Love this place! We saw a bald eagle catching fish in the lake a few years back, and that's still a core memory. The beach is nice, if a little iffy with people leaving trash and dog poop in the off season. That's really the only complaint I have about the park. I wish visitors would respect the space. read more

I drove up to the entrance at Greenbrier State Park at just about 9am this morning and told the rangers that I just wanted to go fishing in my Kayak for a few hours and was turned away because I did NOT have a Reservation and all of the Day Use areas were full already. Excuse me!?!? - All I needed was a parking spot and a couple minutes to blowup the kayak and launch it on the 42 acre lake. I had no intention of hitting the beach or swimming or playing Volleyball or soccer or buying any concessions and what the hell, I could have even peed in the woods but NOPE - No room for you since you didn't make a reservation. Since they were specific about "Day Use" areas, Maybe I should have told them that I was camping (even thought I had no camping gear) and gone ahead and paid for a Camping spot? Then I could have driven my truck down to the DAY USE parking lot next to the lake and launched my kayak out onto that 42 acre lake? It doesn't really matter - I won't go back. I am a MD Native and resident but I also have a West Virginia Fishing License and that is probably where I'm going tomorrow. I can only imagine how this incredible reservation system works. I'll bet that I can make my 7 Day IN advance Reservation EVERY day with no intention of ever showing up (and wasting the opportunity for somebody else to enter like happened to me today) and I bet I could put 3 or 5 or 8 people on my reservations since they want to ACCUATE number of Visitors for each reservation (However many can fit it 1 CAR) and never be questioned about why I wasn't showing up cause you know damn right and well that some of those reservations go unused (and they sure didn't say anything about Give me your number and we'll call you if we have a cancellation or If they don't show up by 2 pm or whatever. I'll bet that half the people with Reservations aren't even showing up until afternoon (if they don't outright cancel for whatever reasons) and I was only planning on fishing for a few hours to start with. Like I said, it doesn't really matter- I won't go back and deal with that nonsense again. I needed one parking space and just a couple minutes to blow up eh Kayak and launch it on the 42 are lake and I would have been gone a few hours later (and I am strictly catch and release as well so I won't deplete the fish population either but NOPE!!!!! No Reservation = No Room for You! I had really hoped to be on the water shortly after sunrise but the part doesn't even open until 8am anyway. I'll find some other alternative since it was too difficult for the State Park to satisfy my excessive expectations (a Parking Spot) - I was in My Pickup - an overflow grassy spot will do just fine Thank You! I'm done with this nonsense. read more

This is a huge park, great for camping, hiking, walking, beach relaxing and more. Be aware: constructions are currently going on at different places of the park including the main entrance. After the constructions are completed, the park will start to request campers or day visitors to make reservations online during holidays and weekends visitors. Atmosphere: it's a large park filled with nature's love, trees, water, birds, logs, dirt paths, bugs, wildlife, fresh air and tables benches roads for visitors. Service: staff in the visitors' center are friendly and knowledgeable. Value: you cannot put a price tag on your love of nature and experience of outdoors. Parking: there is no issue to find parkings inside the park, just depending on how far you are willing to walk. Beautiful park, highly recommend. read more

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Visited Greenbrier State Park this summer and had plenty of fun in the sun! My family and I went on a weekday and it was fairly busy (but of course I can't imagine how much busier it would be on weekends, let alone holiday weekends). I think families with young kids (or even new swimmers) really appreciate the "beach" area because the water level doesn't exceed 5.5 feet (swimming vests are encouraged). There are life guards present as well. There are spacious bathrooms available for use a short walk up from the water and have changing rooms in addition to shower areas as well. The bathrooms were clean as well as the changing rooms, but there was a lot of standing water in areas. I'd definitely recommend walking carefully. Bring a picnic and come early if you plan on getting a grill. Those were all taken even on the weekday we went. Costs Day-use Admission Fees: Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day- $5/person After Labor Day to Memorial Day weekend - $5/vehicle https://dnr.maryland.gov/publiclands/Pages/oc.aspx read more

