Manor - Cunningham Falls State Park

Cell service doesn’t work, electric hook ups only. This state park is beautiful and off the grid! We love hiking to the falls, swimming in the lake, visiting Misty Meadow farm and creamery, and relaxing! Camp store stocks supplies with limited hours. Bathrooms are clean, enough. Camp hosts are friendly. During peak season, there are nature programs going on.

Real camping in nature! 

Cunningham Falls has a nice set of trails that range from easy to moderate.  The park is kid and dog friendly.  Campsites are a little small and signage could be better, but restrooms are clean and the Rangers are very helpful.

Great Hiking spot

Site was very shaded, and quite secluded. Camping pad was nice and level, although the driveway was slightly sloped. Nice amount of space in between sites. Very short walk to bathhouse. Campground was relatively empty our first night (Thurs), but filled up the next day. Still, heard hardly any noises from our neighbors. Camp hosts were very friendly, and came over to introduce themselves and go over park info shortly after we checked in. Bath house was centrally located. Pretty average as far as cleanliness goes, but everything worked, and the showers were hot. Great recycled tire playground, and awesome nature center w/ turtles and various birds of prey on site in the Manor Area. If you head over to the Houck Area of the park (about a 15-20 min drive), you’ll find the lake, falls, and another campground. The Houck area definitely tends to be more crowded. I can’t speak to the campground, but the lake is nice, and the falls are beautiful. The hike up wasn’t too strenuous, either; my husband, dog, and 5-year-old handled it just fine. Overall, this is a great park. Beautiful, wooded setting, and secluded, spacious sites. Would definitely stay in the Manor area again. Houck area is very nice, but a little too crowded for me, especially with summer traffic to get into the lake area.

Great first family camping trip!

We love going to Cunningham falls annually, however, it books up quickly during peak season! There’s a lake, boating, playgrounds, hike to the falls. So much scenery and nature. The electric “A loop” is paved so it’s great for bike riding. The bathhouse is just a short walk away. The sites are wooden but you can still see your neighbors.

Wonderful state park 

We liked camping here and plan to eventually return. Our experience was rainy, but it was fun regardless. Nice park with hike to the waterfalls, swimming in the lake and playground. Bathroom facilities were fine and clean enough, but not the best of state park facilities I've seen.

Wooded 

We stayed in the Bear Branch Loop of the William Houch Camping Area.  This is a lovely area if you're a beginner camper or just looking for the glamping experience.  The sites are small and not very private but are well defined.  It's very clear where to park, set up the tent etc.  The park itself is very scenic with nice hiking trails and a lake to enjoy.  I was there in the fall so didn't go out on the water but can imagine it would be popular during the warmer months.

Great for Car Camping 

We enjoyed our campsite and the bathrooms were very clean. Only one trail leading out. Ground is all gravel so bring a mat. Also VERY close to highway 15 so we heard traffic and j-breaks and motorcycles all night.

Great staff, nice campground

Loved this campground for the scenery during leaf peeping season. Our site was level and well separated from others, though it was small. Friends joined us and set up a tent next to our RV trailer. We hiked to the falls but with little rain, there was no falls. A very crowded hike with people everywhere. Bath house was a standard state park building. The Colorfest festival is usually the weekend we went which is why we booked this park on that weekend but with covid it was cancelled. 

Peak foliage weekend

Es un lugar muy organizado y limpio, tiene todos los servicios en orden. Personalmente prefiero lugares mas silvestres, pero es un buen lugar para 1 noche.

Buen lugar para acampar una noche.

Campground is beautiful nestled in the hills of Catoctin Mountain. Only 30 minutes north of Frederick. There is a lot of beautiful trails in the area and a man-made lake with two swimming area beaches. The last couple years they have had issues with Alge and have low lake levels. Good for kayaking paddle boarding and small children swimming.￼

Nice campground, Busy lake

Deer Spring Loop is near the top of the mountain. 

This is not a pet friendly loop. 

Site 112 is level, mostly shaded, backs up to the woods and has electric. 

The site is between two cabins. Not a problem except the cabins were empty and the ac was running. Noisy and kind of wasteful. 

There are lots of good hiking trails in the park. It’s a nice walk to the lake. Note that the hike back is 2/3 uphill. 

They sell ice at the camp entrance, which is nice. 

The bathrooms were moderately clean and had plenty of hot water. 

I was not aware that there was a camp host until the third morning as I was readying to leave. I approached another camp to ask a question and they said they were the “camp hosts”. 

Deer Spring Loop

We only booked for one night. But we loved this campground so much that we added an extra night. Very close to Gettysburg (25 mins) and hiking at the falls. Sites were level and shaded. Bathrooms were very clean - and had lots of hooks in the shower room. 

Stayed an extra night! 

Well-maintained camp area offers year-round camping and hiking.  Water is available all year long, but bathhouses are closed off-season.  Portable facilities are available during winter camping.