Camping in the New River Gorge

Free NPS campgrounds in the gorge

Every one of these sits on the river except War Ridge, so you can expect sandbars, sycamores and the sound of moving water. None has drinking water, though, so fill your jugs before you head down.

Coming with a big group? The Burnwood group site on US 19, across from the Canyon Rim Visitor Center, is the one NPS spot you can book: $75 for groups of eight or more under a special use permit, with flush toilets and water, which none of the free sites have. Call the permits office at 304-465-6531 and give it at least 10 business days.

Tips for camping at the free sites

The rules fit on a napkin: up to eight people and four pets per site, 14 days total in any 28, quiet from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m., checkout at noon, and fires only in the existing rings with dead wood. Dogs stay on a leash no longer than six feet, per the park's pet page.

Grandview Sandbar is the biggest and the favorite, with 16 sites (two accessible) on a broad river flat, and it came through the August flood open. Army Camp, with 11 sites, is also off WV 41 near Prince. Both take RVs up to 31 feet, though the park suggests only small and medium rigs at Army Camp. Campers on The Dyrt warn of weak or no cell service, no potable water and weekend competition for sites, so download your directions before you leave US 19.

For something quieter, the walk-in tent sites at Stone Cliff, Thayer and Brooklyn have just four to seven sites each (and Thayer has no toilet at all). They're lovely on a weeknight; on an October Saturday, turning up with no backup plan is a gamble, since none can be reserved. Brooklyn has a seasonal catch too: Cunard Road, the way down, closes from November through March below the Brooklyn Mine Trail parking for a road project that runs through 2027.

Backpacking? Backcountry camping needs no permit, but groups max out at eight people and two tents, and sites must be 100 feet from trails and water and 300 feet from cliffs. The park's backpacking page bans it outright at Kaymoor, Nuttallburg, Fern Creek, Beauty Mountain and a few other spots. The wider park rules are on the rules and safety page.

Private campgrounds with showers and hookups

Here are the campgrounds near Fayetteville with a published or reported rate. The county visitor bureau's camping directory lists 21 in all; for the rest, pick up the phone.

The American Alpine Club campground in Lansing is the cheapest bookable site near the bridge and a climbers' hangout, and even without a membership, $35 a night beats most hotel rooms by a mile. The Outpost is the only campground below the rim, down on Fayette Station Road; it closed after the August 15 and 16 flash floods and reopened fully on September 4. Reviewers say event nights there can get loud, and the Park Service doesn't recommend the road itself for RVs or trailers.

Both rafting resorts run campgrounds, too. ACE's mountaintop sites start at $15 a person, and Adventures on the Gorge sells RV sites and campsites alongside its glamping tents. River Expeditions in Oak Hill even folds three nights of camping into its 2026 Bridge Day rafting packages. Decided a tent isn't for you after all? The cabins guide is the next step up.

Camping for Gauley season and at Summersville Lake

The free Gauley Tailwaters Campground, 18 drive-in sites below Summersville Dam, shuts for the first three Gauley weekends, September 11 to 28, under the 2026 letter to Gauley boaters. Call before counting on it for the October releases. Nearby, the Army Corps' Battle Run Campground on Summersville Lake lists $34 for an electric site and $24 for a tent, reservable through Recreation.gov at 877-444-6777 in summer and first-come otherwise. Summersville Lake State Park opened three campgrounds in May 2025, with 38, 9 and 18 sites; call for rates. Release dates are in the Gauley season guide.

Babcock State Park's 52-site campground, 28 of them electric, is open from the third Friday in April to the fourth Monday in October (October 26 this year), with a two-night minimum on weekends, per West Virginia State Parks. Call the park for rates.

Camping on Bridge Day and fall weekends

Bridge Day is Saturday, October 17, 2026, and US 19 closes across the bridge from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m., so camp on the side of the river where you plan to spend the day. The free NPS sites can't be held, and private campgrounds fill without warning, so book early. For a sense of event pricing, Happy Camper New River in Lansing charges $100 a night for up to four adults on Bridge Day, with nonrefundable deposits. For picking a side, see where to stay.

So which campsite is right for you?

Tent, water jugs and a weekday? Take a free NPS site: Grandview Sandbar first, Army Camp as the fallback, both down WV 41 near Prince. With an RV that needs power, or on any weekend from mid-September through Bridge Day, book a private site and treat an empty free campground as a lucky bonus. Planning to hike Glade Creek? The trail's road access is part of the August closure.