The best camping near Colonial National Historical Park

This park on the coast of Virginia operates as a historical bookend to the Colonial period. On one side you have Jamestown. It was the first permanent English settlement in the New World. On the other side, there's Yorktown. That's where the British surrendered and gave up their 13 colonies to a scrappy Continental Army. It was led by a guy named George Washington.

At Jamestown, see reconstructions of the three ships that brought Capt. John Smith and 103 other men to the New World. (Cue Disney music.) There's also a museum that houses more than 2 million artifacts found on the site. People in period costume bring this landmark to life. Luckily, the swamp and mosquitoes left centuries ago.

A restored red brick church at the Jamestown site is the most prominent original building there. The church is a testament to the lasting power the colony that started in April of 1607.

Yorktown sits 20 miles to the east on the same peninsula. On this plain, Gen. Washington accepted the surrender of British Lt. Gen. Charles Cornwallis. That happened on Oct. 19, 1781. The French helped Washington's Continental Army by blockading the harbor to prevent the British from escaping. Cornwallis had no choice but to surrender. Cannons, memorials and wooden fences mark important places on the battlefield.

Six years after Yorktown, the U.S. Constitution ushered in a new era for America. This historic park covers two major events set 174 years and just 20 miles apart. It's as if Fate smiled on Virginia twice.

In between both sites, there's a place called Colonial Williamsburg. It's a fantastic living history museum, only Williamsburg is an entire village. Pick a great campsite, because you might need to stay a while amid all of this history.