Free camping near Damascus, VA
Within 25 straight-line miles of Damascus, VA there are 31 camps: 22 free, 9 fee. The closest is Backbone Rock Campground, 3.0 miles south-west of town. The closest one our audit calls free is Saunders A.T. Shelter, 4.3 miles out. One of them is a camp Dave has slept at. Today's season read covers 5 of them: 5 open, 0 closed, 0 worth a call. The circle crosses a state line: NC and TN and VA.
Who manages them: 23 on the Forest Service; 5 on NCWRC; 2 on Virginia DWR; 1 spread across 1 other manager.
| Camp | Miles | Cost | Water | Nearest town | Season today |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Backbone Rock Campground | 3.0 | Fee | — | 3.0 mi to Damascus | — |
| Saunders A.T. Shelter | 4.3 | Free | Whitetop Laurel Creek (river) | 0.9 mi to Taylors Valley | — |
| Sandy Flats Iron Mountain Camping Area | 5.1 | Free | Straight Branch (stream) | 2.0 mi to Masada | — |
| Beartree Campground | 6.4 | Fee | — | 6.4 mi to Damascus | — |
| A.T. Abington Gap Shelter | 7.2 | Free | Helicopter Waterhole (water) | 2.0 mi to Offset | — |
| Lost Mountain A.T. Shelter | 7.3 | Free | — | 7.3 mi to Damascus | — |
| Pond Mountain Game Land camping area #2 | 7.5 | Free | — | 7.5 mi to Damascus | Open |
| Pond Mountain Game Land camping area #3 | 7.8 | Free | — | 7.8 mi to Damascus | Open |
| Pond Mountain Game Land camping area #5 | 8.3 | Free | — | — | Open |
| Pond Mountain Game Land camping area #1 | 8.7 | Free | — | 8.7 mi to Damascus | Open |
| Pond Mountain Game Land camping area #4 | 9.9 | Free | — | 8.2 mi to Lansing | Open |
| Jacobs Creek Campground | 13 | Fee | — | 8.8 mi to Bristol | — |
| A.T. Double Springs Shelter | 14 | Free | North Fork Stony Creek (stream) | 2.1 mi to Camp Tom Howard | — |
| Thomas Knob A.T. Shelter | 14 | Free | Middle Fork Helton Creek (stream) | 4.9 mi to Mill Creek | — |
| Cherry Tree Iron Mountain Shelter | 14 | Free | Big Laurel Creek (stream) | 3.2 mi to Stony Battery | — |
| Grindstone Family Campground | 14 | Fee | — | 5.8 mi to Troutdale | — |
| Old Orchard A.T. Shelter | 16 | Free | Lewis Fork (stream) | 4.2 mi to Troutdale | — |
| Fox Creek Horse Camp | 16 | Fee | — | 3.7 mi to Troutdale | — |
| Hurricane A.T. Shelter | 17 | Free | Hurricane Creek (stream) | 3.1 mi to Quebec | — |
| Grayson CountyDave slept here | 17 | Free | — | 3.3 mi to Troutdale | — |
| Little Oak Campground | 17 | Fee | — | 8.4 mi to Bristol | — |
| Old Virginia Group Horse Camp | 17 | Fee | — | 2.9 mi to Troutdale | — |
| A.T. Iron Mountain Shelter | 18 | Free | Ike Branch (stream) | 2.3 mi to Buladeen | — |
| Hurricane Campground | 18 | Fee | — | 3.5 mi to Troutdale | — |
| Trimpi A.T. Shelter | 19 | Free | — | 4.4 mi to Troutdale | — |
| Hidden Valley WMA | 20 | Free | — | — | — |
| Raccoon Branch | 22 | Fee | — | 1.7 mi to Sugar Grove | — |
| Clinch Mountain WMA | 22 | Free | — | — | — |
| Low Gap Camp | 23 | Free | Hinkle Branch (stream) | 3.2 mi to Winner | — |
| A.T. Vandeventer Shelter | 24 | Free | — | 1.5 mi to Butler | — |
| Partnership A.T. Shelter | 24 | Free | — | 2.3 mi to Shady Grove | — |
Every distance on this page is a straight line from Damascus, VA, not a driving distance — a camp four miles out across a canyon can be an hour of road. Cost is the audited three-state verdict on each camp's own record: free, fee, or unpriced where we could not confirm a price. A blank column is a gap in the record, not a statement that the thing is absent. Camps come from state and federal agency records, not from a visit, except the ones marked. Seasons, permits and fire rules change: confirm with the managing office before you go. Found a fee where we show free? Tell us on the contact page.