Elizabeth Furnace Campground

First come first served.  $14, but they had a sign up that said it might be raised to $20 in 2024.   Only 2 America the Beautiful passes include discounts to this campground: Access (handicapped) and Senior.  And I must say, after going all the way up to Wolf Gap (on the other side of I-81) to check out the free USFS campground up there and finding a bunch of unstable homeless people, I was glad to pay to have upkeep and hosts. 

In October (2023) I arrived to EF at 3:30pm and about half of the spots were taken by a mix of tenters and RVs.  The campground is well-cared for, and there were hosts present. 

Please do enjoy the drive to the CG, as it is quite beautiful.  And although the winding road attracts some car & driver types, by nightfall, it was completely quiet.  I slept in my jeep condo and put up a privacy tent because I am tired of campground bathrooms.  I am not sure the hosts really understood the concept.  But they didn't say anything other than to inquire about my strange lodgings (they thought I was sleeping in the privacy tent!)

Ended up at Elizabeth Furnace after a friend recommended it. For the price ($10/night and 50% off if you have a National Park Pass), it was pretty good. In the valley outside of Shenandoah, it was a nice spot to return to at night. There are also some hiking trails across the street. Would recommend if you are okay with the camp sites being pretty close together. Also, the road is right next to the sites.

Had a blast with friends. Renting group site B was the perfect size for the 10 of us. It was only a short walk from the parking lot on a gravel path which made carrying our gear a breeze!

This is a very nice little campground offering several types of non-hook up sites. We stayed in site 18 which was large and had a nice long flat space for us to park our class B camper on and dry camp. The sites are quite private and are mostly flat. Some of the sites are best for tent camping as the parking pad is either very short or is blocked off from the rest of the camp site. The showers (4) were clean and nice and the grounds were very well kept.

My kids and I had a terrific time in this campground. We camped with a tent. Facilities were clean and well cared for. There was a black bear hanging around the campground the weekend we camped. There is a pretty creek running through the campground. Would recommend this to anyone with aspirations to hike in the area.

Campground Review:

What a great find, so close to a town….though feels like you are deep in the forest! We stayed 2 nights at this campground and it was the perfect place to prepare for a week-long backpacking trip in Shenandoah National Park. Each site has a picnic table, firepit, and lantern stand. The creek running through the campground drowns out most noise from the road or other campers. Sites are private and well-shaded, but with plenty of sun for our solar panel too.

Showers and running water are available during the main season, but arriving in April meant pulling out the pocket shower and using water from the handpump. Pit toilets were immaculately clean and available during the off-season though. There is a group camping area just down the road, too.

This campground is situated just 15 minutes from Strasburg (adorable town) and is about equal distance to Front Royal, which sits at the northern end of Shenandoah National Park. Both towns have everything you need from grocery stores to gas stations to restaurants. Cycling, hiking, fishing, and boating are all things you can get up to in this lovely recreation area.

Great price of just $10 per night during the off-season, normally $20 during the main season.

Product Review:

As Rangers for The Dyrt, we’ve been testing out this product for the past couple of weeks. While preparing for a week-long backcountry adventure in the Shenandoah’s last week, we were running behind with our packing and used this lantern to light up our campsite as we stuffed the last few bags of food and gear.

What we like about this product:

• Lightweight and compact.
• Gives off a great amount of light for its small size.
• Adjustable light control, from very bright to romantic candle light.
• Ignition switch seems to fire up the lantern every time.
• Built-in hanging wire is handy to have when you want to hang it from a tree or lantern stand.
• Gas powered, so no batteries to recharge or replace.
• Storage case is robust and keeps the glass lantern from breaking.

What could be improved:

• It only comes with one mantle. Two would be great because they aren’t easy to find in stores.
• The instructions are overwhelming for such a simple piece of gear. They could be trimmed down quite a bit.

Product Link: https://primus.us/products/easy-light-4?variant=17262695685

Product Video: https://youtu.be/uJeL9-wkFgk

Great trails, sites and showers