Best Campgrounds near Cumberland, MD

This is a great place with a lot to offer. We stayed in the campground with about 30 other families from our church. Everyone had a great time playing in the pond, kayaking, hiking around, and the giant bon fire put on by the owners was impressive. I would love to come back!

We are in Ash loop lot 22. Unfortunately yesterday a storm knocked out the power supply for the campground but otherwise great service

If you are looking for a place to stay so you can visit all the local sites. This is perfect. You can get to everything with ease.

Gorgeous spot just off the trail and 50 meters from the Potomac

We absolutely love camping here. There are numerous locations to choose from. I wouldn't recommend taking a camper larger than 26 ft in some of the locations.

General: Smallish (68 sites) campground near Jennings Randolph Lake, which is not directly accessible from the campground (you need to drive there). Roads and camper pads are all paved, and the sites are in two loops– the Front Loop (Sites 1-30) and the Back Loop (Sites 31-68). All sites have electric hookups, and have a picnic table, fire ring, and lantern ring. There are multiple hosts in each loop. 

Site Quality: All camper pads are paved, and most appeared to be level. They are of varying lengths with 53, 55, and 64-68 having the longest pads. The sites are generous in size and are spaced a reasonable distance apart; there are varying degrees of foliage to provide privacy between sites. You would be hard-pressed to pick a “bad” site; perhaps Site 31 would be the least desirable as it is near the intersection of the two loops. 

Bath/Shower: There is a bathhouse in each loop; although the building itself appeared somewhat dated, the toilets and sinks have been updated to be automatic. The showers looked a bit sketchy, but I didn’t use them. 

Activities/Amenities: There are several short-distance hiking trails; the trail heads are very well marked and, once on the trail, the blazes are very easy to spot. I hiked the Sunset Trail, and it was shorter than advertised but the bench swing at the overlook was a very nice surprise. There is also archery, basketball, fishing, and a boat launch for the small lake. There is a playground in each loop. There is also a camper store in the Front loop that sells ice, firewood, and basic sundries; it is run by volunteers, so the hours are different each day based on availability. Kalbaugh Pond is ADA-accessible for catch-and-release fishing. Shaw Beach has swimming access. There was movie night on Saturday night and a ranger talk on Saturday morning. 

We generally shy away from campgrounds on weekends, especially in the summer months but surprisingly, the campground was only about ¾ full on a Friday in June. The volunteers make this park shine. We were greeted by Alma, who was very welcoming and said all of the volunteers are proud of “their” little campground. Of note: We approached the campground from the southeast through the town of Keyser. DO NOT do this if you have a large RV. There are multiple signs saying that the road was not safe for large trucks; although our 18-foot camper van had no problems, the road was narrow, hilly, and winding.

General: Large campground in four loops with a variety of sites ranging from tent-only, 30-amp electric, 50-amp electric, and 30/50-amp electric, along with eight camper cabins. 

Site Quality: All sites are gravel; most appeared level, but some did not. All sites are wooded but some have more separation than others. Our site backed up to the creek but surprisingly, there was not a lot of water flowing in the spring, 

Bath/Shower house: Basic and dated, but reasonably clean. Did not use the shower.

Activities/Amenities: Many include fishing, swimming, boating, bicycling, hiking, geocaching, and hunting. The lake is separate from the campground, but it is less than a mile away and a reasonable distance walk. There is also a playground, volleyball, shuffleboard, and a large picnic area at the end of one of the loops. Bike and boat rentals are available in the summer season; the season was set to open the day after we left so aside from hiking, we could not avail ourselves of any of the activities (and my husband had a foot injury so even hiking was out for us). There are also laundry facilities, but I did not check these out. 

We were surprised that just a few days before Memorial Day, only a handful of sites were occupied. We’ve been very impressed by the pristine conditions of many Pennsylvania state parks, but this one had a more rustic feel and had not been modernized. Fleeting cell at best on Verizon.

