Big Bend (WV)
We don’t think it should be. Every campground should hold some sites for whoever drives up.Tell your representative →
- Right now
- Taking bookingsSites offered on 15 of the next 30 nights read 15:51 UTC
- A night
- $27–$50Across the site types the agency prices
- Sites
- 46All of them booked ahead
The place
the agency’s own description · what’s there · 7 notices
In the agency’s own words
Big Bend is located in the Smoke Hole Canyon Smoke Hole Canyon next to the South Branch of the Potomac River at the end of County Route 2. Located 10 miles south west of Petersburg, West Virginia. The river is located 200 feet from campground and is open for fishing and non-motorized boat use. A one mile loop trail is available for hiking at the campground and 60 miles of backcountry trails are located close by in the Seneca Creek Backcountry as well as the trails located in Smoke Hole Canyon. Keep reading
Big Bend Campground is comprised of 46 standard non-electric camping units with fire rings, lantern posts, picnic tables and paved spurs. In addition, there is a developed host site equipped with electrical, water, and sewage hookups. Parts of the campground and facilities within it are ABA accessible. The campground contains two single-unit vault toilets, two double-unit flush toilets, and a four-unit flush restroom with four showers some of which are accessible. There are trash dumpsters located in each loop of the campground for garbage collection and disposal. There is one recreation vehicle dump station in Big Bend Campground located adjacent to the campground. Visitors staying at Jess Judy Group Campground may use the dump station at Big Bend Campground. There is an underground holding tank attached to the dump station. Holder is responsible for daily operations and maintenance attached the dump station and holding tank. The average operation and maintenance season for Big Bend Campground and Jess Judy Group Campground has been from approximately April 10th through Oct 31st. At a minimum, the Forest Service (FS) will expect the permit Holder to fully operate the campgrounds from the second Friday night in April through the last Saturday night in October. About 1.3 million people visit the Monongahela National Forest each year. The forest is a drivable distance from metropolises like Washington, D.C., and Pittsburg, yet still offers a remote and scenic camping getaway.
Recreation
The Big Bend Loop Trail is a one-mile nature trail that circles the campground. The majority of the trail follows along the river bend. Thirty miles of maintained trails can be found nearby, and mountain biking is permitted on most trails.
Facilities
Big Bend Campground is comprised of 46 standard non-electric camping units with fire rings, lantern posts, picnic tables and paved spurs. In addition, there is a developed host site equipped with electrical, water, and sewage hookups. Parts of the campground and facilities within it are ABA accessible. The campground contains two single-unit vault toilets, two double-unit flush toilets, and a four-unit flush restroom with four showers some of which are accessible. Jess Judy Group Campground contains three reservable sites that will accommodate up to 40 people each. The campground contains fire rings, picnic tables, lantern posts, and four single-unit vault toilets. There is no electric or drinking water at the group campground although persons camping at Jess Judy Group Campground may obtain water at Big Bend Campground. The group campground is not accessible. There are trash dumpsters located in each loop of the campground for garbage collection and disposal. There is one recreation vehicle dump station in Big Bend Campground located adjacent to the campground. Visitors staying at Jess Judy Group Campground may use the dump station at Big Bend Campground. There is an underground holding tank attached to the dump station. Holder is responsible for daily operations and maintenance attached the dump station and holding tank. There is a wastewater treatment facility (Filtered Drain Field) located within the campground. Holder is responsible for daily operations and maintenance of this facility. The average operation and maintenance season for Big Bend Campground and Jess Judy Group Campground has been from approximately April 10th through Oct 31st. At a minimum, the Forest Service (FS) will expect the permit Holder to fully operate the campgrounds from the second Friday night in April through the last Saturday night in October. The Big Bend Loop Trail is a one-mile nature trail that circles the campground. The majority of the trail follows along the river bend. Thirty miles of maintained trails can be found nearby, and mountain biking is permitted on most trails.
Natural Features
Big Bend Campground is in the northern portion of the Monongahela National Forest, boasting beautiful old growth trees that become vibrant with color in fall. The river runs north through the Smoke Hole Canyon, which bears a name of uncertain origin. One theory is Native Americans used the caves of the gorge for smoking meat, which created "smoke holes." Another is that misty fog often lies along the river and ascends in what looks like smoke from a hole.
Nearby Attractions
The Highland Scenic Highway provides an unforgettable drive through narrow, steep valleys and rolling, tree-topped mountains. Estimated time to drive on this byway is two to four hours, and highlights include Cranberry Glades Botanical Area, Summit Lake and Falls of Hills Creek.
