Crisman Hollow Road Dispersed Camping

While there are only a handful of established dispersed camping sites in this part of the George Washington- Jefferson National Forest (maybe 8 or 9), it is a great option for those in the area seeking some privacy. The road does get busy at times on the weekend as there are several hiking and horse trails off of this road. Of the 8 or 9 sites, maybe 4 can fit a 25' travel trailer, the rest are tent only. Most sites have access to the small stream that parallels the road. This is a great jumping off point to explore Shenandoah National Park if you were not able to get a site there. Note that the road is closed to vehicles from February 1 to the Friday before the Youth Spring Turkey Season in April each year. You can still access by foot during this time.

I found this location to be very quiet, which was enjoyable to me. The road in was a bit rocky in spots, but navigable if you pay attention. I stayed two nights, literally off-grid... no cell service on either T-mobile or Verizon. It was nice to recharge my batteries. I found it difficult to find an established site that could accommodate my Jeep/trailer set-up, but did find a spot that allowed me to pull just off the road with an established campfire spot. The sound of the brook running alongside made it very restful. I stayed two weekdays, and there was a handful of cars, but I wouldn't say it was busy.

After leaving my site, I came upon an abandoned and stripped Minnie Winnie. Creepy, to say the least, especially since someone had broken the wings from a gargoyle statue, and left it sitting on guard at the rear axle. Had I seen this before stopping to camp, I wouldn't have stayed. I still haven't found its story anywhere. Will try to post pix when signal is better. Cleanliness near my site was perfect, as nature intended. Knocked off two stars for the trashed camper within a mile.

Great free camping spot for us out of staters visiting Shenandoah NP. Sites are far enough away to have privacy but too close for totally quiet. Can see how this would get full during peak season. People obviously don’t know what leave no trace means. 🤬 All in all definitely would go back again.

It was a very nice area and very enjoyable to camp there. We only stayed one night and got a spot with a decently big area for our dogs and off the dusty road. There’s a tiny creek right behind our spot and not much water flow. Very quiet with little traffic even on Labor Day weekend. Will definitely add to the camping spot rotation.

There are campsites all along this road, so if this one is taken just keep on driving. The road is packed gravel and an easy drive. The road in also has some nice views.

Our campsite was large and had a fire pit. I had to dig a whole tent out of the fire pit before using it, along with other trash. The area was quiet at night but lots of trucks in the early morning. We were there in mid September and it seems to be a popular hunting spot. Unfortunately our campsite was right off the road so the noise was an issue.

Another star down for no service with Verizon!

We stayed here on a thursday night on August 3, 2023! We’re tenters and drive a sedan. Very accessible, no road issues! Only saw one other camper there. Many available sites, all gorgeous and many near pretty creeks. We were there on a rainy night so maybe that’s why it wasn’t crowded/noisy but didn’t seem too busy in general. Gorgeous sites with lots of space and fire rings - not sure how a rig would handle the sites, the one we had wasn’t level and you couldn’t drive all the way in to the flat area. But as tenters, this was beautiful!

I camped on a Thursday and was pretty empty and quiet. Lots of space for my dog and I to enjoy. We stayed right near Gap Creek Tr and had great spots to camp. Definitely going back to enjoy again.