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This is my second Maryland state park, and it's incredible as the first! If you're camping there are level, electric sites and neatly raked gravel pads waiting for you. The campground has bathhouses to clean up after swimming, and blackberries and wineberries grow throughout the camping loop. The parks has a nature center and swimming lake with picnic areas, and plenty of hiking. It's a good day escape or destination, or double destination if you're exploring nearby historic sites. The park allows dogs in two campground loops and leashed on trails, and says so on your parking tag, but dogs are not allowed in the swimming areas, hence all the "No dogs" signage at the entry. Park rangers drive through loops, and one even pet our pup after asking to do so. Great views, accommodations and staff. Can't wait to return! read more

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Leave EARLY and be ready. The park gets full fast! No pets or liquor. You should have your group with you !! Travel and move together at all times! Have a Set of leaders if group is large. Tables go fast so come prepared. You can bring your own grill, tables, tents and chair and music! Come ready because there is no leaving lol. We will come back. Bring toiletries because the bathrooms are not equipped for use. Otherwise cool spot and water is clear enough! read more

Greenbrier State Park - Campgrounds Near Me - Boonsboro, Maryland

I would recommend the state park to anybody!! It's a beautiful park with a beautiful beach!!! A nice cramping area also! It is a wonder place to stay! read more

It was refreshing to get in a morning hike. No issues using google maps to get to the visitor center. There was plenty of parking. Due to the pandemic the visitor center was closed which wasn't a surprise but there were still brochures that had trail maps in a box outside by the entrance which was helpful. There was a porta potty by the parking lot but if you can help it you probably don't want to rely on it though. We stayed with trails that didn't venture far off from the water because we didn't want to get lost or go too far but it seems like if you had the proper gear and ample time you could go on some longer trails. When I started paying attention there were birds of prey circling overhead, a woodpecker in the forest and blue bird out in the open by the beach. The fall colors were pretty too. Nice to get away from the city for a bit! read more

Greenbrier State Park - Campgrounds Near Me - Boonsboro, Maryland

[Coronavirus review] I guess we're including Annapolis Rock, even though it's technically a different park (South Mountain State Park). The Appalachian Trail runs through both, and parking at the AT trailhead is the easiest-though not only-way to go. Notably, I've seen reports of car break-ins as that parking is exposed and off a highway, which probably explains the state police car I saw upon my arrival. The spot yields a reasonable hike to a westward overlook that lets you see Greenbrier from above. The rock structure is quite stark, but even for those not keen on heights, there are plenty of spots to take a picture, and plenty of reasons to want to do so. South Mountain Park, according to the state's own website, has "no distinguishable boundary or entrance facility", which sounds absurd (clearly landowners must have precisely defined boundaries), but in a practical sense, there are indeed several ways of getting in and it isn't entirely clear without checking in advance. Notably, just plugging Annapolis Rock into google maps took me up what is apparently a private road that someone had put a pickup truck across to discourage visitors during a time when I'm sure a lot of people are roaming around trying to find a socially distant place to be. read more

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They are over capacity every weekend. And they require a paid reservation a week in advance.

Brought kids from the summer program at work here for a day at the beach. It's a man made lake that's a short drive away from the Baltimore Metropolitan area. It's 5 dollar entry fee to the park for Maryland residents and 7 dollars for non residents. There are additional fees if you want to rent a pavilion that you will have to go onto the website to reserve. You can also choose to just use of the the many picnic tables on site or bring your own chairs. They have area where they allow fishing. You can rent paddle boats in one area and swim in another area. There is a. Wt set up if you want to play a little beach volleyball. A good relaxing time for the family. I recommend coming early because it gets extremely crowded. I can't imagine how packed it gets on holidays. read more

