First, let me say that I am a beach girl through and through. I only went on a weekend trip to Elk Springs because my husband and father-in-law had already planned a weekend of fly-fishing and invited everyone (mother-in-law, me and two kids - ages 6 and 2) to come.
We stayed in a cabin on it's own little island. It was fantastic! The scenery was beautiful, the sound of the water was relaxing and the employees were SUPER friendly! My children and I were all over the place - looking for salamanders, weird mushrooms, crayfish, tiny fish, etc. We spent hours enjoying nature while "the men" fished.
You can buy food to feed the fish in the fly-shop - you can only feed the fish in a specific area - and they are HUGE! The kids had a blast doing that. I'm sure those fish ate more during that weekend than they did all month! =)
There are also stocked ponds that you can fish in, you have to keep what you catch but you don't have to use a fly rod. My 2 year old caught some really huge trout on her Barbie fishing rod! (I may have also caught some using the Barbie rod...) lol.
I did get to put my waders on and hang out with my husband during one of his fishing outings. The water was beautiful - there is no trash anywhere! I spent more time looking at the flowers and butterflies and other critters than paying attention to him fishing - but I really enjoyed being able to walk along with him while he did his thing.
I saw another review that mentioned dirty conditions and dead bugs everywhere... I did not see any of that. I don't remember seeing any dead bugs or live ones for that matter inside our cabin or the lodge (we went up there to watch tv and play). Also, our cabin was super clean. I have zero complaints about our stay and would go back anytime!
Oddly enough, my husband, father-in-law, sister-in-law and a few others are there right now. They said the fishing's great, there's snow on the ground and they have a campfire roaring!

We LOVED Elk Springs Resort!
After planning a family road trip to DC (with a 15 & 11-yr old), I was looking for a place where I could relax and the family could fish for a few days. I happened upon the Elk Springs website and thought we’d give it a shot.
What a surprise! Elk Springs is literally in the middle of nowhere- at least a solid hour of driving country mountain roads up through the clouds and beautiful scenery! (Caution: Closely follow the directions the resort provides. Our navigation system almost sent us off the side of the mountain, and the roads are poorly marked.)

LODGING- We stayed in the Broadwater Lodge- a beautiful log building with a huge, shared great room that had a television, satellite, pool table, and several sofas and dining tables. There are two large suites upstairs, and four regular rooms downstairs. We were the only guests during our stay, so we had the entire lodge to ourselves, but I can imagine the massive community area would still be comfortable at full capacity.
The four of us were more than comfortable sharing the Western Room downstairs. Our room had a comfy queen bed, a pullout for the kids, a large bathroom with a Jacuzzi tub, a small refrigerator w/freezer, a microwave, and a television with satellite. Despite a previous review, the lodge and our room smelled clean and fresh- not musty, like you’d expect in the mountains. I did not see ONE bug (dead or alive) inside during our entire stay. The linens were soft and comfortable. We had plenty of towels and pillows. There’s even a brand new washer and dryer next to the kitchen, (which came in very handy after a day of fishing). There’s also a huge deck area with plenty of tables, lounge chairs, and places to hang and dry your waders and fishing gear. The resort also has several stand-alone cabins available, but I didn’t have the opportunity to check out their amenities.

DINING- As I said the resort is in the middle of nowhere, so the dining options consist of eating in the fly shop or cooking for yourself in the lodge. We did not eat at the fly shop, but every time we walked in there, it smelled delicious! The menu consisted of typical fishing resort fare and was bit expensive for traveling with the kids- sub sandwich $8.50, Spaghetti dinner $15.00, BBQ chicken $20.00. (You’ll need to make reservations if you plan to eat at the fly shop.) We chose to stop by the grocery store on our way, and cook for ourselves in the lodge. The shared kitchen had a full-size refrigerator, electric stove, dishwasher, and was stocked with just about anything you’d need to cook a simple meal (plates, cups, utensils, baking sheets, etc). There’s also a newer BBQ grill on the deck. We made burgers one night, and grilled our freshly caught trout the next. Wonderful!

