Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Hodges, AL

This is a great little campground tucked away on the edge of Bankhead National Forest. The location of the campground makes it an excellent location to enjoy the numerous waterfall hikes in the area. The campground was laid out well with spacious gravel sites and full hookups. Sites 2-4 had good views of the pond/field, sites 10-15 backed up to the tree line to provide a little shade all other sites had full sun. The camp host was super friendly and helpful. They have a general store, laundry, bathhouse, and small dog park. The campground has hiking trails on the property if you don’t have time to visit Bankhead NF. If you’re in the area or wanting to spend time in Bankhead NF I’d recommend checking this campground out.

We stayed in early August for 2 nights in the Sleeping Waters campground.

We got there pretty late (after dark) for setting up camp, and I do not recommend doing that. It's about a quarter of a mile walk to the campsite, but the site is absolutely gorgeous! Very secluded and very roomy! The waterfall at the campsite is not large, but it still makes noise.

After we got everything set up and got all the lights out, we noticed the glowing dismalites along the Canyon wall behind our tent!! It was super cool. We also had a creek flowing with crawdads, minnows, and bull frogs. Plenty of wildlife!!

The canyon was pretty cool! The waterfalls were awesome and I loved all the spur trails. Disclaimer: be prepared to get your feet wet!!

The Canyon and campsite were pet friendly. Dogs were even welcome in the country store!! Just not in the seating area for the Soda Fountain.

I have few, minor complaints.. 1) I booked this campsite earlier in the year (early spring, I believe). I specifically wanted a night tour. They did not tell me that they wouldn't have night tours at that time of year. I wish I would've known, as I would've planned the trip for spring or fall. 2) the gate to get into the Canyon after hours for the bath house was difficult to operate. I'd pinch the code in and it wouldn't open. It would take several tries. The gate for the campsite area worked great! 3) The gate leading to the campsites was not marked. At night, it was challenging to determine where to park. 4) In the Canyon itself, not all of the landmarks were marked!! We had a map, but we had never been there before, so we weren't able to find everything easily.

Nice quiet park out on the lake. We were in loop C at the end of the improved sites. The site was level, but the power, water, and sewer were all closer to the center or front of the site than the rear. That wasn’t a dealbreaker, but the sewer was a good bit higher than the paved pad. This made dumping the black tank a little iffy at best. That aside, the park is full of deer, squirrels, birds, all kinds of stuff for the kids to look at. The playground is a bit dated, and the bathhouse could use renovation, but was functioning and relatively clean. The sites are too close together which was nice. It looked as though all of the improved sites had a fire ring and picnic table. There was a dumpster at the end of our loop where the road to the primitive campsites started, so it was only about a minute walk away. The camp store at the front had all the essentials and some souvenirs, as well as the laundry facility. Everyone we met there, including the staff and volunteers, were all great. The kids loved it, and we will definitely be back to the park again.

Love love this campground!! We stayed right on the water, the spots are big and spacious. Fire pits provided, very clean with great walking trails, dog friendly. Easy access!!

Stayed for one night in an RV. Single female traveler with one dog. We hiked all the trails and they were well manicured and followed a frisbee golf course. They have full hookups and back in spots. I went in August and there were many vacancies. I stayed as a stop between destinations but could’ve easily made a trip out of the park itself. There were picnic tables, lots of trees, paved roads. I made reservations through reserve america. There was a camp host to answer questions .

We've visited Tishomingo State Park twice in the last few months.  The first was in February when we stayed at the cabins.  They have big porches, a kitchen, bathroom, and two beds which was perfect for two couples to visit.  They are quite old, but it adds to the charm of the cabins.  We had a fire in the fire pit at night, played disc golf, hiked, and walked down to the river to sit a bit.  Such a nice weekend!

Easter weekend we took our camper to Tishomingo State Park.  It was a lovely time despite the rain on Friday night!  We spent one afternoon playing disc golf and hiking.  The hiking trails are lovely!  Our dog enjoyed it too.  On Easter weekend, there is a huge Easter egg hunt for children which drew a lot of people.

