Rocky Branch Campground

• May - Oct

• 41 sites w/electric (50 amp is available)

• $20 - $21 (depending on pass cost could be $10 per night)

• Reservations accepted (during high season on weekends recommended)

• recreation.gov or call 877-444-6777

Swimming beach, dump station, dock, water, picnic table, fire ring, paved pads, fish cleaning station, toilets, showers, water sites, trash

The drive to Rocky Branch is set in rural Arkansas in the rolling Ozark Mountains.  It is a narrow, winding, rolling with a dense covering of beautiful trees giving a sense of peace and serenity.  Depending on your route I suggest filling your gas tank and get your groceries before getting to far out of civilization.  It is several miles back to a grocery store.

As you get ready to enter the campground there is a large marina with a great deal of traffic especially during the summer and on weekends.  If traveling during the summer I would recommend reservations and if you have a particular site you would prefer I would reserve as soon as possible.  ASAP  Check the site sizes as most sites are small and will not accommodate larger rigs.  Smaller is king here.

Fishing, boating of all kinds, SUP, hiking, biking, take your pick.  Beaver Lake has nearly 500 miles of beautiful shoreline.

Beaver Lake is known for small and large mouth bass, bream, crappie, catfish, stripers and white bass.  If you have a boat take your chances or hire a guide.

Within a short drive you will find Hobbs State Park and the War Eagle Mill.  Hobbs gives you more options for enjoying the beauty of the Arkansas Ozarks.  There is a renovated shooting range and has one lane that is for wheelchair use.  The range is free to the public.  Check this out from 0800 hours to 1630 hours (8 am to 4:30 pm) Tuesday thru Sunday.

If you tire of water sports and kicking back to a slow pace you can always do a bit of sightseeing.,

NWA (North West Arkansas as it is know in Arkansas) is a gold mine of diverse sights and locations.  Crystal Bridges is a world class American Art Museum with a setting in a natural Ozark woods with springs and a beautiful walking trail.  Eureka Springs will give you the sense of being in a quaint European or Victorian town.  The downtown area is on the National Register of Historic Places.  Pea Ridge steps you back into the Civil War.  Pea Ridge was the location of an important pivotal battle west of the Mississippi.  You will find a 4.300 acre site with a seven mile self guided auto tour.  War Eagle Mill is a working gristmill that was built in 1832.  At the mill there is a beautiful stream with an old one lane wooden plank bridge.  You may walk across or drive.  Buy some organic grain on your visit.  Great stop for the kids with wonderful shade trees.  A step back in time.

A visit to this area is not complete without a visit to Bentonville to the Walmart Museum.  The museum is located inside the original 5 & 10 Walmart store opened in 1950.  Enjoy an Ice cream cone while you are there.

Our visit was mosquito free and very few flies.  We also did not encounter ticks or chiggers so this was a major bonus.

This our third campground on Beaver Lake this summer. We would definitely come back to this one.  It was quiet and not busy which probably says more about the season than the campground.  I see lots of reviews that rate a campground down for not having amenities and suppose that is what a lot of people expect. But for me and family, we just want a nice quiet place to camp that has a place for the kids to swim.  

I liked how the sites were laid out in the 2nd part of the campground (sites 30-40) better than the first section.  The first section is by the water so it has that going for it but they are all pretty close to the other sites.  The 2nd part of the campground has sites that have good space in between. We were in site 34 and loved it.  

The campground has 2 swimming areas. No real beach but the site at the day-use boat ramp is better than the campground swimming area.  I don't expect much from the swimming beaches so it was sufficient.

We did hike on the trail that is in the campground. It appears to have been a loop at one point but one section of it is closed off and not in use.  The starting point is at the shower house.  It comes to a tee at one point and if you take the left it will be about .25 mile out and back. If you take the right way it will be about a .5 mile hike that will lead to an old campground and bathroom facility.  You then have to hike back to the beginning or you can cut through at one point into the campsites.

The campground is in close proximity to Hobbs State Park so my family took advantage of one of their trails as well.