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Great spot for a day at the lake. Clean bath house and numerous hookup areas. Unfortunately, you can't have pets here but this would be an epic area for a dog-friendly camping spot. Water was clean and didn't smell. There were tons of friendly fish, birds and squirrels. There are a few trails into the woods that are well taken care of--be aware of water snakes. read more

This was a hit for a family day, even if it's an hour from Montgomery County, MD, our boys (3 of them 5 and under) had the time of their life, it even got a "Best Day Ever" from our older ones. Greenbrier State Park is a fantastic fine, very scenic and a relaxing place to get in the water and have a great day out. It's $3pp (adults only) if from MD and $5pp if from outside of MD to enter the park, so yes, we paid $6 for 4 hours of lake fun, BARGAIN indeed. The lake area was great, with a concession stand that has some good food options (even Funnel Cake) and ice cream to sunblock, wipes, swim diapers and other staples that you may need, sand toys, beach chairs, etc..The staff was super friendly and it's great that their are lifeguards on duty (from Memorial Day to Labor Day), gotta like those extra eyes keeping us safe. The water wasn't super deep, but the level is low, but usually it's 6 feet at it's deepest point. There is a 1,000 foot sand beach and the bathroom facilities are clean, with showers, changing areas and a changing table for those babies in the mens and women's bathrooms. There are plenty of picnic tables and you can bring the hammock and hang it up in the shade with the lake in sight and enjoy the beautiful surroundings. You can also rent paddle boats. I would have given our time the lake a 5, but one area of improvement would be to get the beach sandier and less rocks, looks like they haven't put on a few layers of sand in a bit or they skimp on the amount, but other then that it was a great great time. Enjoy!! read more

Greenbrier State Park - The Lake - Campgrounds Near Me - Boonsboro, Maryland

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More like 3.5 stars. There is nothing bad about the Annapolis Rock hike at all. But something was missing and I don't what it is. Everyone has different tastes, right? Well I think for me the vista at the top makes the difference. After sweating and putting in a good workout what kind of reward do you want to see when you get to the top? Decide for yourself. Well, what you will get at the top is a large cliff overhang looking over the horizon. Damn. It was so crazy to finally plateau at the top and then look down and realize what a steep drop the rock is. The rocky cliffs are so beautiful. The vista you see is a vast sky and rolling furry hills but nothing much more. So green. Be safe and don't fall! From the parking lot you will trek parallel to the freeway until the sound drowns out into nature. Another cool thing about this trail is how close you are to Appalachian hikers. It's awesome to meet hard core pros who have been hiking for days in these parts. read more

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We went this last weekend (spring 2021) My first time here $3 per person (Maryland resident) a little more for non residents. But not much. I'm not sure the exact amount. You can sit on the grass or sand area. There's some gazebos, not sure if you gotta reserve or just get there early since we didn't use any gazebos. Dog friendly!! We didn't know so we didn't bring our dog (please pick up after your dog even if they're tiny dogs) Anyway, it was a nice time. It's a lake so no waves & the water is kinda yellow lol I'm only mentioning it because I'm from San Diego California so not used to yellow water lol but it's ok not a big deal. Just mentioning for the people that want to know what color the water is Lol Regardless we got in and enjoyed every moment. I think it was perfect for our little 10 month old who was walking in the lake and I didn't have to worry about big waves or anything. It was great! Love and recommend this place. Try getting there early, I believe there's a limit. When we went it was supposed to be 90degrees thought it would be packed which did look like it but when we were leaving there were still many people arriving. I don't know how it will look like in summer though. I'd just arrive early. read more

Greenbrier State Park - Enjoying some watermelon - Campgrounds Near Me - Boonsboro, Maryland

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I'm torn with my review. I want to say 1 star but also 4. I came here with friends ages 24-29 to have a weekend away and relax. We picked a site that was away from people so we wouldn't be a bother AND be bothered, but ended up having a "camp host" 2 sites away. Within 1 hour of being there, the camp hosts came on a golf cart and a clip board and asked us several "get to know you" questions and recorded our answers. The questions seemed more like "how can I judge you" rather than being polite. At 7 pm they came again and told us to turn our music down when quiet hours didn't start til 10. They ended up calling the police on us for being too loud at 11 when we were sitting at a table just having causal conservations and slight laughter. The campsites are gravel, so bring an air mattress, we were expecting a regular campsite and had to sleep on rocks. Also, the camping office is supposed to close at 10, but closed at 7 pm and left us without ice or fire wood. The good part of the park is the lake. It was an awesome swimming spot but the lot fills up VERY quickly and you'll need to get there by 9 to ensure a spot on the beach and for your car if you don't want to walk. The bathrooms at the campsite loops are clean and impressive for a campground. The local area has everything you need if you forget something or run out. read more

Greenbrier State Park - Lake - Campgrounds Near Me - Boonsboro, Maryland

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Quiet nice beach area plenty of grills and very clean..would recommend bringing the family for an awesome day trip!!

There are a lot of nice trails to Hike in the park. Some are well traveled, easy in difficulty and a couple are more difficult, lesser used and barely recognizable. There is also a trail that connects to the Appalachian Trail and makes the park accessible from the trailhead and parking lot at Highway 40. The park is well maintained, has a swim beach, picnic spaces and grills get heavy use in summer months. For me it's just too peopley to enjoy then. read more

This place is my favorite place to come with the family 10/10 the kids have a great time! A nice place to set up a picnic or grill, Plenty of parking but I would recommend coming early to get a good spot. read more

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Have you ever wanted to get a taste of what it is like hiking the Appalachian Trail but couldn't commit to the full experience because you like showers,shaving body hair and beds? Well, come to Greenbrier State Park in Boonsboro to pick up the Annapolis Rock trail, which is part of the greater Appalachian trail (someone wrote in a compliment that my pictures should be under Appalachian Trail but the address for the AT on Yelp is incorrect at 580 Taylor Ave Annapolis, MD 21773 so this listing will get people looking for the trail for a day hike to the right place). On a day hike here, you'll pass by many a friendly backpacker making their way on the AT. The parking lot can be found off Rt. 40 within the park and parking can be quite packed.From the lot there are clearly marked trail heads. The trail is 2.5 miles to Annapolis Rock. It was fairly flat for the middle portion, but there is some uphill climbing early on. I would rate this trail as moderate because I worked up a sweat, but maybe cause I was carrying a 20lb pug in a backpack. Annapolis Rock has a camping area, with a campground of 16 sites including 2 group sites. A campground caretaker (super friendly guy) is on-site during the warmer months, and helps monitor the area and provide information to hikers. Now there is a reason, why this is the one of the most popular hikes in Maryland, the view from Annapolis Rocks looks very much like the view from the top of Shenandoah National Parks except with a great view of the Greenbrier Lake thrown in as well. Unfortunately, despite the name it does not offer a view of Annapolis because it is facing the opposite direction. If you continue one mile further on the AT past Annapolis Rocks, you'll find Black Rock Cliff with 180 degree panorama west. Not bad for a 45 minute drive from home. read more

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Came here for the 4th of July and obviously there's long lines so we got in the back of the line yet the police were giving out tickets and telling us to move but where else are we suppose to go if we're waiting to get into this park ! Besides that horrible experience the park is nice and has warm water read more

We were looking for a beach day trip, and our friends recommended we try out Greenbrier. Its an easy drive not too far off the highway, and there was plenty of parking. There are two separate beach areas- the signs are a little confusing as to where to go to access each. The beach area was quite nice- clean sand and it extends into the lake. The wading area only goes to about four feet deep, so it was great for the kids to play and splash around. The bathroom facilities were close and clean, and there were plenty of picnic tables available for lunch. It was a fun day without having to drive down to the shore! read more

Greenbrier is one of the better state parks of Maryland although it gets a large amount of traffic for day use. The campsites in season are very very clean, the fire pits are clean, and the pads were even raked. Quiet hours were observed by all, and there are plenty of facilities for everyone. Our dogwood loop had at least two different bathroom and shower facilities. One of the bad things about this park is that the lake is downhill of all the campsites. This is through no fault of the park though, so I can't fault them for that. The lake itself has a large public use/beach area that gets quite crowded during the day, and fills up very very quickly. Fishing from the shore is tough because of all the vegetation near the shore. I'd definitely camp here again though. We had a great time. read more

This park gets crowded quickly on the weekends. We showed up around noon on a Saturday and it was packed. All of the picnic tables/ eating areas were taken. Luckily we brought a bunch of towels, blankets, and chairs to sit in the grass. It ended up being a nice and relaxing place to hangout and play some sand volleyball but it was too crowded me. Not sure if I'll be back. I would recommend this park for families. read more

Greenbrier State Park - Campgrounds Near Me - Boonsboro, Maryland

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Great state park in close proximity to DC and Baltimore. We've camped twice; once in the Birch Loop and once in the Ash Loop. Sites have always been clean and welcoming. Park staff is always nice. The lake is nice too. Great outdoor getaway in Western MD. read more

Drove around the state park and found campsites, the lake, and picnic tables. There were ZERO signs indicating where their hiking trails were. ZERO! In addition, the map that they did provide, outside of the visitor's center, was USELESS. Could care less that we paid $3 to get into the park but we could not hike or walk and this was very disappointing. We left the park and 2 miles away we were able to hike Annapolis Rock which is part of the Appalachian Trail -- great views and a great hike. Beyond disappointed in this state park! There were at least 5 trails to pick from on their website but not in real life. read more

I recently hiked the Annapolis Rocks trail. Make sure you wear good shoes, as there are tons of rocks to roll your ankles on! Once you get past about a mile or so (trail is roughly 2.5 miles long), the ground becomes less rocky and plateaus a bit. As part of the Appalachian Trail, you can either continue past the split or take the path to the Annapolis Rocks overlook. Which, IMO, had quite a spectacular view (see pics). It was the perfect length of hike for an autumn Sunday. read more

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The place was really nice, it has a "beach" area that looks really cute, but the weather didn't permit any beach activities. The site I had was a back in site, which required me to back my trailer in going up a steep hill. After a few tries, i got it up the hill. The view at the beach was really beautiful. There was a gate at the camping entrance which is always a plus. I enjoyed my stay here. Read all about it in my blog Adventures in Glamping: http://adventuresinglamping.wordpress.com/2014/02/06/greenbrier-state-park-md/#more-19 read more

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I love this state park. Great hike around the park. Great camping and we enjoyed the lake activities, especially fishing. My family grew up swimming here and having cookouts. It is a beautiful location and setting read more

It's a great local state park with a beach area that my 2 year old daughter loved! I will admit it was very crowded and there's just a tiny concession stand so plan on bringing your own picnic lunch, but overall it's great to have such a close location for a beach day. read more

Super pretty place! Went late october so all the leaves were turning which made hiking really nice and the lake super pretty! Covid-wise everyone is pretty good about wearing masks, people are respectful of distance, and there's plenty of room to relax. read more

You can never get a table because people line up at the gate to get in 2 hours before the place opens!!. It's not like it used to be when I was a kid. Kids are very disrespectful an few are being supervised at all. Beach is small. Water is freezing usually but it does come from a spring. Thurmont is better imho. read more

Greenbrier State Park - Like i said! Cant get a table!!! Its 7 am an it doesnr even open til 8 an theres 100 cars here lined up to get in! - Campgrounds Near Me - Boonsboro, Maryland

Although we left due to weather it was a decent experience. We were looking for a beach like spot to have some nice r&r with our little family. Will definitely visit again read more

Great place with grills, places to hang a hammock and a lake that also has a beach area for swimming that is really pretty. read more

Greenbrier State Park - Kayaking lake - Campgrounds Near Me - Boonsboro, Maryland

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Camped two nights and enjoyed every minute of it. We pitched a tent in one of the many campsites available. Our campsite included a fire pit with a grill, picnic table, space to pitch two tents (2-4 person tents) and a driveway to park a car. The restroom less than a five minute walk and clean for outdoor standards. Walkways well paved and signs clearly visible. Each camp area has camp hosts, people who monitor the sites and ensure campers have what they need. We were well-informed. In addition to camp hosts, the general park staff are courteous and knowledgeable. We went on a hike on the Appalachian Trail and were given clear instructions from park staff. Really enjoyed the experience and will be back! read more

If only I could put zero stars. I've never had creepier experience with staff anywhere I've ever been. Everyone that I encountered working at this park were very rude, creepy and condescending. I think everyone in the area knows to avoid this place since when we went, the weather was great however the place was completely empty. If you're looking to have a pleasant time, avoid this place at all costs. There are plenty of other parks that are very nice and I wished I never picked this place. Horrible afternoon because we unfortunately picked this place to spend it at. Will never be coming back. read more

This review is favorable because of the campground, which is separated from the day use lake beach by a key coded gate. That is an important distinction because the lake beach is PACKED, while the campground has a nice peaceful, quiet feel to it. We stayed at sight 18, in the Birch loop, June 28th, 2013 The Campground: The campground is probably one of my newly discovered favorites! The sites have a nice quite, nestled feeling to them. The sites are well spaced apart, and the bathroom wasn't too lit up, like at Rocky Gap. The campground is nestled among both tall trees, with Forrest edge plants around each site. For example, smaller trees, and Mountain laurel. The Bathrooms: Clean enough, with enough stalls, and one shower stall. What was missing from the bathroom area was an area to wash your dishes. Dumpsters: I would have liked to seen a few larger trash cans near the bathrooms, but they have 3 large dumpsters as you leave the park area. The camp store: This is no camp store. It is more of a grill that serves the beach goers. The lake: A pretty little lake, that is packed with families and their children. You can hear the drone of people from the time you get out of your car in the parking lot. The trails: This campground has quite a few hiking trails. Unfortunately, it was hot, and my leg was bothering me, so we didn't try any of them this time around. Notes: There is always a long line of cars to get into the day use area. After you come into the camp ground, you will turn left at the bottom of the hill to go through the gate, and into the camping area. If you wanted to go to the day access lake, you will turn right. The video review is below, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkHl0zNocQU&feature=youtu.be Mark :) read more

Clean, organized , fun, great price and a lot of activities to do . Also great staff very pleasant trip !

The park itself is lovely and accesible (1 hour) from Baltimore or Washington DC. The campgrounds are well-kept. The beach/lake area is nice - albiet incredibly crowded and noisy in the summer. We very much enjoyed the lake at sunset until a Ranger politely told us to leave because it was closed. Honestly, I wont return because of the no-alcohol rule and its rigid enforcement. We had Park Rangers checking our coolers and monitoring our camp site as if we were underage high-school kids. I respect the law but I also have the option of going to Virginia or West Virginia for my next camping trip. read more

Went camping here a few weeks ago. Whoa nelly. Firstly- the campsites are VERY close together. So if you liked the idea of pitching tents back to back, like you are in a park protesting, then sure, go here. Now, if you are camping with a big group of people, that might be ok. But if you're trying to actually experience nature, then this isn't the place for you, because they basically cram as many people as they can into the camping area. Next- We went to this park because it has a beach. However, we went out at 7am, to get some supplies... and traffic was backed up several miles down the road with people waiting to get into the park. Needless to say, the beach gets PACKED quickly. And, the campers have to sit in the same traffic as the beach-goers... so we had to sit in traffic just to get back into the park later that morning. And then we couldn't go enjoy the beach, it was way too packed with people. So overall- we won't camp here again. We liked that the campsites had electric hookups, but next time we'll book someplace more private, with more space. read more