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Best Tent Camping near Union Grove, AL

531 Reviews

Tent campers exploring the Union Grove area of northern Alabama have several established campgrounds within driving distance, including TGL Adventures along the river and the rustic backcountry sites at Walls of Jericho. These tent-friendly destinations offer varying levels of amenities, from primitive sites with no facilities to more developed camping areas with basic services. South Cumberland State Park, located approximately 45 miles northeast, provides additional tent camping options with established sites and access to hiking trails.

Most walk-in tent sites near Union Grove feature basic amenities such as fire rings and designated tent pads. The Hurricane Creek Backcountry Campsite at Walls of Jericho offers free primitive tent camping with fire rings but no drinking water, requiring campers to filter water from the creek. One camper noted, "This is a great spot to camp if you are wanting to do some easy backpacking in Alabama. It is quiet and right on Hurricane creek." Vault toilets are not available at most primitive sites, so campers should be prepared to follow proper waste disposal practices. Access roads to many backcountry areas can be challenging, particularly after rain, with some requiring moderate hiking to reach the tent sites.

Walk-in tent locations provide greater solitude and connection to nature than drive-up camping areas. The terrain at most sites consists of natural forest floor with minimal improvements, creating an authentic outdoor experience. Foster Falls Campground, though farther from Union Grove, offers tent campers spacious sites with picnic tables and access to remarkable natural features. A visitor commented that "the campground has 26 rustic campsites that need to be reserved in advance. Each site has a firepit and a picnic table." Summer months bring higher usage, while spring and fall provide more moderate temperatures and fewer crowds. Tent campers should be prepared for varying conditions, including potential wildlife encounters and limited cell service at more remote primitive tent setups.

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Best Tent Sites Near Union Grove, Alabama (19)

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Recent Tent Camping Photos near Union Grove, AL

24 Photos of 19 Union Grove Campgrounds

Tent Camping Reviews near Union Grove, AL

531 Reviews of 19 Union Grove Campgrounds

  • Katrin M.
    Mar. 7, 2021

    Foster Falls Campground — South Cumberland State Park

    Nice rustic getaway

    We camped here over the weekend with our dogs. The campground has 26 rustic campsites that need to be reserved in advance. Each site has a firepit and a picnic table. It is probably better for tent camping since there are no electrical hook ups. There are also no generators allowed. Some of the sites are very close together like mostly the ones on the entrance. We camped at #19 and it was very private and spacious. The bathrooms were ok. Unfortunately they were never cleaned over the weekend. It was pretty noisy on Friday night and there is nobody to enforce a quiet time. Be aware... roosters are nearby and they start crowing at 4am. Some of the sites are very well shaded. There is no firewood sale in the campground or the visitor center (which is about 17 min away) but locals have it available near by. The landscape is absolutely gorgeous and breathtaking. Foster Falls is just a short walking distance away and so beautiful. In the summertime it's a popular swimming hole. It is also a paradise for rock climbers. South Cumberland has many spread out entrances. We visited Stone Door and Denny Cove. It was so beautiful. We would camp here again but probably not in the summertime because it can get very crowded.

  • Stephanie J.The Dyrt PRO User
    Aug. 28, 2018

    Foster Falls Campground — South Cumberland State Park

    Loud and dirty but spacious with great hiking

    Foster Falls Campground has 26 sites, most of which are very large and spacious. As is common in loop campgrounds, the sites in the center of the loop--especially sites 1-13--are very open, with little privacy between sites, although they are still shady due to the extremely tall trees. The outer loop sites have more underbrush between them providing a buffer. Sites 17-26 all have relative privacy from each other, but are smaller sites in general, although many of them have specified tent pads. The sites closest to the bathrooms all had more bugs while we were there in August, and site 16, while very large, has power lines that run into the site itself.

    This is a very beautiful campground. The towering trees give most sites ample shade, and there is a lot of firewood that is easy to collect from felled trees, particularly on the back half of the loop. The front half of the loop is closest to the trail to the falls, and site 8 has a trail running directly behind it that takes you to the falls overlook, and to the trailhead to walk down to the falls themselves. Our 2 and 5 year old walked from our campsite down to the falls and back up easily, and enjoyed having a trail that led to the falls overlook for nightly post-dinner walks, and it would make a great camping base for anyone looking to hike the Fiery Gizzard Trail. The picnic tables are also very large and made it easy to prepare food and for 5 people to sit comfortably, even with our stove at one end, and the tables are on concrete slabs, which helps keep bugs crawling around your feet down a little, and makes it easier to clean up any food that falls while eating. The bathrooms were also cleaned each morning, with the trash taken out and the floor swept clean of bugs and detritus.

