Howdy Stew,
Yes, your generalization about Eastern NFs is pretty much on point, in my experience, at least. Some of the NF units are VERY small, such as Uwharrie and Croatan here in NC, and there are very small NFs in SC and GA, too. The smaller NFs tend to be in the Piedmont and Coastal Plain. Generally speaking, the NFs are larger and to a lesser extent laced with inholdings in the Foothills, the Blue Ridge, the Smokies, and the mountains west of the core of the Appalachians (here described as the Blue Ridge and Smokies). The western mountains include the Alleghanies in VA and WV, where the principal NFs are the George Washington and Jefferson NF in westernmost and Southwest VA, the Monongahela NF in WV, the Cherokee NF in TN, and the Chattahoochee in northern GA's mountains.
I would say, in general, there are lots and lots of disbursed camping opportunities particularly in the mountain NFs. It can be more difficult to find a truly secluded site, as pretty much every single square yard of land will eventually host a tree if it's not kept trampled down, mowed, or driven across. The result is that simple pull-offs may be fewer and farther between in the more secluded parts of the larger mountain NFs just because they get overgrown.
The Eastern NFs have MVUMs which are printed on cheap newsprint or downloadable. Areas where disbursed camping is not allowed are generally shown on MVUMs, though there may be local variations.
Due to population density, you can expect disbursed camping sites to be harder to find unoccupied during the Spring trout fishing seasons, late Spring through Summer weekends, and during the Fall hunting seasons. Trout fishing and hunting seasons vary widely from state to state and even within a state's boundaries.
And, unfortunately, NFs can draw rowdies from nearby towns and cities, especially on weekends. The good news is that, like everywhere else, knuckleheads tend to be lazy, so you don't often find them far off of a fairly decent road nor far from town.
I've spent time in the Pisgah NF in NC, Cherokee NF in TN, and the George Washington-Jefferson NFs in VA, with a bit of time in the Monongahela NF in WV. If you have particular interests in those areas, let me know, and I might can provide more specific info.
FB