What the agency tells you
Be bear aware; keep all food out of site in approved containers or locked inside your vehicle and remove all food from area after eating
There are no electric site hook-ups at this facility
This campground has first-come, first-serve sites
Everything else this campground posts · 4
A fee will be charged for additional vehicles
Parking is permitted in developed areas only
Don't move firewood: To limit the spread of invasive tree-killing pests, firewood from outside the area is not permitted. Some states have quarantines and may confiscate your firewood. Please help protect our forests from invasive species by obtaining your firewood at or near your camping destination and burning it on-site. Visit dontmovefirewood.org for more information.
Access Road Subject to FLOODING – Roads accessing this recreation area may become impassable due to flash flooding. Monitor conditions and expect delays in departing until flood waters recede. YOUR SAFTETY IS YOUR RESPONSIBILTY
Tents and rigs
- Sites
- 46
- Hookups
- None
- Longest rig
- 30 ft
- Accessible sites
- None listed
- Pets
- Allowed
- Shade
- Every site
Facilities
- Toilets
- Flush Toilets · Vault Toilets
- “…The campground contains two single-unit vault toilets, two double-unit flush toilets, and a four-unit…”
- Showers
- Yes, the record doesn’t say what kind
- “The campground contains two single-unit vault toilets, two double-unit flush toilets, and a four-unit flush restroom with four showers some of which are accessible.”
- Dump station
- Yes
- recreation.gov lists “Dump Station”
Around the campground
- On the water
- Lake, River, Creek
- Boating
- Canoeing
- Fishing
- Hiking
- Hunting
- Kayaking
- Night sky · 29th darkest of 69 in WV
- Bortle 3
Full this Saturdayread 15:51 UTC
How full the weekend is nationally.
OpenBookedClosed
Every one of the 45 sites on offer is taken this Saturday. 37 are free on Tue, Oct 20. read 15:51 UTC Why the weekend fills and the week doesn’t
Watch for a cancellation
Watch this campground
One email when a night opens, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We read recreation.gov once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time a site in your window is free for the nights you asked for.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
Tell me when the season opens
Watch for the season to open
One email when the season goes on sale, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We check once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time the agency has that season on sale.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
We make nothing when you book. The link goes straight to the government.
Every line of the receipt · 15
What you actually pay
Derived by CAMPANAC: the agency’s published rates for this season, $27–$50 a night, plus one $8 recreation.gov reservation fee for the booking. A weekend here means Friday and Saturday night, booked once. Optional charges (an extra vehicle, a second tent, a dump-station fee) are listed separately and aren’t in this total.
Who keeps the booking fee
The agency’s own policy text says the reservation fee and the cancellation processing fee are “retained by the reservation service contractor”, and that a campground concessionaire will decline to refund them because “they did not receive these fees”. Recreation.gov is run under contract by Booz Allen Hamilton. What share of your booking fee the contractor keeps isn’t published in any federal dataset we can read, so we print no number for it. Our reporting on the contract →
How we know this receipt · 5
recreation.gov availability, read 15:51 UTC · rules read Sep 9, 2026 · rates Sep 10, 2026 · How we know all this
The sites
46 sites · which ones have room · the site map
The sites, ranked
from 45 mapped sitesAll 46 sites
The price is derived by CAMPANAC, not published per site: the per-night rate this campground publishes for each site’s own site type. 46 of the 46 sites listed carry one, and a site whose type has no published rate sits out of the price rather than being called free.
