Best Tent Camping near Lake, WV
Tent campers visiting Lake, West Virginia have several established options within New River Gorge National Park and Preserve. Stone Cliff Campground offers free, first-come, first-served tent sites situated directly along the New River, while the American Alpine Club's New River Gorge Campground provides tent platforms in a more developed setting popular with climbers. Both locations are within 30 minutes of most recreational attractions in the region.
The primitive tent sites at Stone Cliff feature sandy, riverside locations with minimal amenities. Campers should bring their own drinking water, as none is available on site. Vault toilets are provided but often need maintenance, particularly during busy rafting seasons when commercial companies use the area as a put-in point. Access requires navigating steep, narrow roads and, for most sites, carrying equipment down stairs or short trails from the parking area. A visitor commented, "Sites are well marked and maintained with some right on the river and a couple more set back closer to the trail," though several reviewers noted concerns about broken glass in the sandy areas.
Tent camping areas throughout the region often experience train noise, as active rail lines follow the river. The American Alpine Club campground offers more amenities including drinking water, coin-operated showers, and wooden tent platforms built on uneven terrain. Most sites include individual picnic tables, though campfires are restricted to a communal fire pit area. According to one visitor, "The sites on the lower loop, in the low 20's and up, looked lovely, tucked among boulders and rhododendrons." For backcountry tent camping options, Plum Orchard Lake Wildlife Management Area provides more remote sites accessible via gravel roads. These primitive tent sites require self-registration and a $10 nightly fee, offering greater seclusion but no potable water and only basic latrine facilities.
