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Hi. In September, 2019, a group of men and I were in northern VA for another section hike of the AT. We used this campground as our "base camp" and did day hikes, car-to-car for 5 days. We've used this method for most of the AT from the start, but most often was in National Park or US Forest Service campgrounds (which are always nice). This one was very close to the AT crossing of US 50, and in the middle of the sections we were hiking.
But, in spite of the location and relatively cheap price, it was by far the worst campground I've seen.
The water provided by spigot was undrinkable, so I had to go to the closest Wal Mart to get gallons of water for the trip. The shower and toilet areas were despicable, as you'll see in the pictures. Would be interested to hear if they've improved the restrooms and water system since our visit. God Bless!
At first glance we were unsure, but there was nothing else available over the holiday weekend. It’s $15 per person. Our campsite was next to the pond and was very spacious and secluded. We ended up having a great time. The bathhouse isn’t bad and was a nice amenity. We will definitely be going back here again!
The campground was clean and peaceful. The bathhouse clean and freshly painted. The location was ideal...close to everything but far enough away from the main roads. This is definitely a "dont judge a book by its cover" kinda campground. If you keep an open mind you will have a great time. We stayed for two nights in the "primitive camping" area and had a great time.
We ended up risking it on this place when everything else was full on a busy weekend in Shenandoah. We were worried because of some of the bad reviews, but it ended up being really nice! We had the place to ourselves which was great, but at most there’s only 3 camp sites here that are all pretty separate from each other. You have to drive to the bath house, so kind of primitive in that sense, but the bath house was well maintained.
I declined to stay at Sky Meadows State Park Campgrounds due to the mile hike back to the campsite. I found Mountain Lake Campground just up the road.
+ very quiet
+ hardly any rules/regulations
+ economical. Paid 20$ for the site
+ water and electric included
+ owner seemed nice and welcoming
- difficult check in. The office was unappealing and was not manned until 5pm. No one answered the phone.
- below average bath house for a campsite
- dumpster was full
-website needs updated
- lots of long term campers with decaying campsites
