Best Tent Camping near Jackson, GA

This place is great if you still want some of the comforts of home. Water spouts are dropped around the sites and there is a bathhouse with showers and hot water accessible to all who camp there! The sites for tent camping are fairly close together-you can definitely see the next site because there aren’t a whole lot of trees but still far enough away to feel comfortable. The tent spots have gravel that is hard to get tent states into but also include a picnic table and a fire pit. Wood can be purchased for $5 from the host but you can also forage from the fallen trees on site. You may have to search around a bit but it worked well enough for my crew.

The lake was so beautiful even in the middle of winter and was such a great spot to camp. Some hikes are close by but none are big for elevation changes or waterfalls or anything like that. Still lots of places to go and get off your campsite. Maybe the best part of this park is the disc golf! My crew enjoyed the course and spent a few good hours there!

I would definitely come back and maybe try out one of the tent sites in the woods for a bit more privacy.

Been tent camping here for years, this is the first time with our pop up. It was pretty warm this weekend, but had a great time.

Claystone Park was our first ever experience tent camping. Everything was great from the location of the bathroom and shower house, to ample space, and spectacular views. Quiet hours were respectfully observed, and all the amenities provided within our campsite were more than enough. Clean clean clean

We tent camped here on site 112 on the lakeside camping area. We had a view of the lake and enjoyed renting a double kayak from the state park. Bathhouse was clean. Sites on lake are spaced apart a little more than river campground. We will try sites 87 or 88 on the river next time.

beautiful campground, but if you tent camp, be aware that the tent pads are on a hill and vary greatly in size! so, if you have a bigger tent, scout out a bigger site. the bathroom and shower facilities were fine, functional and clean. the shower floor doesn’t drain super well, so if lots of folks are showering that day, the floor will be wet. the pool is very nice and so is the playground.

We went early August and it was too hot for me. The tent site we reserved was very nice overlooking the lake. We'll definitely go back in the fall. Restrooms were good but some of the sites were a bit of a hike if you are carrying a lot (wood)

Fort Yargo is in the Winder Ga area and is close to Helen, Jefferson, Athens and Atlanta. Entering the campground is a nice paved road and leads to tent camping, cabins, yurts and RV sites.

Very clean park and has Historical area, playground, tennis court, bike and hike trails. Not to mention beach and boating area.

Picnics, camping, boating biking and camping or just day use areas. Pet friendly and all around great park.

There is a small general store, but you are so close to everything if you need it, it's there.

Gread for the Georgia Bulldog crowd as its less then 30 minutes!

I recommend this park highly.

Beautiful looking park. Didn't stay long enough to actually enjoy it. Dirty bathrooms lots of trash scattered throughout the woods near the tent sites. We've stayed at cleaner campsites for cheaper. The staff struggled to understand walk-ins - your stay will be much easier if you plan a week or more in advance. We arrived while the office was open, yet they still couldn't seem to get us the correct car tag or gate code. Would come back to enjoy the park, but would not camp here again.

Less than a half mile off of 75, this is a nice little stop for overnights, however the monthly rates also make it economical for longer stays. Not really anywhere for tent camping. There's a little bit of road noise when youre outside as to be expected with being so close, however theres just enough trees and scenery to make it feel a little more like nature compared to many of the other parks along 75. There are no online reservations, so you need to call or use the online registration request form, if nobody answers just leave a message and they'll be right back with you. Seems to be plenty of availability, we were able to book a monthly spot the day of.

We were back at HLC this past weekend and, as always, top-notch park! We have tent camped for several years but recently upgraded to a new (to us) pop up and we had a blast!

We camped at site 26 (one of the newer sites) and it had full hookup (our PUP does not have a bathroom but does have a galley). The site has electric (50 amp and 30 amp service) as well as free cable TV!!

The sites at HLC are well spaced and the bath houses are spotless!!

The park staff is amazing and the camp hosts are always cleaning up and are available if you need anything!

HLC is our go-to spot for a weekend getaway because of the above-mentioned reasons and it is close to home!!

I am new to kayaking and recently bought my own boat. I wanted to take it someplace with a small, safe lake to spend the weekend practicing. Ft. Yargo was perfect, because I was able to tie my boat up to a tree right at my campsite. I was at site 42, which is a walk-in tent site. It served my purpose well. Otherwise, it's kind of a low-key run-of-the-mill state park. There's a beach for swimming, mini-golf, biking/hiking trails, picnic and grilling space, and they also rent boats (paddle boats, jon boats, kayaks, and possibly canoes). It's close to Atlanta, so if you want to go for a quick trip away from the city, this is a good spot.

