What a good HAWT time!…read more We came on a Saturday, mid August, and had a good, relaxing time. Besides the heat trying to take me out, I had absolutely no complaints. Front Royal Outdoors had their logistics in order from start (parking) to the brief bus ride, all the way to finish (exit). Our party all opted to do the deluxe tube (approximately $41 for the entire experience) that offered more support (a place to hold your beverage of choice) and the possibility to maximize on one's lazy river experience. As an FYI, every "order" of course came with a life jacket. The river itself was calm and effortless, for the most part. I think our experience was a little over 3.5 hours. My only recommendation would be to hydrate and find a time/date where the heat is not doing what it does best.... drains ya.

We showed up too late to tube the river on a mid-summer Saturday to find the hustle and bustle of a…read morebunch of college age and high school teens making plans for the evening while running a well organized and efficient operation of properly securing the days equipment and getting counts and such to firm up the paper work for the day. Just by this alone, this place has there shi1 together and that's what's important on missions like river rafting basically unsupervised. How slow or fast the river is they cannot control but everything else looks as if it is taken care of. Good job to all!

Awesome guys! Super helpful and great launch site. Enjoyed a 2-hr Kayak rental…read more The location is perfect and the equipment is really in great shape. I will certainly be returning, thanks!

Booked the wrong date for paddle boarding a week and a half ago and immediately looked into the…read morecancelation policy. It says if you contact them within 24 hrs they will reschedule or refund your money. I called half a dozen times, left voice-mails, emailed them, FB message and they just never responded. Today they sent me an automated email thanking me for paddling with them and to leave a review. Not hopeful I will get my 67 bucks back but can maybe warn others out there.

Realllyyyy funnnn!!! It was my first time snow tubing. It was such a great family bonding activity…read more They have this conveyor belt thing that takes you up so you can slide down and repeat. There's a restaurant on site and bathrooms. You can book the fire place and bring items to toast smores. Very enjoyable!

We stayed on the campsite. Initially we had a site in the overflow lot, but staff reached out to us…read moreprior to check-in to let us know other spots had become available and they would upgrade us free of charge. Staff was friendly and helpful in person and over the phone, the campsite was in good condition, and the view from our site was perfect. Will be staying at the site again, highly recommend.

I hadn't been in awhile and this place is as Yelp worthy as ever on a warm fall day. It's a must…read moredo if you like anything outdoors. They have a giant lake for fishing, you can fish from the dock areas or bring or rent a non-gas powered boat. You can also rent a canoe or paddle boat but all the rental stuff is only open during spring/summer They have a 5 mile trail along the lake that's a nice walk but can be crowded when the weather is good and pay attention since the trail entrance isn't marked as clearly as it could be. They also have mini golf, a train, playgrounds and some other stuff. It's free for Fairfax County residents (glad we're getting something for our taxes) and $10 for everyone else but of course the rentals, mini golf, train, etc. cost extra. There's a decent amount of parking but go early on a nice day or you might have a hard time grabbing a spot. I'll come back here for sure to walk the trail and maybe do a little fishing or rent a boat

Came here for a morning run. There is nothing like an outdoor run. The lake is beautiful and its…read moreabout a 4.5 mile loop. I did two loops and was drained afterwards. Got a glimpse of some cool birds and a deer. Highly recommend just for a stroll.

We were super happy with DownRiver. We took a whole group of Boy Scouts out over the weekend in…read morecanoes. John and the team were easy to work with, super friendly, and very helpful. They were right on time for the pickup, gave the Scouts a great safety brief, and made sure everyone had fun. Highly recommended, and we will certainly be going back next year. One tip- if the river is below a 2.0 on the 'gauge' have them drop you at mile 13, otherwise you fight the rock ridges from mile 10 down to 13. It was do-able, but we all got a work out for sure.

We took the two-day trip with camping at Compton site. Online reservations was a breeze the staff…read moreis amazing. They are friendly and helpful, answering any questions and making sure we were informed about shuttle times, river conditions, and any weather precautions. Special shout out to Alex, who went way above and beyond in helping us on the first leg of our trip. He really made our experience more enjoyable! The only "negative" would be about the road condition into the camp site. The poor condition of the road beyond the gated entry really needs attention.

Kyacking here over the summer was amazing. The water clear and clean. Never crowded and an…read moreenjoyable day with beautiful views!

This is the largest lake in Montgomery County. It is one of my favorite places to go out on my…read morekayak. Being as large as it is, there is quite a lot to see. There are two canoe trails (suitable for kayaks as well!). The shoreline is full of interesting birds. Down at the spot where Ten Mile Creek flows into the lake, I have floated right over the top of some enormous snapping turtles. During the summer, this is quite a popular place to be. There is a concession that rents boats for only $8 per hour. But the lake is big enough that it does not seem crowded. My boat is a bit tight for two people, so I often use this concession when I want to take a friend with me. Boaters should beware and make certain they have a permit attached to their boat. You can get a daily permit for $5 at either of the two boat launch sites. You can buy a seasonal pass at the visitor's center. Also beware if you own an inflatable boat (like I do). Your boat must have at least three separate air chambers or it is not allowed on the lake. This lake has probably become my favorite paddling spot. Unlike Clopper Lake, I have not yet found this lake's secret turtle hiding spot. But the sheer size of the lake makes it hard to get tired of Little Seneca Lake.

