The best GROUP camping near
Dowden Terrace , VIRGINIA

Cabin 24 is a 2BR/1BA cinderblock cabin with waterfront views and large yard space. One room has two bunk beds, dresser, shelving, a lamp, and two night stands. Other room has a queen bed, shelving, a lamp, night stand, and dresser. Fireplace and screened in porch are lovely. There’s a fire pit and picnic table, and plenty of parking space.

More details on the cabin to follow!

It is a really nice park but the weekends get extremely busy. The beach area especially. You might be able to have some space to yourself at the fossil beach (nice sharks teeth) but that can get busy too.

Surprisingly nice campground in a city. Lots of things for kids to do and access to bike trails outside of the complex.

This is a small facility that is well maintained. The staff is amazing. The showers are clean/hot and the playground is in very good condition.

If the campground had better wifi and cable it would get five stars.

Diverse friendly RV campers!

7 or 8 tent pads. Wood for sale at the site for $4 honor system. Porta pottie right next to wood pile. You’re not supposed to setup anything outside of the “tent pads”. I had a hammock hung and three rangers saw but didn’t say anything. Over all easy 2.5 mile hike on groomed gravel trails. No water on site and no reasonable source to filter water from so be prepared.

River view lots of room port pot, fire ring and grill. Picnic table water pump. Non pot water.

Lots of room under trees two picnic tables and fire pits. River view. Water pump and port John.

Site Details: We stayed on site#13 in the Rock Run camping area. The site was very level, nicely shaded, and positioned a short distance from the bath house. There was also a water spigot located right at the entrance of the site. However, the best feature in my opinion was the sort of “hidden” clearing in the woods right behind us, with a group of boulders for sitting. My kids loved playing down there. I don’t think there is a bad site in this camping loop, but I think we got the best electric site. It was a tad on the short side though, so I wouldn’t book if your rig is longer than 25’. 

Facilities/Overall Park: This is a very peaceful and heavily wooded park, with minimal but perfectly adequate facilities. The bath house was large and well-maintained, and the outside dish sink even had a garbage disposal. There are a decent selection of trails for all activity levels, and there is a facility called the Tea Room that is very popular for events(though we didn’t visit it while we were there). No large playgrounds, but we did see a few bare-bones swing sets scattered throughout the park. 

Surrounding Area/Attractions: This park is in a great location for outdoor enthusiasts. Cunningham Falls, Catoctin Mountain, and Greenbrier SP(with AT access) are all a short drive away. The nearby cities of Frederick and Middletown offer all modern conveniences. 

Overall, we really liked this park, and it is now on our “short list” of favorite MD state parks. If you can’t find a site at the nearby, more well-known parks like Greenbrier and Cunningham, this would be a great alternative. Heck, even if the others aren’t booked up, you still might want to opt for Gambrill anyway if you’re looking for a more peaceful, secluded camping experience.

BR park is absolutely beautiful. So much to do and centered around many historical sites. It’s a gem

Stayed here for 2w while visiting friends in Alexandria. Took me 25-30m to get there so you are far away from bustle of city but not so far that going in to enjoy breakfast or the sights is a feat. Nice and quiet here during winter more so during week than weekends.