Campsites beside running water
27 of the 99 campsites with a page qualify.
Not the river page. The Potomac is nine sites at the bottom of the forest; this is every pitch with running water inside 500 ft of it, which is mostly Fifteenmile Creek and the unnamed runs that feed it. Close enough to hear from the tent.
The app’s water tag is campers’ judgement; this page is the measured distance, so the two lists differ a little.
Independent, free, and built by campers. Not a DNR service.
- Booking
- None. Sites are first come, first served.
- Fee
- $10 a night for a standard site, $20 for a group site, paid at headquarters. Maryland DNR.
- Check in
- Sign the sheet at headquarters when you arrive, then go to the site.
- Is it free tonight?
- This page cannot know. The app shows what the sign-up sheet last showed, with the photo's age.
A mapped watercourse within 500 ft of the pitch, measured to the nearest point on it.
- The test
- A mapped watercourse within 500 ft of the pitch. Distance is to the nearest point on the water, not to a named place on it.
- Where it comes from
- Watercourses from OpenStreetMap; the distance from the pitch measured against the USGS 3DEP model. A stream with no name in the data is called running water here rather than given one.
- What it does not mean
- None of this is drinking water — there is no potable supply anywhere in the forest and you bring what you need. Nor is it permanent: the smaller runs go dry in a hot summer, and a creek 200 ft away can be a dry bed in August.
The first 12, closest water first
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Campsite 66
Hollow, by a creek, rough in, quiet.
- Running water 49 ft northwest
- 509 ft, southeast-facing hollow.
- Rough road, 6.3 mi unpaved, 42 min from HQ, 15% grade on the way.
-
Campsite 3
Valley-floor, by a creek, easy in, some noise.
- Running water 92 ft northeast
- 804 ft, east-facing valley floor.
- Gravel road, 2.0 mi unpaved, 14 min from HQ.
-
Campsite 88
Hillside, by a creek, rough in, quiet.
- Running water 92 ft southeast
- 645 ft, southeast-facing hillside.
- Rough road, 2.7 mi unpaved, 27 min from HQ.
-
Campsite 89
Hillside, by a creek, rough in, quiet.
- Running water 105 ft north
- 597 ft, northeast-facing hillside.
- Rough road, 3.0 mi unpaved, 29 min from HQ.
-
Campsite 65
Hillside, by a creek, rough in, quiet.
- Running water 112 ft west
- 688 ft, southeast-facing hillside.
- Rough road, 6.0 mi unpaved, 40 min from HQ, 15% grade on the way. The pitch sits 72 ft from the road.
-
Campsite 78
Hillside, by a creek, rough in, quiet.
- Running water 141 ft south
- 689 ft, southeast-facing hillside.
- Rough road, 1.9 mi unpaved, 8 min from HQ, 17% grade on the way. The pitch sits 135 ft from the road.
-
Campsite 91
Bench, by the river, easy in, quiet.
- Running water 148 ft southeast
- 478 ft, bench.
- Gravel road, 6.2 mi unpaved, 52 min from HQ.
-
Campsite 82
Hillside, by a creek, rough in, quiet.
- Fifteenmile Creek 154 ft south
- 532 ft, west-facing hillside.
- Rough road, 1.3 mi unpaved, 12 min from HQ, 16% grade on the way.
-
Campsite 77
Hollow, by a creek, easy in, quiet.
- Running water 157 ft south
- 713 ft, east-facing hollow.
- Gravel road, 2.0 mi unpaved, 8 min from HQ, 12% grade on the way.
-
Campsite 92
Bench, by the river, easy in, quiet.
- Running water 167 ft south
- 479 ft, bench.
- Gravel road, 6.2 mi unpaved, 52 min from HQ.
-
Campsite 94
Bench, by the river, easy in, quiet.
- Running water 171 ft southwest
- 480 ft, bench.
- Gravel road, 6.2 mi unpaved, 52 min from HQ.
-
Campsite 95
Bench, by the river, easy in, quiet.
- Running water 171 ft west
- 480 ft, bench.
- Gravel road, 6.2 mi unpaved, 52 min from HQ.
The other 15 that qualify
Same test, same order. Each number opens that site’s page.
The other shortlists
- Easy-access campsites 12
- Campsites for a low car 12
- River campsites 9
- Quiet campsites 69
- Campsites for a camper van or a trailer 14
- Campsites with the most open sky 22
- Sunny campsites 49
- Shaded campsites 17
- Campsites near headquarters 32
- Campsites with a phone signal 7
- Secluded campsites 10
- Campsites near a trail 25
Every list is built from the same data, and a site can appear on several of them.
Provenance
This list is generated from open data at build time, not compiled by hand. Nothing on it is a recommendation: it is a test, run over every campsite, with the test written at the top of the page so you can disagree with it.
- Elevation, landform, slope, the horizon profile, sun times and the steepest grade on the approach come from the USGS 3D Elevation Program (3DEP).
- Roads, surfaces and watercourses come from OpenStreetMap contributors, licensed ODbL.
- Campsite coordinates and sections come from the Maryland Department of Natural Resources campsite layer.
- Pitch tags — room for a trailer, secluded, a view — come from campers, and are the only thing here that is a judgement rather than a measurement.
- Availability comes from nowhere, because there is no source for it. See above.
Independent, free, and built by campers. Not a DNR service. Greenridge is not affiliated with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources or any government agency, and the forest’s own rules always win.