in the state, with elevations ranging over 3,000 feet in one place!

Occupying long ridges divided by prototype mountain streams, Clinch Mountain Wildlife Management Area is one of the largest WMAs, at 25,000+ acres, as well as one of the most beautiful getaways in Southwest Virginia.

Big Tumbling Creek is the centerpiece of the scenic arrangement, and there’s a reason Big Tumbling Creek got its name—spilling in fall after fall, divided by deep, chilly pools, framed by rising hardwoods. The stream is a fine trout fishery, but is also ideal for wading, skipping rocks from a gravel bar, or just being “out there.”

Mountain-rimmed 340-acre Laurel Bed Lake is the other primary body of water, perfect for reflecting autumn colors from its surface. Or fish from its pier or kayak around its natural shoreline. Wildlife lovers like to visit this WMA, with a diversity of habitat that comes along with elevation ranges from 1,600 to 4,700 feet. Turkey and bear are regularly spotted.

A series of gated roads, good for hiking or mountain biking, lead all over the WMA. Head up Panther Lick Cove, coursing through highland meadows to earn a big view from atop Whiterock Mountain.

More Outdoor Destinations Near Clinch Mountain WMA

  • Saltville Well Fields in Saltville: Explore this park's marshes and remember to bring your binoculars — they're prime for birding. 
  • Buller Fish Hatchery near Adwolfe: Tour the grounds, set in the valley of the South Fork Holston River, then make your way to the South Fork Gorge Trail, one of my favorite unsung hikes in Southwest Virginia.
  • Beartree Recreation Area in Konnarock: Get off the grid and enjoy a swim or a paddle in this mountain lake, or a hike or mountain bike around it. 

Stewarts Creek Wildlife Management Area

Stewarts Creek Wildlife Management Area

Stewarts Creek WMA

Photo Credit: Meghan Marchetti @virginiawildlife

Nearest Town: Lambsburg
Potential Activities: Wildlife viewing, hiking, primitive camping, trout fishing
Why Go There: Visit remote mountain streams flowing off Blue Ridge Parkway
What You Need to Know: Native brook trout thrive in the WMA’s cold, clear mountain streams

Smaller in size than most Virginia WMAs, Stewarts Creek Wildlife Management Area is a lesser-visited pleasant surprise located just off the Blue Ridge Parkway, down toward the North Carolina border. Stewarts Creek is undoubtedly the centerpiece of this WMA, with its bigger-than-average pools, striking cascades and larger-than-average native brook trout. It’s a mountain stream-lover’s joy and bliss.

A gated road, open only to hikers and equestrians, follows Stewarts Creek upstream to where it divides into two branches. Most visitors turn around here. Stewarts Creek is a productive spring wildflower area. Lake June/early July will reveal streamside rhododendron blooms by the thousands. A secondary access on the north side of the WMA off Commodore Lane leads up through managed clearings and an old cemetery. The WMA can be your surprise escape from the busier Blue Ridge Parkway.

More Outdoor Destinations Near Stewarts Creek WMA

  • New River Trail State Park in Galax: Start exploring on one end of this linear state park, home to views of the upper New River, scenic waterfalls, and streamside history.
  • New River Trail State Park near Fort Chiswell: Make Foster Falls your base camp for exploring, where you can pitch your tent near historical buildings and rushing rapids. 
  • New River Boating Accesses near Fries: Take off from Byllesby Pool, Ivanhoe, Riverside, and more with gear and guidance from a local outfitter. 

Hidden Valley Wildlife Management Area

Hidden Valley Wildlife Management Area

Hidden Valley WMA

Photo Credit: Preston Ball

Nearest Town: Abingdon
Potential Activities: Primitive camping, paddling, hiking, fishing, climbing
Why Go There: Enjoy a remote mountain lake at 3,600 feet in elevation
What You Need to Know: Trail system links to Channels State Forest

Discover the Hidden Valley Wildlife Management Area lying in a bowl atop Clinch Mountain. The setting is fine, and Hidden Valley is waiting to be discovered. Escape from summer’s heat or come for first-rate fall color viewing.

Start at Low Gap, then hike along the rim of Brumley Mountain, linking to Channels State Forest via the Brumley Mountain Trail. A great vista from a rock outcrop awaits 1.5 miles into the hike. A boat launch makes it easy to paddle the montane shores of Hidden Lake where you can sightsee or fish for warmwater species such as bass.

The WMA also sports a sandstone cliff line rising about 70 feet, attracting climbers who have mapped some 200 routes. Hidden Valley WMA truly gives you a chance to find an undiscovered piece of Virginia.

More Outdoor Destinations Near Hidden Valley WMA

  • Washington County Park near Abingdon: Set on a peninsula of South Holston Lake, there's room for powerboating, waterskiing, fishing, and more outdoor rec opportunities. 
  • Clinch River Boating Accesses near Saint Paul: Set off from Saint Paul, Carterton, Blackford Bridge, or Cleveland for a day on the water. 
  • Clinch River State Park near Saint Paul: The Sugar Hill Unit of Clinch River State Park delivers to visitors over eight miles of well-laid out trails.

Crooked Creek Wildlife Management Area

Crooked Creek Wildlife Management Area

Crooked Creek WMA

Photo Credit: Meghan Marchetti @virginiawildlife

Nearest Town: Pipers Gap
Potential Activities: Nature study, primitive camping, hiking, fishing
Why Go There: Explore a mountain stream valley dotted with old homesites and clearings
What You Need to Know: The WMA has easy access to Hillsville and I-77 for supplies and dining opportunities

If you like clear mountain streams overlooked by most outdoor enthusiasts, then Crooked Creek Wildlife Management Area is the place for you. The valley was partly settled, with mostly small subsistence farms, resulting in partial clearings to go with the ample woods also found among the hills and hollows of this nearly 2,000-acre WMA.

The melding of open and wooded habitats adds biodiversity to Crooked Creek. Gated doubletracks travel along upper Crooked Creek as well as East Fork Crooked Creek, making for fun and solitude-filled mountain biking, hiking and backcountry fishing opportunities. An open road, Forest Oak Road, runs along the lower part of the creek, enabling easy stream access for waterplay or vying for stocked rainbow trout.

Start off VA 683 and walk down Crooked Creek for some quality wildflower action during spring, viewing from trillium to dwarf crested iris. This is where brook trout are more likely to be found as well. In summer the stream vales will be dotted pink with rosebay rhododendron blooms.

More Outdoor Destinations Near Crooked Creek WMA

  • Big Survey Wildlife Management Area near Wytheville: Ideal for hikers, gaze down on Wytheville after completing the 1.4-mile trek on the High Rocks Trail. 
  • Matthews State Forest near Galax: Go back in time at the Matthews Farm Museum in addition to exploring the trails. 
  • Gatewood Reservoir in Pulaski: Camp, glamp, or just spend the day enjoying the welcoming atmosphere at this lakefront area.


Remember to consult Go Outdoors Virginia before visiting a Wildlife Management Area, and check out more ways to experience Virginia wildlife.