    My biggest complaints about this site are the noise, and how much trash we saw. There is a farm nearby with a rooster that spent the better part of the day crowing, which can be distracting when you have a toddler you are trying to get to sleep, and got very repetitive for the adults as well. We could also hear 18 wheelers both nights we were there during the night. We were there on weeknights so there were very few other campers, but there was a lot of trash still evident from the weekend littered across most of the campsites, and a group that stayed our first night there left their fire ring full of paper towels and banana peels. After reporting it to a ranger, he cleaned up the paper but left the banana peels which made me wonder how strictly the campground enforces proper food storage, and the ranger said that the campers had not paid or registered--despite the fact that park vehicles drove past at least twice since that group set up camp. If kept clean, I would easily give this a 4 or 5 star rating despite the noise, but I was very disappointed in the visibility of human impact--a shame, because it is otherwise a great place, and great for families with small children.

  • Stefan A.
    May. 21, 2018

    Foster Falls Campground — South Cumberland State Park

    Above average campsites, exceptional proximity to natural beauty

    There are very average campsites for RV’s, car camping, backcountry and your average camping spots. HOWEVER, the beautiful hike down to the waterfall is 100 meters from most of the campsites. The views made it an amazing trip.

    Things to know: $5 reservation fee, $8-45 per site

    Amenities: picnic table, fire ring, restrooms, heated shower

    Drawbacks: no electric or water hook-ups. No gas generators allowed

  • Cassandra C.
    Sep. 2, 2017

    Monte Sano State Park Campground

    Quiet campground

    I stayed at site number 063, which was an RV site with electric and water, and it was adjacent to the primitive sites. This campsite had a gravel pad, and setting a tent up outside of the pad was impossible as all of the surrounding area was a steep slope. The pad was plenty big for my one person tent, but I can't imagine anything bigger than a 4 person tent fitting in the area. I definitely recommend the primitive campsites if you're tent camping. The sites in this part of the camp were pretty far apart, and there was plenty of privacy. The park was riddled with trails (22 miles of them), many of which were also open to bikes. The bathhouse was pretty far from site 063, but they were clean.

  • Aly E.The Dyrt PRO User
    Mar. 23, 2025

    Woodybrooke Farm

    Hipcamp near cloudland canyon

    This place is perfect. Small outhouse and far away from everyone. Long gravel road you can drive or walk to three separate ponds to fish(they keep them stocked) and you can also kayak or canoe on the ponds. They have a great little community kitchen and the Hipcamp owner is so sweet! Lots of tent sites and a couple rv electric sites but no water or sewer hookup for the fancier campers needing more accommodations. No shower area besides an outdoor shower near the community kitchen area and good cell signal! And a store is ten minutes from camp so grab some food to cook over the fire! This is a perfect get in touch with nature spot. They have fire rings and tables everywhere and also have firewood! And dog friendly!

  • GoWhereYouAreDraw N.The Dyrt PRO User
    Jun. 9, 2020

    Foster Falls Campground

    Perfect for smaller rigs or tents

    The Foster Falls campground has 26 rustic campsites ideal for tents or small trailers. The Foster Falls Campground is the only camping area in the park where guests may park a car and/or pop-ups next to the campsite. The campground is open year-round.

    All sites have a fire ring and a picnic table. Most sites are wooded, offering some shade and have a level, gravel surface. A few are on a slight incline. There are no water or electric hook-ups but a restroom and heated showers are available. No gas generators are allowed at the Foster Falls Campground. Water must be filtered from natural sources or carried in, be sure to check with the ranger stations about water availability. A pit toilet is also available at each campground.