FISHING- My family loves to fish, and Elk Springs offers several fishing options. There are stocked ponds about 50 yards from the lodge. If you cast a line in the water, you will hook a fish immediately. You have to keep what you catch and pay $3 per pound. My kids LOVED this!
On the other side of the stocked ponds is the Elk River and adjoining spring fed streams. A fisherman’s dream! You can hire a guide for an hour or day, grab your gear and fish on your own, or drive 5 minutes upstream to find your own sweet spot. Everywhere we were (except the stocked ponds) was catch-and-release fishing, and we used rod and reel. Of the five other people we saw (over the two days), four were fly-fishing. The water was a bit murky because of all of the recent rain, but I can imagine the fishing is excellent in good weather with the shallow, cool water and small rapids. (Think: the movie "A River Runs Through It".)

SCENERY- The entire resort looks like a post card. Everywhere you look, there’s another beautiful, undisturbed view of nature. The streams and riverbanks are clean and pristine. There were flocks of yellow and bright blue butterflies, and tons of wildlife all over the place. I completely understand how the new resort owners fell in love!

STAFF- The fly shop girl, the housekeeper, and the guy who weighed our fish were all incredibly friendly and helpful. (Ack! I didn’t catch any of their names, but they were there if you needed something, and otherwise left you alone.) This was awesome after a week of crowds in DC, and really felt like a home away from home.

To sum up, if Elk Springs Resort wasn’t 800 miles from our house, we would be back every summer. It’s just perfect- for families, couples, and fishing buddies. (CHECK OUT MY 2ND REVIEW FOR MORE PICTURES!)

We have stayed at Elk Springs more than 12 times in the past year, including Oct. when there was a problem with flies. THe color of the building causes the flies to come to lay eggs in the pitched roof, so the problem was in the upstairs rooms.
We have always enjoyed our stay. The staff is great! The fishing is great!. It is nice to just relax (I don't fish) and it would make a great yoga retreat. It is so quiet you can hear the river flowing day and night. The price is reasonable. There is tv in the lodge and some of the rooms, but who wants tv? I like the quiet. There is shopping and a Branson show in nearby Elkins. The Petry's. Ohio

First, I must say that this is the first time I've ever reviewed anything online. I felt so strongly about this place it was the first thing I wanted to do when I got home!

My father and I stumbled upon this gem on the internet and made a reservation in the lodge for a weekend father-daughter fishing getaway. We had an incredible experience and can't wait to go back next year!

The lodge seemed brand new, with a beautifully finished wood interior, spacious well kept rooms and a nice, deep bathtub jacuzzi in each room. We didn't see any bugs inside at all. They had a nice kitchen there in the lodge you could use, satellite TV and the managers said they are working on getting wireless up there. Overall, the lodge made me feel very luxurious but amidst a rustic atmosphere; we were suprised to find such a nice facility so far away from main towns and roads!

The fishing at Elk Springs was beyond excellent. I caught 8 fish in a 24 hour period, and I'm totally a beginner! You could see all these huge trout just laying there in the water, and they haven't been stocked in over 50 years. My dad had never seen anything quite like it and he's fished all over the world. The fishing there is apparently just as good year round because the water flows right out from underground limestone caves where the temperature is always the same and the alkali environment is good for the fish. They have 2 miles of stream, and we found that the farther we got away from the lodge, the easier the fish were to catch, but that might have just been our experience.

What really made our experience at Elk Springs stand out was the genuine and kind folks that run the place. As well as the other staff we found Amanda and John (managers), and Dave (guide) to be endlessly helpful, flexible and welcoming. It was clear that they really love what they do, and it shows in how they take care of guests. Dave and John were gave us lots of great advice on the fishing, Amanda entertained us with stories over home cooked meals and gladly answered all of our questions about the region. I really felt comfortable and cared for amid their hospitality, and appreciated how they really took the time to get to know us.