Beautiful camping area near DC
This is a great but very crowded camping area. Clearly a favorite of many DC area campers. We arrived on a Friday around 6 and found every campsite full. We ended up at an overflow site. Get there early if at all possible! And if it’s mostly full, look for breaks in the brush where other cats have pulled off. There are usually fire pits to be found near them. Campsites are well-distanced from each other. We did not hear others while we were there.
Additionally, this is not a great campground for cars that are low to the ground— the roads are gravelly, potholed, and very slow to navigate in a passenger vehicle with low clearance.
The area is gorgeous! Beautiful mountains and nature. Lots of critters and plants to check out.
Bring your own water— none available as far as I could tell. There was a creek a few hundred feet from our site, but it was too steep to get to for bathing or washing dishes (we tried).
Sites vary in distance from the road. Our overflow site was far enough that we could see the cars but not so close that them going by woke us. We could also hear nose from the interstate, but it fades into the background after a couple hours. We estimated we were 1/4 mile from the interstate as the crow flies.
There are fun activities nearby as well. We saw the tunnel at Paw Paw and went to Cumberland. You can apparently rent kayaks from a man nearby, but he prefers to take groups. Drop by his store the day before to see if you can get in on the action.