  • Jeremy H.
    Jun. 22, 2019

    Cathedral Caverns State Park Campground

    Clean, Quiet, Comfortable

    My son Charlie(age 8) and I camped at Cathedral Caverns State Park on June 17, 2019. It was a Monday night. We chose one of the primitive campground sites and paid a little under$20 for one night. Since we were camping we received a discount on our cave tour the next day. It's worth noting that all of the primitive and RV campsites are outside of the state park’s main gates which means that anyone can easily enter or leave the camp at anytime day or night; however, two state employees live fulltime within walking distance of the campsites. It was encouraging to know that help was only steps away if we needed it. One of the rangers actually stopped and introduced himself while making his early evening round. He verified that I had registered at the camp, informed me that it might rain that night, and wished us a good evening. A father and son also drove through the campground about that time in a personal car. I expected him to camp, but later when we went for a walk, we didn’t find him. On our walk we went down to the restrooms gathering kindling in large, reusable grocery bags. We also brought our one gallon water jug. It’s quite a walk to the restroom and unless you are driving, it would be unreasonable to rely on it as your bathroom. Bring a camping toilet or a shovel. The RV sites are right next to the restrooms, which means that if you are in the primitive site it is very unlikely that you will hear RV generators all night. There were no RVs there on our night because the sites were being overhauled and it was closed though the restrooms were still up and running. The restrooms were very clean and spacious with clean, new shower curtains and it was fully stocked with supplies. I can’t say if the water was hot, but my suspicion is that it probably was since the rest of the facility is well kept. Back to the kindling: There’s plenty to be had and we even found four or five logs left by our campsite by a previous camper. Speaking of firewood, there’s plenty of that for sale for a reasonable$10.00 at the restroom facility. Money’s left in a box on the honor system. After cooking two cans of Southgate chili on an improvised Sweedish fire using the charitable camper’s firewood, we played in the field which was easily accessible from the primitive campsite. It’s guarded by a feral but entertaining cat who has an appetite for small rabbits. He almost caught one when he chased it through the campsite and under the picnic table where we happened to be eating supper. I’m not sure if he ever caught him but the last time I saw them they were running through the campsite like the wind. The campsite was simple. There was a fire ring and an old picnic table. You might want to bring a table cloth along or use a tarp if you’re doing more than heating up canned chili. The site was clean as was the entire park. I was easily able to back into the site with a 2007 Trailblazer. Though we had planned on tent camping, we ended up sleeping in the Trailblazer. Dad brought the tent, but he forgot the poles. All of the sites were clean and would have made wonderful tent sites. They were spaced adequately apart to provide a sense of privacy though if you’re pooping in a bucket you might have to be strategic in your temporary John placement. I don’t think my wife would have liked the bathroom situation at all and it might have been a bigger issue for Charlie and me if there’d been anyone else on the campground. We were the sole campers at Cathedral Caverns during our visit. We weren’t the only people using the park though. There were plenty who come to see the cave which true to its name feels like a Cathedral. I’ve been in a few tourist caves but there’s something different about this one. Our tour guide did a great job not only telling us about the beauty and history of the cave, but helped us to imagine one of the caves first explorers and its benefactor Mr, Gurly. If that description doesn’t make you want to visit, here’s this: Legend says there’s a ledge in the cave and if you toss a coin and land it right on the ledge you get your wish. After I tossed my dime I regretted instantly not wishing for a billion instead of a million dollars. I was assured by the tour guide that I could expect my check any day now, so the star review might change depending on how quickly the check rolls in.

  • Benjamin C.
    Oct. 10, 2021

    Cedar Point Campground

    Group Tent Camp!

    We went to camp here with our AHG group. We tent camped to complete one of their badges. We camp often and we enjoy it. The place is clean and organized well. The tent sights are elevated slightly which allows a nice “overlook” of the camp ground. Some tent spots were kind of sloped so be mindful of finding a good flat spot. Bath houses were clean and functioning. Good water front locations. We had a great time and recommend for a short stay.

  • K
    Dec. 29, 2020

    Foster Falls Campground — South Cumberland State Park

    Climber’s Campground

    The campground is great for climbers looking to get an early start on all the routes nearby. It’s not a lot of privacy since all the sites are fairly close together and the vegetation is pretty thin, but it has all the regular amenities (picnic table, fire pit, flush toilet, hot shower, potable water). Access to the sites was easy for any 2WD sedan, every site was reasonably flat for pitching a tent. No firewood around to gather at all so bring your own. Kind of expensive for what it is, but it’s the best option for a drive-in campsite the night before climbing. Cell service ok for Verizon. There’s a hike-in campsite nearby too.

