LM: False Cape & Back Bay Refuge (25 miles)

Expect beachside views of the Atlantic Ocean and lots of great wildlife photo opportunities on this backpacking trip through Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge and False Cape State Park. False Cape SP is distinctive in that it can only be accessed via Back Bay National Wildlife Refuge by foot, bicycle, or boat. No car campers in this park!

Saturday we'll park at Little Island City Park, hike south along the road into the Refuge (the first mile of Refuge beach is closed to the public), then take the West Dike Trail through the Refuge to take in the nature on the Bay side, eventually crossing into False Cape SP. Time allowing we'll check out the VA/NC boundary marker before looping back around on the ocean side toward our campsite.

On Sunday we'll make our way back north, taking in some more views of the ocean and then exploring the East Dike Trail before retracing our steps on the road back to Little Island Park.

Caltopo of planned route: https://caltopo.com/m/H49KU4T
Map of Back Bay Refuge: https://www.fws.gov/sites/default/files/documents/BBNWR_Visitor%20Map%28Accessibility-Checked%29.pdf
Map of False Cape SP: https://www.dcr.virginia.gov/state-parks/document/data/trail-guide-falsecape.pdf

I have reserved campsite 40, which is located on the Bay side. My reservation is capped at 6 people. If there's sufficient interest, we will look to snag another nearby site availability allowing.

If you are an "applicant" (meaning that this is your first DCUL trip), please send James your gear list ASAP. For an explanation of DC DUL membership ranks: https://dculbackpacking.com/about/membership/

Waiver: By RSVPing to this trip or any other DC UL trip, you agree to these guidelines and to DC UL's waiver liability terms: https://dculbackpacking.com/about/liability-waiver/

COVID-19 policy: https://dculbackpacking.com/about/covid-19-guidelines/
Dues: Members and above, don't forget to pay your annual dues. You can check if you need to pay dues by seeing if the current year is listed next to your name in your DC UL profile. Applicants do not need to pay dues for their first trip. To pay your dues via PayPal, use this link: https://www.paypal.com/paypalme/JenniferAdach/15 (10 annual dues plus a 5 suggested donation to City Kids Wilderness Project.)
Carpool: As per our carpool policy, riders should pay drivers 0.10/mile. Passengers should anticipate paying around 42 for this trip.