My wife and I came here in our pop up camper.  We had never even heard of this camp ground and booked it primarily because we were looking for a nice campground with availability.  We arrived after the Trading Post / Office was closed, and we hit a snag right off the bat.  Our campsite (21) was really not a site for a pop up camper.  This was definitely more of a tent site.  Luckily the camp host was super nice and accommodating.  He put us in spot 23, and luckily we were able to reserve it for the whole stay.  This was a nice private camp site, great for a pop up or tent, but wouldnt be good for a big RV.  There were trails all behind our site, and it was secluded which worked out great because our dog could relax without people passing the site constantly.  The staff here is extremely pleasant and very helpful and facilities are extremely clean.

We played 9 holes at The Creek, a real nice golf course that is in the state park. We really enjoyed the golfing here, but we are not advanced golfers.  We also fished off the dock at Lake Rutledge.  What a beautiful lake.  We would have rented a boat, but we were not able to due to Covid.

We were so happy here, that we have been talking about returning with the kids.  There is a miniature golf course and a playground.  We may even ask the grandparents to come.  They don't like camping but there are beautiful cabins here.

I highly recommend Hard Labor Creek State Park.  A hidden gem.

Indian Springs is near Jackson, GA, about an hour south of Atlanta off I-75. The park has 50-60 camp sites for tents and RVs. Most are back in, with water & 30 amp electric. There is a dump station. WiFi is available at the office. There are modern showers/bathrooms and a playground. There is also a pioneer campground and a group campground, plus cabins. According To the park brochure, Indian Springs State Park in Georgia is one of the oldest state parks in the US. The land was acquired from the Creek Indians by the state through the Treaty of Indian Springs in 1825, and was established as a state park in 1931. The park is named for several springs in the area. The Creek Nation used them for centuries to heal their sick. The water from the springs has a strong sulfur smell and taste. I would not recommend drinking it, but there were people filling plastic bottles of the stuff to take home at the stone Spring House built by the CCC during the Depression. There are several hiking trails, and a stream/creek which runs through the park. There are signs about “No Swimming” but I saw several people swimming anyway. There is a large lake with a boat ramp for fishing. The museum showcases the Creek Indians, a resort from the 1800s, and CCC history.

We stayed in the River Camping Area - Loop D. The campground felt secluded and the sites were spacious. We enjoyed hiking Falls Trail with our two dogs and checking out some of the nearby cities - Jackson & Forsyth.

A few things to note: the internet is VERY spotty and the sites are not level. The entrance is very dark at night and the road is narrow and windy, so try to arrive before dark if you can.

Fort Yargo is a bit of history for Georgia, restored cabin from 1792. Boating, hiking, camping and cabins with another area that is a private resort. Lots of room 1816 acres, 16 cabins, 6 yurts. Many tent and trailers spots. #34 has full hookups. There is a nice pavilion and a fairly new welcome center. It is easy to get to and there is playgrounds for the young ones.

This is a little gem of a state park. Indian Springs State park has a lot to offer. The camp sites are the other side of the lake from the group and public shelters/picnic areas etc so you feel away from everything. The park offers a museum, trails, kayak rentals and more. 

The multi-purpose hike connects to the Dauset Nature Center trails and is worth taking the extra mile or so, at least, to go visit the nature center. The hike is rated as quite hard on All Trails and similar apps but, in reality, is fine for most levels. I am recovering from a back injury and this was my first 5+ mile hike in years. It was more than manageable. 

One downside of the parks location is that you are close to Jackson and neighboring towns. There were some noises (e.g. loud cars) that could be heard from our site at night. It wasn't constant or overly intrusive. The main complaint was that other humans in the park seemed to not have consideration for their camping neighbors and enjoyed driving golf carts around while playing music at full volume. That can happen anywhere though and maybe shouldn't be a 'negative' for the park. 

The park is well kept, comfort stations are fine and staff very friendly and helpful.

Meh I have mixed feelings for hard labor. This is actually my first time camping at their campground. I did find the camp area pretty nice. I did have concerns about some of the trees as I recall last year they camp host had an incident. My issue for me was I used a ground tent this time versus my roof top tent or camper. Man my site choice was horrible! Site 24 turned into a pool. I had to move my tent to RV vehicle parking area. I did consider trenching the site but didn’t want to cause property damage with the rail road ties. Other than the flooding of my site and making adjustments not a bad experience. Just noticed a lot of water issues throughout the park and runoff.

This was my first time camping as an adult with my 8 year old child. We LOVED it here. There is a playground and super clean bathrooms and a laundry area. I am pretty sure you can access the lake at almost every site. We stayed at site 25 and it was perfect for us as tent campers. (I had to go buy tent stakes because of gravel but that's my fault I had no idea about needing different stakes for different grounds sorry newbie issue) The lake is GORGEOUS and super clear. I could stay at any site and probably would be perfectly happy. Its such a gem!