Meadow Creek Campground is a terrific place stay outdoors while exploring around New River Gorge…read moreNational Park.
When first planning out my itinerary for visiting the park, I had researched that there were plentiful campgrounds located within the area.
So...I knew I would be camping out somewhere for my first night at New River Gorge. I just didn't know where exactly I would end my day.
Well...after finishing hanging out at the Grand View section of the park in late afternoon, I was okay to start looking for a campground.
I always refer to the trusty app on my phone called Campendium, to find my campsites. And as usual, Campendium did not disappoint!
I quickly browsed all the reviews for Meadow Creek and was excited to come here.
From the Grand View part of New River Gorge (which btw, is one of the primary highlights of the park), it was just 17 miles to drive to Meadow Creek.
And best of all the location of the campground was in the proper direction for my next destination, being Sandstone Falls.
Let me give some details about how simple it is come to Meadow Creek and get a campsite for the night...
and yes, it has to be one of the easiest spots (in terms of finding a place to rest at while on a whim) I have ever come across along my journeys around the USA.
- Cell phone reception works fine in the area, so simply plug "Meadow Creek Campground" into Google Maps and you'll easily be directed here.
- It is free to camp out! How cool. Once I arrived, the instruction board mentioned to just pick a campsite and it's yours! How simple!
- There must have been about 25 - 30 campsites available for choosing, and basically there was no one here. I had my pick of any site.
- All the sites were situated on soft, fluffy grass, which always is beneficial when pitching a tent. This way you can have a gentle, comfortable sleep.
- The sites all had barbecue pits. They were well spaced apart from each other to feel like you have privacy. You can start charcoal grills also.
- A very interesting fact is this...trailers and RVs are not allowed!!! Prohibited! That's so peculiar? Usually, you have RV sites and parks that don't allow tents. But here it was the opposite. So nice for me, someone who carries a tent in the trunk of my car, to feel like I was prioritized, lol.
Btw, I noticed the folks that were spending the night here actually slept in their cars rather than pitching tents.
- They have vault toilets houses but they're extremely well maintained and clean. In fact, when I stepped inside one of them, it smelt beautifully, with a nice fragrance.
- Located just 2.5 miles down the road is the Sandstone General Store and Eatery. This local little joint has groceries, gas and supplies...ideal for picking up anything to cook on your barbecue. You could even purchase prepared sandwiches if you don't feel like cooking. And prices here were extremely cheap, considering there's not much around to this part of the park.
- You can do some hiking/walking right along the New River to get some fresh air and appreciate the woodsy/forestry setting.
- When I visited back in the middle of May of 2022, the weather was perfect and not too chilly at night. Couldn't have asked for a better evening with a few stars up in the sky.
- I believe you can stay up to 14 evenings here, all for free!
You can camp for free, use the facilities for free, and occupy a campsite all for free.
Thank you to the National Parks Services for Meadow Creek Campground!
Although Meadow Creek was a wonderful experience for me...I do need to mention some parts that were a little bit of a letdown...
1. Cell phone coverage in this specific campground was minimal. Yet, when I walked down the creek area, my reception worked just fine. Hmmm?
2. Okay, yes, the train tracks. During the night I did hear trains running on the tracks that were very loud. Still, I don't mind these types of things as I'm an easy sleeper.
3. This is going a bit overboard, no there aren't any AMP power stations, lol.
Overall, I can't say enough good things about Meadow Creek Campground. It was certainly one of the best highlights to my time visiting New River Gorge National Park.