The best WALK IN camping near
Santiago , WEST VIRGINIA

Nice, crowded.  Grandkids had fun.  Lake was nice to cool off in.  Not a place I would do again.

Site Details: We stayed on site#40 in the Garrett Loop. It is one of only three FHU sites in this loop(the rest are primitive tent sites). The site was level, spacious, beautifully shaded, and convenient to the bath house. In fact, almost every site on the inside of the loop had its own little direct pathway to the bath house. The camping loop in general was beautiful, quiet and heavily forested. I don’t think there was a bad site in the whole loop. 

Facilities/Overall Park: This park very quickly rose to the top of our list of MD state parks. The trails to the namesake falls are beautiful and very family-friendly, with lots of helpful signage. However, the parking lots and trailheads were PACKED on the weekend, so if you’re a day tripper, get there early! The bath house was meh, but it didn’t matter much to us since we had hookups.

Surrounding Area/Attractions: The neighboring sister park, Herrington Manor, has full-service deluxe cabins and a nice swimming beach. Also, be sure to hit the nearby Rock Maze trail, especially if you have kids. Swallow Falls is also very convenient to the Deep Creek area, with all the touristy things of a lakeside resort town. Check out Lakeside Creamery for some awesome ice cream! 

Overall, this was a gorgeous, well-maintained park, with plenty to keep us busy in the park and surrounding area. We already have a return trip booked for next year!

This is my absolutely favorite go-to weekend exploration spot. She never looks the same, and every season has a new vista to offer

We enjoyed our stay. Lot of trails within the park. Most sites had no privacy but we didn't see it as an issue for us. We got lucky and had an almost dead level site but there are some tricky sites there so choose your site carefully. The roads within the campground are narrow and the sites, which are asphalt, are pretty narrow as well, maybe 10'. There was a 5th wheel across the road from us in a drive through that gave up, they just couldn't get level. Don't know where they went. Every morning and evening there were a number of deer roaming through the park. The bath houses are old but clean. Since there was no wi-fi and sad cell service we went to the lodge and use their wi-fi to download some youtube videos to watch a night.  Everyone knows about Blackwater Falls but just outside of Thomas there is a Douglas Falls that's becoming more popular as word spreads.

The McCollum Campground at Coopers Rock State Forest is a great place to stay. The sites are nicely spaced apart, the camp staff is helpful, and the showers are very clean. The camp Wi-Fi isn't the best but we did have cell service with Consumer Cellular (AT&T Towers) and were able to work while we camped. The campground is only a short drive to the scenic overlook but if you're feeling adventurous you can take a hike. There is a playground for the kids and plenty of room for them to play. My only complaint is the firewood available to purchase. It's a small bundle for the price.

Just stayed here for one night with our 5th wheel when traveling home. I wasn’t too impressed. I thought it was expensive. The site was difficult to back into because everything was so narrow. I like to have a little bit of space when camping, but there were tent campers all around us. My surgeguard shut off the power in the evening due to high voltage. It was showing 137 volts at one time. I was not impressed and most likely won’t be back.

Far enough away from the next campsite to enjoy peace and seclusion. Next to a crik for those nighttime lullabies

Terrific owners, super attentive, and personal. They take the time to chat with just about everyone who visits their property. They are relentless on maintenance and have about 60 acres to mow and care for. The store onsite has just about anything you could need for your stay including firewood. The river is fantastic and holds trout and smallmouth for those that like to fish. A popular spot on the weekends and gets busy with all types of travelers from class A super rigs to very modest trailers. Ended up staying 2 weeks as the wifi service is the best we have had on the road. The majority of the site is level and grass. I will be back for the bluegrass festival in August (Pickin in Parsons).

Camped here this weekend. We were in a non-electric tent site. There were four of us with two tents and we reserved two sites because their website says they restrict the sites to one tent unless you’re a family then you can have two. Well they don’t really stick to this because the site next to us had seven tents spread across two sites. Walking around we saw several other sites with three and four tents. Besides that, though this was a great site. Wood and ice available for purchase. The bathhouse is a little old but not terrible. They cleaned it multiple times a day due to COVID. Plenty of great trails close to the campsite and the town of Davis nearby for some local eateries and shopping. We plan on returning!

     Bulltown Campground offers a couple hundred spaces, multiple playgrounds, and clean restrooms on the edge of Burnsville Lake, managed by the U-S Army Corps of Engineers. This area is popular for camping, boating, swimming, hiking, and hunting during the deer season.
     It was a beautiful place to camp in the month of October with the fall leaf colors reflected on the surface of the lake. I imagine it could be a bit of zoo during the peak summer months because nearly ever camper in the off-season arrived in a sizeable RV with dogs, children or both.
     Loop A and B are closed in the off-season and all other spaces are first-come, first serve. There’s a self-serve kiosk where you check-in and pay with cash or check. The bulletin board was loaded with lots of helpful posts, including a “boil water” warning on the night I was there.
     I was camping in my van and found a nice shady spot next to Burnsville Lake where I easily dropped my kayak into the water for a peaceful paddle. I was parked next to a group of hunters who bagged a couple of does during the bow season. I imagine the gun season could get a bit noisy. Wear orange, or bright colors if you’re hiking outside the “safety zone” during WV’s hunting season .  The 2020 bow season runs from September 26th to December 31st. The buck firearm season runs from November 23rd to December 6th.
     I particularly enjoyed visiting the nearby Bulltown Historic District, which is the location of a Civil Battle War battle where Confederate and Union soldiers fought to control a critical supply route, including a covered bridge over the Little Kanawha River. You can check out historic structures on the site and hike to the top of the hill where the Union soldiers ultimately withstood the Confederate attack. Pre-covid, there was a reenactment of the battle every other October. I picked up a map for the Weston and Gauley Bridge Turnpike Trail, but found the more remote sections of the trail poorly marked. I didn’t see any official parking lots or trail markers, but I did see a lot of “private property” signs, so I was hesitant to accidentally trespass on a local landowner’s property. I’m guessing some of the access points may have been wiped out by pipeline construction… another reason not to anger the locals who may not be happy with this “invasion.”