| RIVR | 001 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 146 ft | 274 ft | $27–$50 |
| RIVR | 002 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 131 ft | 297 ft | $27–$50 |
| RIVR | 003 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 120 ft | 349 ft | $27–$50 |
| RIVR | 004 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 139 ft | 375 ft | $27–$50 |
| RIVR | 005 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 112 ft | 408 ft | $27–$50 |
| RIVR | 006 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 112 ft | 304 ft | $27–$50 |
| RIVR | 007 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 125 ft | 323 ft | $27–$50 |
| RIVR | 008 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 118 ft | 465 ft | $27–$50 |
| RIVR | 009 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 123 ft | 522 ft | $27–$50 |
| RIVR | 010 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 106 ft | 469 ft | $27–$50 |
| RIVR | 011 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 106 ft | 431 ft | $27–$50 |
| RIVR | 012 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 146 ft | 420 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 013 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 66 ft | 604 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 014 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 66 ft | 651 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 015 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 84 ft | 688 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 016 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 61 ft | 735 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 017 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 61 ft | 761 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 018 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 53 ft | 725 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 019 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 53 ft | 673 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 020 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 166 ft | 598 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 021 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 120 ft | 557 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 022 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 118 ft | 452 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 023 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 118 ft | 421 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 024 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 128 ft | 353 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 025 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 109 ft | 575 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 026 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 109 ft | 481 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 027 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 42 ft | 616 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 028 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 42 ft | 639 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 029 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 96 ft | 740 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 030 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 96 ft | 785 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 031 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 90 ft | 510 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 032 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 90 ft | 596 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 033 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 120 ft | 601 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 034 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 63 ft | 286 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 035 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 126 ft | 564 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 036 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 63 ft | 298 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 037 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 95 ft | 314 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 038 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 78 ft | 223 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 039 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | $27–$50 | ||
| UPPR | 040 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 74 ft | 316 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 041 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 78 ft | 199 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 042 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 74 ft | 340 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 043 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 99 ft | 247 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 044 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 83 ft | 352 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 045 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 91 ft | 304 ft | $27–$50 |
| UPPR | 046 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 83 ft | 413 ft | $27–$50 |
25 of 46 listed
Getting there
the map and the coordinate · the agency’s directions · the phone number
Where it is
Jess JudySpruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area · 0.0 mi
Big Bend CampgroundSpruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area · 0.6 miJess Judy Group CampgroundSpruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area · 1.1 mi
Seneca ShadowsSpruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area · 9.2 miRed Creek CampgroundMonongahela National Forest · 10 miCamp Run CampgroundGeorge Washington National Forest · 13 miFollow 28/55 from Petersburg, West Virginia, for 8 miles. Turn left onto Smoke Hole Road, Route 28/11, and travel for 13 miles to County Route 2. Turn left onto the Smoke Hole Road, County Route 2, and follow for approximately 3 miles to Big Bend Campground.
The weather
the next four days · the thirty-year normal
Next four days, and the thirty-year normal
Forecast
NWS forecast for Petersburg, WV
Typical weather
Typical October night 41°F, day 68°F.
Coldest month of the year: typical January night 22°F, below freezing. Bring a bag rated colder than that, and expect ice in the water bottle.
Daily high and lowDays with 0.10 in or more
A normal is the 1991-2020 average for the month, not a forecast: about half of all Julys are colder than the July line. The seven-day forecast above answers the other question.
The land, and who answers for it
what threatens it · who answers for it · a letter you can send
Roadless country, and what’s coming for it
You’re camping on ground somebody wants. We track the threats and the comment deadlines.
Who answers for this land
Big Bend (WV) is in West Virginia’s 2nd congressional district. Its representative, Riley Moore (R), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: F. See every public-lands vote →
Who can change it · 3
Two offices, two different asks. The draft to the agency asks it to set aside a published share of the sites here for whoever drives up. The draft to Congress asks why that share is zero and presses for a published minimum at the campgrounds it funds.
- The member who votes the moneyRiley M. MooreU.S. Representative · West Virginia’s 2nd district
- Your senator, on the same appropriationJames C. JusticeU.S. Senator · West Virginia
- Your senator, on the same appropriationShelley Moore CapitoU.S. Senator · West Virginia
Read the draft, or change the wording
For the camper who turned up, or tried to book, and couldn’t get in. Every draft is written from this campground’s own record (its agency, its unit, its site count and its own weekend) and the buttons above copy whichever wording is selected here.
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Big Bend (WV), Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area, West Virginia
Dear Riley M. Moore, I’m a constituent in West Virginia’s 2nd district. I tried to camp at Big Bend (WV), Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area, West Virginia, and couldn’t. All 46 sites at Big Bend (WV) are reservable, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 45 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,647 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Big Bend (WV) keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Big Bend (WV). I’m asking you to put it to the U.S. Forest Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Big Bend (WV) (Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area, West Virginia) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Big Bend (WV), Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area, West Virginia
Dear James C. Justice, I’m a constituent in West Virginia. I tried to camp at Big Bend (WV), Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area, West Virginia, and couldn’t. All 46 sites at Big Bend (WV) are reservable, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 45 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,647 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Big Bend (WV) keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Big Bend (WV). I’m asking you to put it to the U.S. Forest Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Big Bend (WV) (Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area, West Virginia) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Big Bend (WV), Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area, West Virginia
Dear Shelley Moore Capito, I’m a constituent in West Virginia. I tried to camp at Big Bend (WV), Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area, West Virginia, and couldn’t. All 46 sites at Big Bend (WV) are reservable, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 45 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,647 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Big Bend (WV) keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Big Bend (WV). I’m asking you to put it to the U.S. Forest Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Big Bend (WV) (Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area, West Virginia) via campanac.com