meetup groups?

Anyone ever go to one? There is a local group here that meets once in awhile to shoot at different locations. I have never done anything like this, but really need work and practice with my lighting (and shooting someone other than my two year olds) and would like to join some kind of photography group.
My fear is that all the members are men, which in my younger years would be a blast but now I am paranoid that it is a fake group (they really havent gotten established) and I might be getting more than I asked for. Is there any site that list legitimate groups in your area ? I am in a small town in VA, so there isnt a whole lot of pickin'.
If you have any info on this, please send it my way. I would love to know if I am just being over paranoid, or just ignorant.
Thanks for your time

There are lots of legit photo groups around. There are close to a dozen groups to choose from here in the NC mountains...plus a bunch of us from POTN that get together on occasion. What part of VA are you in?

Woolburr wrote in post #5399745
There are lots of legit photo groups around. There are close to a dozen groups to choose from here in the NC mountains...plus a bunch of us from POTN that get together on occasion. What part of VA are you in?

I am in King George

Looks like Fredericksburg or Dalghren are the only spots in close proximity that might have active groups beyond the one you mentioned. Do they have a website? Even the small groups around here have one or two page sites with basic info on them.