Stand Up Paddleboard (SUP) is their expertise! I discovered Surf Reston through a friend of mine…read more She had taken SUP with them and had said great things. My first experience with SUP was at the Georgetown marina. There was no lesson. I had gone with friends who had SUP'd but it was new to me. It was scary and the Potomac is a beast to paddle. When I read and saw the Facebook photos of the classes and events run by Surf Reston, I knew this place would take care of me. Sign up was easy, it's all done online. Before I signed up, I had a few questions. I texted them and received responses right away! Once we arrived we saw the staff working diligently to get all the boards and life jackets together. We got a very detailed land lesson(about 10-15 min) and then the rest of the time was on the water. Steve and Sabrina were awesome. They know their stuff. My main issue is getting from the knee position to the Stand Up position. They had a few helpful tricks and then I was standing! They take lots of photos and sent them to us the very same day. The location is one of the Reston Lakes. We were on Lake Newport. It was very calm and we had the lake to ourselves. Once on there water we were free to paddle on our own. Steve and Sabrina were always there if we needed anything. Everything from questions, to registration to event was perfect. They offer group discounts so ask about it. If you are curious about SUP, then this is the place to try it out!

I don't think they exist. Their website is awful, no one called me back after 2 messages, the GOS…read moreis very wrong to find them. Was looking forward to trying this place but I don't think they exist anymore.

Great shuttle service for canoeing and kayaking on The Trough if you're visiting the…read moreRomney/Moorefield area and wanting to float the South Branch of Potomac. Kellan helped with a solo float and again when my kids came for a visit and I took them canoeing. He also gave my son fly fishing lessons that was one of the highlights of his trip. I'm now going to have to buy him an expensive rod and reel! Check out the website for all the thinks Breezewood has to offer. The owner is a wealth of information and knowledge of the area.

We came from Pgh knowing little about this special town and this kayaking/canoeing/fishing outfit…read moreand Kellan totally took care of the 4 of us. He stopped on the way to the launch point for us to get refreshments and gave us his cooler(bigger than ours)! The canoeing river trip was great, afterwords he introduced us to his horses and recommended trails for us to hike the next day.

Came here with a group for kayaking. Only they ran out of kayaks before noon. So some of us had to…read morerent standup paddle boards instead. There is a slightly more expensive pricing for folks not residing in Fairfax, Loudon, Alexandria, or Arlington counties. But they don't really verify...so as long as you put down an address within those counties on your waiver, then you are good to go. See my pics for the pricing as of Aug 2023. The Sat I came, they seemed very short staffed with only two people managing the rental payments and forms and then another 2 manning all the boats/boards. So we pretty much ended up having to launch and bring back our vessels ourselves. They have very limited 2 person kayaks and they require kids under 12 to be in a boat with another adult so be prepared. In addition to kayaks they have jon boats and stand up paddle boards. You can bring your own vessel but there are launch prices. The lake is quite large so 1 hour is still not enough to explore its entirety even if you were powering through. The boat rental process is this: 1) Each person needs to fill out a waiver (just one page), you need to keep the yellow paper on you and return it when you come back. 2) Payments can be done per person or by group and they accept Apple Pay 3) Go down to the dock, hand them your form 4) They will tell you which vessel you can pick and hand you life vests and paddle(s) 5) Go have fun 6) Return the vessel 7) Bring back the yellow form to the rental house Not sure why we need to keep a piece of paper on us while out on the water. I've rented boats in many other places and all they needed was the vessel back. I guess to prevent theft...but they log the number assigned to the vessel on the form prior to you renting so...But at least there isn't an entrance fee to this park and there isn't really much else to do besides activities around the water front. There is a trail that leads to Bull Run, but there isn't say a playground, picnic area, or sports fields. Parking is pretty limited but you can park along the side of the road.

For fishing I can't recommend it. I'm sure the folks who stock it do their best, but the amount of…read morepressure here leads to diminishing returns. You won't find a relaxing oasis. Instead suburbanites fishing it so much, that it is what it is. The waterway is beautiful though. It's a better place to kayak at. The employees here are super nice. There are hiking and bike trails. The hiking ones need improved markings. Thank goodness for some training, as one day recently the markings were off, and led to an unexpected adventure. I do like the biking ones, as they are challenging. It is quite a large park. Tis a shame it's overfished, but it's not the only waterway in the area this is an issue.

Great float down the river . Very relaxing. A few rope swings an rocks to Jump off of for swinging…read more along the way . This place has been here for a while an. It's showing it's age but it's always a good group weekend

Nice to have the boat, canoe, kayak, board rental place on the small lake at Laurel Hill State…read morePark. Staff was nice but in these times of Covid the sanitary procedures needed were not in place. You have to fill out a waiver form and there were a few pens but no where to put the use pens versus pens that had been sanitized. The life vests were sanitized, we were told. Then when you can back in you just put your paddle in a bin without it being sanitized. There was a short line and this is not Hazelbakers fault, but no one was social distancing and most did not have a mask on. Come on people, protect those around you. It was really funny with one guy started sneezing and everyone moved away.