Best Tent Camping near Marion Junction, AL

In New England it's challenging to find a campground that is open in late November/early December but that's certainly not the case in the south! Sometimes I experience the opposite problem, tons of people everywhere thanks to the warmer weather. However, when we pulled into Gunter Hill this time of year we were surprised to see how empty the place was. There were a few large RVs in the area but only one other tent camper like ourselves.

The sites are nicely spaced out so even if there had been a lot of people there, it wouldn't have felt too crowded. Large old trees with beautiful Spanish moss provide plenty of shade in the sites. The river also runs pretty close to some of the sites as well. Our site had a nice paved pull in as well as a gravel area with a large picnic table and fire ring. In addition there was a stand up grill available as well. On the other side of the concrete pull in was a nice flat spot for us to pitch our tent. Plenty of room for everything here. Water and electric hookups were easily accessible right in our site. The ground below the water spigot drains well and doesn't create a large mud puddle when you use it, a piece of campground engineering I have come to greatly appreciate. The site has a nice lantern/trash pole that includes a small shelf, great for all sorts of things!

The bathrooms are nice and were all maintained. We didn't use the showers but the toilets and sinks were more than adequate for morning and evening necessities.

The location is great, right outside of the city and perfectly placed for us to stop on our road trip from the national park sites in Tuskegee and heading to them in Selma.

Despite being two females and the campground being relatively empty, we felt incredibly safe. I mention this because this is not always the case when we camp in southern states.

PROS 

Immaculate grounds throughout the campground. Always saw someone working at it. 

Site 49 level concrete pad surrounded by pea gravel, with moveable aluminum table, pedestal BBQ grill, metal fire ring and wooden fish cleaning table. 

Bathhouse very clean and in good working condition with soap and TP 

Quiet except for occasional train whistle 

Sue at gate check in very nice and helpful and then Bill escorted us to our site. What great customer service! 

Security gates closed at 10p; open at 6a. No overnight entry. 

America the Beautiful Pass discounted the site to$15/night...WHAT A STEAL! 

No reservation transaction fee incurred 

T-MOBILE 2 bars 

CONS 

Site numbers painted on asphalt and on electrical box 

Roads are narrow in some areas 

No park WIFI 

Don’t Miss 

Barges on the waterway 

Smokin’ Jack BBQ in Demopolis 

Lower Pool park with the damn and the last lock heading south

We had a great time visiting Payne Lake this weekend! We stayed at a primitive campsite with a beautiful view of the lake. 

My biggest advice is to bring. your. own. firewood. As far as we could tell, there was nowhere at the campground to purchase bundles of firewood, and even the local grocery stores/gas stations weren't stocked with any either. We spent quite a bit of time using a hatchet to cut up down trees to fuel our firepit. 

The campground is organized well and we were able to have our pick of campsites (mainly due to the fact that it was 30 degrees the whole weekend). The primitive campsites all had picnic tables and fire pits. Our group also uses hammocks and there were plenty of trees near enough together for hammock hanging. 

When we got to the campground, the check in area is quite simple. There is a box with envelopes/forms to fill out that ask for your payment (in cash!), car information, and site number. Once you fill out your information, you simply drive and park at your campsite. As far as we could tell, each site had ample room for parking 2 cars within 15 feet or so. We paid $6 a night for the site, as well as an extra $3 fee/day because of a third car. 

The area is quiet and peaceful, and the lake is a beautiful spot to catch the sunrise. On the East Side of the lake, we got a large amount of late afternoon sun, but minimal sunshine until later in the morning. The West Side saw a lot of sun early in the morning. 

We got the chance to meet the Camp Host, who was very gracious and also introduced us to his dog, Reecie. He even offered to take our trash out for us!

We took a walk around the entire campground, and it is clear that the West Side of the lake sees more visitors and is generally kept up with more. The blue hiking trail on the East side required quite a bit of bushwhacking and didn't seem to have much upkeep at all. On our hike, we ended up walking the roads of the campsite and seeing the whole grounds.

We have stayed here many times when were on the road heading  out for the summer.  We had full hook up, a picnic table & there is a small clean restroom near the pool if needed along with a laundry room & place to sit inside if it's hot out.  They have DVD's and some books we trade them where were there. We only stay a night & stay hooked up to the truck. The owners Gigi & her husband work hard to keep the gardens beautiful, the campground maintained & the pool is so clean & refreshing.  You can get propane here. 

We've stayed 3 different time & had a nice site towards the back with a garden on the side. 

It's off the beaten path a little but well worth it.

Full Service Hookups 30/50 AMP Electrical Service Pull Through Sites Large Sites– plenty of room for slide outs City Water Propane Fill and Exchange Center– 7 days a week Trailer Rentals– Fully Equipped Ice Escort to Site, 24-Hour Laundry Room Clean Showers Free WIFI Hotspot Park-Like Setting– lots of shade trees Walking Trails Swimming Pool~ Seasonal, Picnic Areas Group Fire Ring Gazebo Group Picnic Area.

My family and I visited Alabama a few years ago while on a family reunion. We decided to do some camping the last 2 nights we were visiting. We stayed here, and really enjoyed our stay. We stayed in the tent area, and just set up 2 tents (there was 4 of us). The campsite fit both tents, had a table and fire ring. We spent the evening around the campsite roasting marshmallows. The place we stopped at ran out of chocolate and crackers, so we only had mallows. It was still super yummy. Bring your own so this doesn’t happen to you :). The campground was clean, although there was only 1 bathroom. It didn’t smell very good, so we were pleased that we weren’t close to the bathroom for that reason! Kinda felt bad for the people who had campsites near the bathrooms. Also, we really appreciated that there was a dumpster onsite as well. I think this helps with keeping the place clean. We found a hike to do in the morning and it was great. For my first visit to Alabama, I definitely enjoyed it and hopefully it won’t be my last!

This area was absolutely gorgeous. We took a trip to Alabama a few summers ago to visit family, and decided to do some camping and hiking before we went home. The drive was beautiful. The campground itself is located right next to a lake- Demopolis Lake. We later learned that this lake is actually one of the largest lakes that is on the Black Warrior Tombigbee Waterway. Thought this was a cool fact. It was pretty hot, so having this lake was definitely great. There were tons of people out on the lake fishing, swimming, jet skiing and kayaking. There is a boat ramp too. There is also some really great hiking nearby, which we enjoyed in the morning. The hike we did had some amazing views of the Black Warrior River and McConnico Creek. Nothing like getting to the top of a hike and seeing lakes beneath you! The campground was great, and had everything we needed. There were about 40 campsites total, all set up with water hookups. There is a playground onsite, picnic table area, showers, and laundry! Most campgrounds don't off shower and laundry- so this would be a great place to visit if you plan to stay a few nights/weeks. Just FYI- there are gates which open at 6am and close at 10pm. Loved our stay here, and would definitely come back.