We camped over the weekend in the old part of the campground. All sites have a firepit and a picnic bench. The sites are not very leveled and some were kinda flooded after heavy rain. It was just a bit run down. The bathhouse was old but clean and had good water pressure. The sites on the other side of the lake were absolutely beautiful and definitely newer. A lot of things in the campground were closed like the pool, lodge, and nature center. It seems they were under construction. The park has several trails to hike on. We did the one starting on the swinging bridge. They was good water access from a creek along the way, which was perfect for the dogs to cool off. We also visited Tupelo, which is about 50 min away. It was very interesting to see, where Elvis was from. I'm not sure if I would camp here again. Maybe in the late fall or winter time, when it's not so hot and humid.

ONE OF THE BEST STATE PARKS IN ALABAMA GREAT TRAILS LARGE RV SITES GREAT STAFF AND GREAT EVENTS PLENTY OF WILDLIFE RUNNING AROUND

Sipsey wilderness is one of my favorite places in Alabama to go backpacking, especially in the spring in fall when the weather is not absurdly hot and the mosquitos are not out to kill. There are many small backcountry campsites all along the trails and I have tried to catalog and review as many of them as I can to help people plan their trips to the area. Make sure to take a look at my other reviews to get a more comprehensive view of my favorite trails and places to stay. This site is located right next to a small waterfall in a little alcove off of the main trail. It is really an incredibly beautiful space and I suggest visiting even if you don't end up setting camp here. The ground is relatively level and sandy which makes for a comfortable tent setup. However, the water levels in Sipsey are highly variable since we get a lot of rain in Alabama and most of the levels are dependent on runoff. Overall, it may not be the best option depending on the time of year but if you gauge it right the space is peaceful and the sound of the water can help lull you to sleep.

Ended up at this location after a crappy night in Alabama. It was very clean nice location. Very nice Mississippi State Park Campground. All the staff were very friendly and Gary was a great guy that we chatted with for a bit after checking in. Restrooms were clean and air conditioned. Family type campgrounds with friendly happy campers. We will be back a lot more in the future.

Located in Northwest Alabama, not far from the Sipsey Wilderness, Dismals Canyon offers an unparalleled camping experience that stands out in the state. While it may lean toward the higher end in terms of cost, the memories you create during a special weekend getaway here are absolutely worth it. During our most recent visit, we chose to stay in one of the cozy cabins, but the campgrounds also present an excellent lodging option. These cabins feature a generously sized kitchen, a warm and inviting living room complete with a fireplace, and two comfortable bedrooms. Outside, there are ample spaces perfect for relaxation and al fresco dining. The campgrounds are situated just across the street from the rest of the park and require a short stroll to reach. They offer a variety of camping choices, each with its unique appeal. For more detailed information about these options, you can refer to their website. A standout experience during our stay was embarking on the night hike the first evening we arrived. This adventure allowed us to explore the canyon in the darkness before immersing ourselves in its beauty during daylight hours. We were fortunate enough to enjoy a private tour on a Friday night and were treated to a mesmerizing display of glow worms, which call this canyon home. While the trails within Dismals Canyon may not be particularly lengthy, you'll find yourself utterly captivated by the allure of the surroundings. Be sure to allocate a full day to fully explore and lose yourself in the canyon's enchantment. In summary, Dismals Canyon delivers a camping experience like no other in Northwest Alabama, close to the Sipsey Wilderness. Whether you opt for the cozy cabins or the campgrounds, you'll be treated to a remarkable getaway. Don't pass up the opportunity to embark on a night hike to witness the canyon's beauty illuminated by the glow worms. With its captivating charm, Dismals Canyon guarantees cherished memories.

PROS 

We were able to reserve 368 days prior to arrival 

Very friendly and helpful check-in clerk 

Fantastic view of the lake from site 45 

Mostly quiet except for campground party animals until 3am! 

Concrete parking pad 

BBQ grill 

Fire ring constructed of concrete pavers 

Coin-operated washers/dryers in shower/toilet facility 

Small playground, pool and mini-golf course 

Good jumping off point for Shiloh Battlefield 

CONS 

Campsite 45 was full of litter…cigarettes butts, bones, bottle caps, pieces of chalk, straws, melted soda bottles…just nasty 

Fire ring made of concrete pavers full of ash and trash upon arrival…again nasty Pedestal BBQ grill full of trash and ash upon arrival…more nastiness 

Campers ignored basic rules/courtesy/respect such as keeping dogs on leash and walking through occupied campsites at anytime. One camper walking through our site complained to us our chairs on our site were in THEIR way. 