Guide to Union Grove

Camping options near Union Grove, Alabama range from primitive backcountry sites to more developed facilities within short driving distances. The area sits in the southern Appalachian foothills at elevations between 600-1,200 feet, creating varied terrain for overnight stays. Summer temperatures typically reach 85-95°F with high humidity, while spring and fall offer more comfortable camping conditions with nighttime temperatures between 45-65°F.

What to do

Paddling opportunities: At TGL Adventures, campers can access river activities just steps from their tent. One visitor noted, "We ended up fishing til daylight because the river was physically only 10 steps from our tents. There were even steps to take down to the river where we were able to get in and splash around."

Waterfall hiking: The Foster Falls Campground serves as an excellent base for exploring cascades. A camper explained, "Our 2 and 5 year old walked from our campsite down to the falls and back up easily, and enjoyed having a trail that led to the falls overlook for nightly post-dinner walks."

Stargazing: Clear night skies make this region ideal for astronomy enthusiasts. At Ray of Hope Guest Ranch, one visitor experienced "almost a complete view of the nighttime sky. We watched the moon rise over a hill directly in front of the campsite, and we even saw a brilliant shooting star blaze across the sky for what seems like an eternity."

What campers like

Privacy between sites: While tent campsites near Union Grove vary in layout, some offer good separation. At Whippoorwill Woods Nature Retreat, a camper observed that "the campsites are pretty spread out and well hidden from one another. The property has much to offer for campers of all types with views for days."

Easy backpacking access: Several tent camping locations provide backcountry experiences without difficult approaches. The Hurricane Creek site offers "a great spot to camp if you are wanting to do some easy backpacking in Alabama. It is quiet and right on Hurricane creek on the way to Walls of Jericho."

Campground amenities: Some established camping areas include unexpected extras. One visitor to Whippoorwill Woods appreciated that the host "provided plenty of water complimentary along with a s'mores gift bag. There was even a very clean local porta potty."

What you should know

Variable site conditions: Some tent camping areas near Union Grove have maintenance issues. At Walls of Jericho Trailhead, a camper reported, "the primitive camping area is overgrown, and I have seen a lot of trash in the woods. Stayed one night just to hike the trail the next morning."

Limited cell service: Communication can be unreliable in remote areas. A visitor noted, "There is also no cell service so make sure you plan accordingly and have an emergency system in place."

Water access considerations: Most primitive sites require water treatment or carrying your own supply. A reviewer explained the Hurricane Creek site "has no amenities and you must pack in and pack out what you use."

Tips for camping with families

Choose campgrounds with kid-friendly features: When tent camping with children near Union Grove, select sites with appropriate amenities. At TGL Adventures, a parent shared, "I have recently decided on ditching the camper and getting back to old days so I can teach my 13 yr old son there is more to life than internet, video games, ect. This place was amazing... There was a beautiful TeePee set up that was rented out as well."

Consider noise levels: Some campgrounds experience unexpected sounds. One camper at Foster Falls mentioned, "There is a farm nearby with a rooster that spent the better part of the day crowing, which can be distracting when you have a toddler you are trying to get to sleep."

Look for playgrounds: A few camping areas include play structures. A visitor to TGL Adventures mentioned it has a "Nice playground for the kids as well."

Tips from RVers

Limited RV options: Most tent campsites near Union Grove, Alabama don't accommodate larger vehicles. At Easter Posey MWR Campground, a visitor observed, "Easter posey is mainly populated with people who live long term in their RV and work on base. We were one of only 3 guests that stayed for an entire week."

Check road conditions: Access to some camping areas can be challenging for trailers. A reviewer cautioned, "Be aware that you will have to go a little ways down the trail to find water."

Plan for limited hookups: Most camping areas near Union Grove offer primitive accommodations without RV services. One visitor noted, "each camp comes with a fire pit and picnic table" but limited other amenities for vehicles.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is the most popular tent campsite near Union Grove, AL?

According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Union Grove, AL is TGL Adventures with a 5-star rating from 2 reviews.

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TheDyrt.com has all 19 tent camping locations near Union Grove, AL, with real photos and reviews from campers.

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