Best Tent Camping near Ansted, WV
New River Gorge National Park and Preserve offers diverse tent camping options within 20 miles of Ansted, West Virginia. Tent-only campgrounds like Meadow Creek provide 17 free first-come, first-served sites with basic amenities including fire rings, picnic tables, and vault toilets. Stone Cliff Campground features walk-in tent sites along the New River with direct water access, though campers must navigate stairs from the parking area to reach most sites. Chestnut Creek Campground in Lansing provides wooded tent sites with more facilities, including showers and drinking water, in a family-run setting specifically designed for tent and hammock camping.
Most primitive tent campsites in the region require self-sufficiency and preparation. Stone Cliff's riverside sites lack potable water, requiring campers to bring their own supplies. Sites typically include fire rings, though some locations like Stone Cliff may have improvised stone fire rings rather than metal ones. Vault toilets are standard at most locations but vary in maintenance quality. Tent pads range from flat dirt surfaces to wooden platforms at locations like the American Alpine Club campground, where 10'x10' platforms provide level surfaces for tents. Weather considerations include strong valley winds at Meadow Creek that can challenge tent stability during storms.
In early fall, many tent campgrounds remain accessible with fewer crowds. One camper at Stone Cliff noted that despite being close to the Visitor's Center, the campground maintained a secluded feel with "sites distance from each other and the wooded area." At Meadow Creek Campground, a visitor reported the sites were "flat, large and spaced out," though lacking shade from newly planted trees. The American Alpine Club campground receives praise from climbers for its wooden tent platforms that provide level camping on otherwise uneven terrain. Backcountry tent camping enthusiasts should note that frequent train noise affects Meadow Creek, with trains passing "at all hours of day and night" according to recent visitors, making earplugs advisable for light sleepers.
