Spruce Knob Lake

The site was in great shape. The guy who manages the campground was friendly and personable, a great resource of information about the area, and keeps the place very well cared for.
There is no general lighting in the campground. It's really dark (which is why I came--for astrophotography). But when you turn on a light after sunset, you become a magnet for every insect in the forest. Be prepared.
Based on previous experiences at other campgrounds, I dreaded the vault toilets until I saw them. They were clean, well-stocked, bug-free, and didn't smell at all.
Finally--the road. The paved road from Rte. 38 to Spruce Knob is really great. From Spruce Knob to the campground is 5 miles of good packed-gravel road. And potholes. Serious potholes. They are hard to see because they are the same color as the road surface, and the dappled shade in the daytime further disguises them. Do not get cocky. Do not exceed 20 mph. Ever. No matter how smooth it seems at the moment. Seriously.
If you're low on gas, fill up before you leave Rte. 38. It's a long drive to the campground and back (about 50 minutes each way). The closest gas is 2.5 miles north of the turn-off on Rte. 38.
There is very little in the way of services/supplies in the area. The closest drug store is 14 miles east, in Franklin (Rte. 33 and 220). There's also a dollar store and gas station there. Beautiful drive.
If you have a few hours, climb Seneca Rocks--about an hour climb gaining about 900 feet elevation. Allow 3 hours for dawdling, round-trip. Kids can do it. Take water (!) and snacks. And take time to appreciate the incredible sunny forest.
For an afternoon, the Green Bank Observatory is a good trip. Allow 90 minutes to get there, and schedule the bus tour of the satellite dishes--the only way to get close. Take a disposable film camera--no electronic devices allowed.
I had the barest T-mobile cell phone signal at the top of Spruce Knob. Otherwise, nothing.
Have fun.

I love this place as it is peaceful and quiet.

Had a good time with the boys. The on duty guide/caretaker, Rich, was very helpful and knowledgeable. However, be aware that this is very much a “glamorous camping” spot. You sleep with your car and we’ll maintained public bathrooms about 20 feet away from the designated tent pitches. There isn’t much in the way of trails, unless you plan on doing some long-distance and multi-day backpacking. The lake was great, the mountain offers dope views, the “roads” are trash (potholes), and the weather is… well it’s mountain weather lol. Overall lots of fun and i would come back again. Not during spring though.

First ever camping trip for both my girlfriend and myself. It was an amazing experience, the guy at checkin was super nice and everything beautiful and clean. Fished the weekend at the lake and both got our first brook trout!

1. Be familiar with how to use your camera for astrophotography. Or, bring an iPhone.
2. Remember your tripod.
3. Hike down the lake at sunset, taking a red light source with you.
4. Be amazed at the night sky and photograph it. Don't use white light because you wreck your and other's night vision.
The campground is well maintained, beautiful, and as peaceful as others keep it. (Remember this.) Even the vault toilets are tolerable.
The water is over-chlorinated, so you may want to boil-off the chlorine, or use a zeolite or charcoal filter.
Spruce Knob is not far away and worth the visit on a clear day.
You drive several miles on a pretty rough gravel road. Be careful. You may need to yield to some larger trailers and RVs.
It's a great campground.

Gorgeous campsite. Lots of private spots. Saw shooting stars while lying in my sleeping bag; unforgettable! Depending on where you are, it can be quite a walk for water, so bring big jugs. No showers. Hiking in the area was out of this world!! Will definitely be back.

The weather was perfect for tent camping and the Autumn leaves were already on the way to peak color. Campsite was neat and tidy and ready for my arrival. Bathrooms were clean and well stocked. Very enjoyable 3 days.

This campground was gorgeous!! Each site was surrounded by trees and pretty private. The ranger was really nice and super helpful. The drive to get there was a bit rough (literally- the road was unpaved and had lots of divots) but that was the only downside!

This was one of the most beautiful, quiet campgrounds I've been to! We were there in Sept (2021) for an extended weekend stay and were not disappointed. All of the sites are pretty private -- each unique and surrounded by trees away from the road. The lake is gorgeous -- we enjoyed fishing there in our canoe. It's so dark that you can see the arm of the Milky Way at night and so many stars! (Go to the lake for the best exposure of the night sky!) Lots of hiking trails within driving distance that are easy to get to. The water from the pumps tastes great!

All the reviews said that the vault toilets were very clean and this was not a lie -- cleanest vault toilets I've ever been at any park anywhere! Which is important when you are camping at a site without running water facilities.

Only downside is that it does take a half hour to get down the mountain to anything resembling civilization (which wasnt a negative to us -- we go for that kind of thing -- but I just put that out there in case you wanted some place more accessible to something).

We would definitely come back to this campground on a future trip to WV!

Campsite was very well kept. Camp ground attended was very informative and friendly. The lake area was clean, very good for fishing and peaceful. The sunset at the lake is breathtaking. We love the area for hiking and viewing the wonderful and wild mountains of WV!