New River Gorge's no-fee campgrounds a rarity among national parks

The Columbus, Ohio, resident said she decided to give camping in the nation's newest national park a try mainly because she likes to explore and had never spent time in the Gorge before.

"And free is good," she added.

Unlike most campgrounds in other national parks, where campers are charged fees averaging about $20 per night for similar "car-camping" sites, all eight campgrounds found within New River Gorge National Park and Preserve are free and open year-round.

All eight campgrounds are rated primitive, meaning they lack drinking water, bathhouses, or hookups for power and other utilities. But all but one campground offer streamside campsites, and all are equipped with fire rings, lantern posts, picnic tables, composting or pit toilets, and garbage and recycling collection service.

While visitation has spiked in the two years since the Gorge was designated a national park, no new campground development is being planned and no camping fee increases are presently under consideration, according to park officials.

Park managers are hopeful that "increased visitation will offer new opportunities outside the park for private campgrounds" to expand or be developed, according to Eve West, chief of interpretation, visitor services and cultural resources at New River Gorge National Park and Preserve.

The park is urging visitors seeking full-service camping amenities to book sites at nearby privately owned campgrounds or state parks.

Reserving campsites within the national park is not currently an option, as the policy now in place calls for making all 109 campground campsites in its inventory available on a first-come, first-served basis. As a result, visitors have no way of knowing prior to arriving at a campground whether a favorite campsite -- or any campsite -- is available.

West said a reservation system is being discussed for the park's eight campgrounds, plus a ninth park-managed campground below Summersville Dam in the Gauley River National Recreation area, but is not yet considered ready for implementation.

Campgrounds maintained by New River Gorge National Park and Preserve may be occupied for up to 14 consecutive days within a 28-day period. Two camping units -- tent or small recreation vehicle -- serving no more than eight campers are permitted at each campsite. No more than two vehicles per site are allowed.

Campfires are allowed within fire rings, using only dead wood found on the ground. Campers are urged to refrain from hanging lanterns from trees or driving nails into trees. Pets are allowed at campgrounds, but must be kept on leashes. 

Public intoxication, disorderly conduct and possession of alcohol by minors are all prohibited. Campers are urged to observe quiet hours between 10 p.m. and 6 a.m.

Campgrounds within the park range in size from small to medium, with the largest offering 26 campsites and the smallest providing just four. While all campgrounds but one -- War Ridge/Backus Mountain -- provide easy access to the New River or its tributaries for fishing or boating, swimming in the New is not recommended due to the river's powerful currents, sudden drop-offs and rocky shoals.

All are located along maintained gravel roads accessible by two-wheel-drive cars. All are also miles from the nearest stores or restaurants.

Here is a list of New River Gorge National Park and Preserve campgrounds, along with their general descriptions: 

Brooklyn -- Five tent-only primitive campsites, four of them walk-in, and one drive-to, on a shady stretch of New River shoreline near the abandoned townsite of Brooklyn, a coal camp established in the 1890s.

Foundations of a coal loading structure and coke ovens can be seen in the forest adjacent to the small campground. Near the campground's parking area is the trailhead of the Southside Trail, which carriers hikers and bikers on a 5.2-mile jaunt along the river to Southside Junction, across the New River from Thurmond. Along the way, the trail passes through the townsites of Brooklyn, Red Ash and Rush Run.

Paddlers can kayak to or from four of the Brooklyn campsites, located one mile upstream from the park's Cunard River Access facility.

From Fayetteville, follow W.Va. 16/Court Street southward through town to Gatewood Road on the town's outskirts. Turn left on Gatewood and follow it to its intersection with Cunard Road. Turn left on Cunard Road and follow it to the well-marked spur road leading to the Cunard River Access site. Continue past the river access facility for about one mile to the Brooklyn Campground.

Stonecliff Beach -- Seven campsites, six of them walk-in and one drive-to, with the drive-to site capable of accommodating one small RV but offering no hookups. The tree-shaded, shoreline walk-in sites can also accommodate boat-in, boat-out camping for paddlers. While none of the Stonecliff Beach campsites are handicap-accessible, the campground's composting restroom, which also serves an adjacent picnic area, is.

The picnic area/campground parking lot is also the location of the trailhead for the Stonecliff Trail, which follows the New River shoreline upstream for 2.7 miles, into a stand of old growth forest.

To reach the campground from Glen Jean, follow W.Va. 25/Thurmond Road for six miles to a three-way intersection near the New River shoreline, turn right and continue for 1.5 miles. As the road approaches a bridge across the New River, turn right on a gravel road just before reaching the bridge, drive past a public stream access area to the end of the road, where a parking lot for the campground and picnic area is located.

Thayer -- The park's smallest campground offers off-the-beaten-track travelers four walk-in, boat-in, tents-only campsites adjacent to the New River and abutting the tiny, unincorporated community of Thayer.

While peace and quiet prevail at the campground most of the time, it is located quite near an active railroad line, over which the rumbling and rattling of locomotives and coal cars can be heard several times daily. The campground provides easy access to fishing in a usually calm pool of the New River.

To reach the campground from Glen Jean, follow W. Va. 25/Thurmond Road toward Thurmond for six miles to a three-way intersection near the shore of the New River. Turn right  and continue on W.Va. 25 for 1.5 miles past the turnoff for Stonecliff Beach Campground and cross the New River on Stonecliff Bridge. On the other side of the bridge W.Va. 25 becomes a gravel road. Follow it for another five miles to Thayer. At Thayer Church, turn right and proceed downhill, cross a set of railroad tracks, and turn left into the campground.

Army Camp -- Eleven drive-to sites, some partially shaded, for tents or small RVs are available at this campground, located on the site of a U.S. Army training facility for assembling floating pontoon bridges during the 1950s.