No senior discount 

Narrow site 

Site 45 not level 

Site 45 mostly fun sun 

Basically we didn't experience any of the campground rules being enforced so obviously there is no management oversight at this State Park 

Never saw a park ranger drive through the campground (Saturday-Monday) 

Never saw a camp host or a campsite for a camp host

Campground quiet hours not enforced 

Posted "No Swimming” from campsites along lake, but that didn’t stop a sole and no one enforced it 

Concrete picnic table at end of parking pad, so at the bumper of the camper 

Sites very close to each other with no vegetation between sites, so no privacy what so ever 

Street lights throughout campground, so not dark sky friendly 

Small playground, pool and mini-golf course not walkable from campground 

Trash dumpsters outside of campground…not walkable 

Twisty, steep and narrow roadway into campsite...not for novice rig drivers

Due to short campsites, tow vehicles had to be creative with parking, sometimes blocking most of the campground road, again no enforcement efforts

No WiFi 

1 bar Verizon

Tombigbee SP

Elvis was born in Tupelo, Mississippi and Tombigbee SP is a good spot to base your exploration out of.

I overnighted here enroute to Alabama. It wasn’t the best maintained or newest park , however it was small and quiet. Something that had me confused my first time around the loop was the orange cones blocking the sites. Then I guessed that meant the site was reserved. The shower house had washers and dryers in the middle area. The building was clean and maintained. It was centrally located. Across the street was a nice big field, playground and baseball diamond. The trails and disc golf was in the same area. There’s also a small lake with a dock. Otherwise Tombigbee SP really wasn’t that memorable.

Togetherness Works is 5 mile south of I-22/US-78 along a very good Alabama 253.  Junior Beasley and his wife have owned it for many years.  When they were able they were full time RVers and have traveled extensively around the country.  There are about eight sights all gravel and level.  The back in sites have a nice deck beside your parking spot.  There are also a few pull thrus for longer rigs or those who do not want to unhook. Very safe and secure.  It is a favorite location for Tiffin Wayfarer owners to stay since it's only 6 miles from the factory.  But everyone of us would stay here again regardless of it's proximity to the factory.  Just call ahead and Junior will meet you at the entrance and escort you to your site.  They also have a laundry facility for those dirty clothes.

Campground Review:

Sipsey is one of the real jewels of Alabama for backpacking and you really feel like you are in another world while wandering though these woods. There are so many different trail loops and through each you can see lots of different streams and waterfalls. The major advantage to backpacking in Sipsey is that there are tons and tons of campgrounds. You hike along the river and almost every quarter mile you come across a set up campground and each is more beautiful than the last. We did a backpacking trip with friends here in the middle of the summer and it sure was hot. Luckily though the rivers made for a great way to cool off. Just make sure to check the weather in advance cause the rivers can be dried up the wrong time of year or you can get heavy rain. The weather in Alabama can change at any moment.

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**Product Review:**

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get to test products. At this campground, I tested the Tentsile Connect Tree Tent. I got it as a graduation gift and it is one of the coolest tents I have ever used.

After using it both car camping and backpacking my favorite things about the tent are:

1. Coolness factor: I mean who can say they never dreamed of living in a tree house! This is definitely the adult version of that dream. Every time I set up the tent I get tons of questions from people who are interested. It is such a cool experience to sleep off the ground while not being cramped up in a traditional hammock.
2. Location flexibility: Because the tent can be setup anywhere you find 3 trees that are spaced far enough apart you don't have to worry about the ground not being flat. This is also useful if rain is in the forecast because we had no issues with ground water. Although it can be a challenge at first to learn the setup process after a few years with the tent it gets much easier. The key is just getting everything level and balanced.
3. Comfort: When you get the tent set up right it is one of the most comfortable ways to camp. My wife and I each have our side of the tent and you don't have to worry about rocky ground.