My family and I have gone camping all over Maryland, West Virginia and Pennsylvania, but had never visited Green Ridge before this weekend.  My son's and I decided to do some cold weather tent camping and to explore the Pawpaw tunnel while doing some hiking.  Greenridge Forest didn't disappoint.  I've added it onto my go to spots for Maryland but not one that I'll bring my wife to (true primitive camping).

The Pros:  

The forest is beautiful, the campsites are large and very spaced out, firewood is bountiful, the area feels very remote.  From our campsite, we could not see or hear the next closest campsite, in fact, I'm not exactly sure where it even was.  All of the sites are primitive sites with only a fire circle and a picknick table.  Many of the back sites require high clearance,  4 wheel drive vehicles to get to. (These can be a cons too). 

The Cons:

The area is beautiful,  but it is a working forest so don't expect a ton of old growth trees and some areas will have been freshly logged.   All of the campsites are primitive sites, and some require high clearance and 4 wheel drive in order to get to the site.    You can't make a reservation in advance, you have to take a chance that there will be a site available.   There are no latrines, bathrooms or showers anywhere to be found and the closest store is 30 minutes away. 

My boys and I all loved it there even though it was only 14 degrees at night.  We will definingly return.

Not bad for a long or short trip. Only problem is you need to book in person.

Tented a cabin for two nights to hide from bad weather. Cabin had electric service, a microwave, electric heater, refrigerator and lights. The campground had no other guests during our stay.

The campground is long and narrow bordering on Abrams Creek. We took daily walks to the end of the campground and enjoyed the scenic views.

The campsite has port-a-potties for each cabin and for groups of campsites. Water was clean and had no oder.

The only concern noted was the bath house. It was poorly lighted and made of what looked like left over materials.

The gentleman that checked us in was a wealth of knowledge. He told us all about the campground and told us they offer an outdoor shower. Their were two outdoor shower stalls which were shower curtains next to the shower house.

Sites are located less than a mile from the paved highway. We found 5 spots just off the road. All were easily accessible by cat or with a small teardrop trailer.

True boondocking, haul it in, pack it out. Evidence of a cat hole in the site we picked

Sites were quiet at night. Some traffic related to logging activity. Looks like a popular weekend camp spot for locals.

We camped during the week and had nobody else camping on weekdays.

This park has many trails but mostly there more rapids to enjoy. The trails however are of a higher class of terrain though they aren’t necessarily difficult. There is much to see. The most unique part about this place is the small town in the middle of it. The shops are all mom and pop made from scratch food and hand made jewelry and clothing. There is a small pub right up the street and the entire town has an amazing view of the river just across the parking lot, which you can swim in up to a point. Ohiopyle is an amazing place, I have visited it many times and I plan to visit many times in the future.

We've stayed here at least a half-dozen times with a popup. The smaller B loop is nicer, but no electricity. Pets allowed only on a certain portion of the A loop. The bathrooms are clean, the lake is small but pretty, and the hikes around the lake, and up the mountain on the ridge, are as easy or as challenging as you want. Cell service is pretty much nonexistent so you definitely get unplugged.

Nice little park& campground. Very Clean, cozy and quiet, except for the road noise. Right off Route 31, minutes from I-76 makes it a very convenient place to stop along your travels. Bathrooms are clean, grounds very well kept. The park area is lovely, but the lake is currently very low. Trout stocked but I wouldn’t count on fishing here right now. Short walking trail along a creek. Very lovely cabins and cabin areas and tent sites. RV sites are small but adequate and most are pull though. Honestly some of the best attention and details we’ve seen at a state park. We would stay again.  We stayed at site 12E and site 1E.  Be aware that site 1E is not very level on pull through gravel surface.

We stayed in the smaller camping area B, which we enjoyed. Even on Labor Day weekend, it didn’t feel busy because of how few sites are in this section. Our site was level and sizable. The bathroom was clean and there was access to the very pleasant hiking trail going around the lake. We had no cell service with Cricket or Verizon.