Best RV Parks & Resorts near Helmsburg, IN

The electric and water hookups are not in standard locations for RV hookups. Make sure you bring an extension for your electric hookup, otherwise you might not be able to reach the post. Same for water hookup. We had a lakefront site, however it wasn’t lake view. Sites 12/13 do not have a view of the lake due to dense brush in front of it. All other lakefront sites have a view. There is not a camp store, so make sure you have all the supplies you need or you’ll have to make a trip to Salem, which is only about a 20 min drive. There’s excellent cell service, no WiFi. There are laundry facilities at the bath house.

We called for reservations less than two weeks in advance, and they only had one site left. If coming from the north-west, try to arrive before dark as the road over the hills to this place is beautiful, but narrow and forested with some trees very close to the roadway. The entrance road to the campground is quite steep. We arrived after the office had closed, so they had left an envelope taped to the door with our name and a map to our site. We were in the full-hookup, back-in RV sites connected with the cabins but they are across the street so they’re not too connected if you don’t know who’s in the cabin nearest you. Most of the other rigs in this row seemed to be long-term. We were on the end opening onto trees and the gravel cul de sac. It’s beautiful.

Pads are gravel and we did need to use several leveling blocks on our site, which made for a doosey of a bottom step into and out of our trailer. This end of the park is very quiet, with dark skies at night for stargazing and lovely field and forest sounds. Even though the office had closed a couple of hours before, the owner Bruce came by after we had set up to make sure we were in ok. Thoughtful!

The “patio” pad for the picnic table is 12” concrete blocks. It was mostly level, but not near the edge near our tow vehicle. Tripped a few times; these blocks should be redone.

We needed some trailer work while we were here, so asked the owner for recommendations. The manager Ed then came by after the guy had come to be sure we were pleased with the recommendation.

Bathrooms were a short walk up the hill to the office. Pretty good, though they often needed supplies restocked.

We would definitely stay here again. We stayed in site 9.

Starve Hollow Lake SRA has full hook ups at half the campground and electric water access on the other half. Small lake for boating and canoeing and kayaking. Fun atmosphere friendly staff

Electric sites near the lake with several water front sites. Full hook up sites that are well spread out so you are not on top of each other. Very friendly staff. Clean facilities. Quite the hidden gem.

Starve Hollow State Recreation Area is 280 acres that are adjacent to Jackson-Washington State Forest (18,000 acres). Starve Hollow offers a great camping experience with accommodations ranging from primitive to full hook-ups and the park is impeccably maintained. The full hook-up sites are spacious with most offering a nice tree canopy. A large number of electric only sites are bordering the 145-acre Starve Hollow Lake with a large swimming beach, and picnic area. The park offers boat, canoe, and kayak rental plus an Education Center, fishing, hiking and mountain bike trails that extend into Jackson-Washington State Forest. The surrounding communities are full of interesting history; the longest existing (460') covered bridge built in 1875, classic round barns, original iron bridges, and the historic Medora Shale Brick Plant (1904) to name a few. Easy access from I-65 via US 50 W, then SR 135 S.

Full hook-up or water and electric sites, sites are level. Tent sites available. This place has zip-lining, paintball, arrow tag, ATVs, off-road tours, mountain biking, hiking, cabins. It's near Nashville, IN's quaint shops, music venues, Stoney Lonesome, Gnaw Bone, and, of course, beautiful Brown County State Park.

(Four stars because we stayed there during a wedding and the music and traffic from the wedding was a bit intrusive; also, because when we arrived at our campsite we had to ask management to remove a squatter, so the site was not clean).

We love this campground. Its close to home, on a lake & has all the amenities. We prefer a small section of the park called Milligan’s Point. There are only 10 spots, you’re right on the water, and has full hook ups.

First, I would like to correct someone's prior review. Electric and non electric sites are both reservable and walk up. Almost half and half. The hike in sites are all walk up. As you look at their maps, if making a reservation, each site on the left of the road are NOT reservable. All sites on the right AREvreservable. However, if you want to reserve a site, I highly suggest you do it very early in the season, esp. if you are including a weekend. