Rocky Gap State Park

I stayed for 3 nights in early August 2019 and really enjoyed my stay. There is a lake with a nice 5+ mile trail around it. I was surprised to see trash along the trail. That said, I did come across a ranger who was picking up trash as he went along. One can rent boats at the lake. The bathhouses are kept up. The outside lights are VERY bright at night - glad I was far away. The showers are clean and efficient with plenty of hot water. Cell signal on both Verizon & AT&T were strong. Although, I was unable to make or receive calls on my Verizon phone - not sure why. My site was at the top of the loop and while I was there I had no neighbors making it very quiet and private. My site also looked out into the woods which was great. The downside to site 190 was that it was not very level. I almost considered switching to the back-in site next door but having the passenger side of my class b camper pointing at the woods was worth the hassle of getting level (or nearly so). Though mostly quiet except for the lovely sounds of nature, I did get some traffic noise. My site was far from the lake where it might have been quieter though maybe traffic noise would have been replaced by people noise, who knows? The campground host was very pleasant and helpful.

Spent two nights at Rocky Gap in very early June - pleasantly surprised at the facilities for our first camping experience in the MD state park system. The weather was unseasonably cool and wet which may have kept crowds to a minimum. I-loop seemed to be the best option for our size travel trailer looking for electric hookups. Most sites were leveled well with paved entrances making back in easy. There was plenty of privacy for comparable state parks with views of the lake from most of the lower loop. Bath house was very well maintained, cleaned, modern, and featured a family-style private bath which seems novel in comparison to most other state-managed facilities. Recycling and trash are at the entrance only.

Campground is adjacent to a casino and golf resort (both of which you pass off the interstate entrance). The campground is also only 15 minutes drive to downtown Cumberland where you can visit the NPS sites as well a few local coffee shops.

As usual take particular care with TICKS. One of our family contracted Lyme disease after being bitten while in the park. Naturally, this is a risk anywhere, but a good reminder to take precautions especially with children.

The park also features a surprising aviary - several local hawk, owl and falcon species as well as two bald eagles. During our stay, the nature center and beach areas were closed otherwise looked like a nice family stop.

Firewood is available about 3 miles up the road north toward Pennsylvania. It was also for sale at the park entrance but was not opened for business during our stay.

A local brewery (search for 1812), which has limited hours, is very closeby if you're looking for a historic farm turned local brewhouse/venue.

We used the Golden Age pass to get 1/2 price camping Sunday - Thur. We stopped at the main gate to check in, but since it was off season there were no rangers on duty, but they did have a sign in sheet with a confirmation of our reservation. Even though no rangers were on regular duty, they did patrol the campground numerous times throughout the day. As mentioned in my July 24, 2018 review below, we booked site 23 in the Ash loop which is the only electric loop. The site backed into the wooded area, very roomy and very private with a nice path to the restroom and shower facilities. There was plenty of room in the pad area for our 15' teardrop and a 12 x 12 pop up canopy with additional seating around. The site was pretty level, only needed a thin strip of wood to level up under one side. Electric worked great, and the water spigot is very close if you need to get more water. The campground was not busy, mainly there were a lot of overnight campers. We had a regular family of 10 wild turkeys visiting our campsite and the neighboring sites throughout the park every morning and evening. Restrooms and showers were cleaned daily and were in good working order. We did walk around the campground and again scouted out different sites to stay in the future. We picked out site #14 for a future stay which is heavily wooded, backed into the woods and very roomy. The driveway is one of the few that are paved. The fire ring is outside of the camping pad which will give you even more room around your camping unit. We road the Potomac Eagle RR in Romney WV to view the Bald Eagles which we highly recommend. (sit on the left side of the train) See my comments July 2018 for additional reviews of the park and surrounding area. Looking forward to staying at Rocky Gap again, as I mention again that this is my favorite Md State Park.

Pretty lake, canoes, kayaks and paddle boards for rent. Fire wood available. Campstore has good choices. Went for Labor Day weekend with my dog. We had a quiet relaxing time. Would come back again. Bathrooms and bathhouse clean and worked out well. Showers had pressure. I wouldn’t stay in site 52 again as it’s at the entrance to the loop and you get headlights and traffic sometimes but there are plenty of secluded sites. Lots of kids on bikes and scooters having a great time.

We used the MD State Park senior pass Sun thru Thur to get 1/2 price rates. Sites were well spaced. Our site #22 Ash was on the outside loop which had lots of trees and low brush between most sites. A lot of the sites on the inside of the loop went back further into the trees and were very private, not at all visible to the bath house, which will be my choice on my next visit. The pull thru sites 11 and 13 were excellent as well as 12 and 23 in the inside loop. This is the only electric loop, which also allows pets, but I noticed a lot of owners did not follow the rules of pets on a leash at all times. Lots of wooded paths leading to the bath house from the inside sites. Rocky Gap seems to be more wooded than a lot of the other Md State Parks. Rocky Gap is a nice state park, rangers patrol on a regular basis. Electric worked well and water was located thru out the loop. Restrooms and showers worked great and were cleaned on a regular schedule. We will be going again next year, booking site #23 which is heavily wooded, private and on the inside loop and booking on the Potomac Eagle RR. We camped at Rocky Gap State Park in a 15' Teardrop Travel Trailer. Things to do in the area: Go on the Western Md Scenic Railroad. A good restaurant is Crabby Pig. Stop at the chamber of commerce in the railroad station for brochures and get a street map of Cumberland. A great lunch deli is Queen Street Creamery & Deli. On 68 not far from the campground, a must go to restaurant is Puccini's. Great wood fired pizza, sandwiches and dinners. Nice antique shopping in the area, but still close enough to travel around the surrounding areas. This is my favorite state park, been tent camping here for years using a non electric camping site 187 in the Gum loop, but recently purchased the teardrop.

We have both tent and RV camped at Rocky Gap for many years. We are generally state park campers and it is one of our favorites. It's $22 a night for non-electric sites and $28 for sites on the one loop with electric (the Ash Loop). BTW It is my understanding that they are planning to convert one of the other loops to full service in the near future. The park is very well maintained and has a nice beach for the use of the campers, along with a nice camp store. The day use area is across the lake, which helps to keep the campers beach less crowded.

A few years ago the Rocky Gap Lodge, also across the lake, added a casino. That has had a minor impact on the camp ground. The main impact is the sound of music wafting across the lake on summer weekend evenings. That is mainly a problem on the Ironwood loop, as that loop is the closest to the lodge (about 1/4 mile or so across the lake). We used to enjoy that loop, even though it doesn't have electricity (they do allow generators during the day and evening). It was especially nice as it has sites right on the like which was perfect for our canoing and kayaking. However, because of the noise in the evenings, we now exclusively camp on the Ash loop, which is on the other end of the campground. Which of course has electric hookups.

The large majority of campsites have nice spacing. I would say the the Ash loop has the most private sites due to having more low bushes and plants growing within the tress. All of the sites in the campground, except for the group site, which is open, have a lot of tree coverage.

The park is well patrolled by: Park Rangers, DNA police and the volunteers.

There used to be a bit of rowdiness at times on some of the loops, however, a few years ago an alcohol ban was implemented in MD State Park campgrounds and this has reduced that dramatically. Note that it is legal to drink inside a motorhome, but nothing else. Weird. I will say that the ban is not overly enforced and that if you are not being blatant about your drinking nor obnoxious, you will likely be left alone by the authorities. I have been told that the ban is mostly a tool to get rid of troublemakers. However, this could obviously vary depending on the personnel patrolling etc. So if you do decide to drink, maintain a low profile.

In reference to one of the earlier reviews, I do know that in the off season, the campground, which is open year round, does have self-registration. I don't know whether it does or doesn't during the summer peak months.

In reference to the bathrooms. I believe that all of the bath houses have been renovated over the past few years. They are cleaned daily (as far as I have noticed) in season and I have found them to be clean and modern inside with hot showers. Of course on a busy weekend with people coming from hikes, bathing, paddling etc, they may tend to have dirt tracked in them in between cleaning.

The park has a number of in season activities covering interests of the whole family.

You are not allowed to bring in firewood (due to the emerald ash borer), but they do have it for sale.

They have canoes and kayaks for rent at both the day and camping beaches.

It has a nice, clean, modern dump station for RVs.

Of course, the lodge has several restaurants. Also, there are a number of restaurants available in and around Flintstone and Cumberland. We like the frozen custard at the Queen City Creamery in Cumberland and also the wood fired pizza and sandwiches at Puccini's which is just a few miles west of RG.

Enjoy!

Campground closes with a gate at sunset. We arrived before dark but after sunset on July 5th hoping to get a walk-up site and found campground was gated. A park volunteer gave us the on-call ranger's phone number. When he answered he informed us he had no idea if there was any camping available that night because they were closed.

I gave this campground two stars only because I had to rate it with something to leave a review.

I just wanted others to know there isn't after-hours self registration or availability here. We had a long travel day that didn't go our way and had intended to arrive earlier. Don't want others to have a similar experience.

If you enjoy camping in a forested setting with easy access to a lake and lots of trails, then Rocky Gap is a must visit. We came here for a few nights before attending a music festival in the nearby town of Cumberland. It was intended to simply be a convenient place to stay before the show, but turned out to be a really nice campground that we would love to spend more time exploring.

A few things to know. The campground is really big. I think it has over 250 sites + some cabins. At the time of our stay (the last week of May) it was nearly empty and very quiet. While the sites do have good separation, I have a feeling that on a busy summer weekend when the park is full it has the potential to be very noisy.

The only sites that have a view of the lake are 157, 159,161, 164, and 165. Reserve early if you want one of these.

There is a trail that goes all the way around the lake. It's around 6 miles long. Great for hiking or biking, but if you bike it be warned that there are some really rocky sections and hills - wear a helmet! There are also some great trails including one the we ran out of time to hike that climbs to the top of a ridge.

The campground has a small sandy beach and dock for boat launching. They also rent kayaks.

None of the sites have hook-ups, but there is an onsite dump station and lots of water spigots around. Despite the fact that the campground was nearly empty the bathrooms and showers were pretty gross and dirty.

If you have solar panels...well good luck. We did manage to get enough sun in our site by positioning ourselves just right, but I think we had one of the very few sites where that would have worked.

One more thing. The cell service here was great! We could actually see a tower on the ridge across the lake. It must have been a Verizon tower because we got some really blazing fast LTE!