While all campsites are accessible by car, they are not pull-through sites, meaning that RV and camper trailer owners need to back into or back out of the sites, which lack hookups. One of the campsites is ADA accessible, as are the campground's restrooms.

To reach Army Camp Campground from Beckley, follow W.Va. 47 east for about 10 miles to the New River. Immediately after crossing the W.Va. 47 bridge over the New, turn left onto a gravel road (Army Camp Road), and follow it for about one mile to a dead end at the campground.

Grandview Sandbar -- About two miles upstream (south) of Army Camp off Glade Creek Road, 18 campsites can be found on a wooded stretch of New River shoreline at Grandview Sandbar Campground.

Ten of the sites are drive-to, suitable for car-camping with tents or small- to medium-sized RVs or camper trailers. Six of the sites are of the walk-to variety, limited to tent camping, and two are streamside, drive-to, ADA accessible campsites. The campground's restrooms are also ADA accessible.

Kayakers can paddle to and from the six walk-to campsites, or use the boat ramp at a public stream access site adjacent to the campground. Near the entrance to the campground, the cemetery for the former coal mining community of Royal can be found. Founded in 1890, Royal was completely abandoned by 1940, after its mines played out.

To reach Grandview Sandbar Campground from Beckley, follow W.Va. 47 east for about 10 miles to the approach ramp for bridge crossing the New River. Turn right on Glade Creek Road just before reaching the bridge, and follow the gravel road for one mile before turning left on the access road for Grandview Sandbar Campground.

Glade Creek -- Glade Creek Campground and its 12 campsites is located about five miles further down Glade Creek Road from Grandview Sandbar Campground. You can't miss the campground because it is located at the end of the road, near the point where Glade Creek flows into the New River.

The campground features six walk-in tent-camping sites, five drive-to sites suitable for car-assisted tent camping or small RVs, and one ADA accessible campsite, along with ADA accessible restrooms, a fishing area, a picnic site, and a small wheelchair-accessible stretch of the Glade Creek Trail.

The campground is also the site of the southern trailhead for the 5.6-mile Glade Creek Trail, which follows the path a narrow gauge railroad track once used to serve the sawmill and logging town of Hamlet. That community flourished in the late 1800s and early 1900s, once supporting a population of 300 before being completely abandoned in the 1940s.

A footbridge crossing Glade Creek near the entrance to the campground  connects to a half-mile footpath that leads to the townsite of Hamlet, where only the foundations of buildings and some rusting sawmill machinery remain. Pillars that once supported a train trestle crossing the New River still rise from the river near the townsite.

Meadow Creek -- The park's largest, newest and southernmost campground can be found only about two miles off Interstate 64's Sandstone interchange. Meadow Creek Campground contains 26 drive-to campsites, all of them restricted to tent-only camping due to the presence of a railroad track crossing that poses safety hazards to RVs, trailers and other long vehicles.

Meadow Cree Campground is located in an open field on a low bluff fronting the New River.

To reach the campground from the Sandstone interchange of I-64, follow Meadow Creek Road/W.Va. 5 north past the Sandstone Visitor Center for about 1.5 miles, and turn left across a set of railroad tracks onto Riverchase Way. Follow Riverchase for about one half mile, pass a public stream access site, and turn into the entrance to Meadow Creek Campground.

War Ridge/Backus Mountain -- The only campground in the park not located along the New River has eight drive-to campsites, each suitable either for tent camping or small RVs.

Located in an open field atop a ridge, the campground is suitable for star-gazing but devoid of shade -- and, as of last week, a restroom. 

The campground can be reached by following W.Va. 41 east from Beckley, crossing the New River, passing the Prince Amtrak station, and continuing east on W.Va. 41 for about about five miles before turning right onto Backus Mountain Road. About 1.5 miles up Backus Mountain Road. turn right onto state secondary route 22/7, and follow it about a half-mile to the campground.

New River Gorge National Park and Preserve also manages the Gauley River National Recreation Area and its Gauley Tailwaters Campground just below Summersville Dam.

Gauley Tailwaters Campground includes 18 drive-to campsites suitable for tent camping or small RVs. Tent camping sites are located along a strip of grass adjacent to a gravel access road. The campground is a short walk from the put-in area for whitewater rafting and kayaking on the Upper Gauley.

To reach Gauley Tailwaters Campgrounds from Summersville, follow U.S. 19 south to the Mount Nebo exit, and then follow W.Va. 129 west across the top of Summersville Dam,  turn left at the river access sign, and look for the campground entrance.

Backcountry camping is also allowed without fees or permits in the new national park, but a number of regulations govern the practice. 

While the park includes nearly 100 miles of trails, most are short, well-traveled and better suited for day hikers. Longer trails that pass through the more remote reaches of the park, such as Glade Creek Trail and two of its spurs, Kates Plateau Trail and Polls Plateau Trail, are considered by park officials to be among the best suited for overnight backpacking.

Camping is prohibited within 100 feet of developed trails, streams, historic ruins, park structures or river access site, or within 300 feet of cliff tops or cliff bottoms.

Boat-in backcountry camping is also allowed in New River Gorge National Park and Preserve, with the same regulations affecting backpacking, except for the restriction prohibiting campsites within 100 feet of streams. Camping is allowed on riverbanks, where campers are urged to use existing fire rings for campfires wherever possible, and to extinguish all flames with water before leaving..

Backcountry camping groups are limited to no more than eight people and two tents.

Backcountry camping is specifically prohibited in the Kaymoor or Nuttalburg historic areas, in the Fern Creek/Beauty Mountain and Keeneys Creek areas, at Grandview Top or on Camp Brookside Island.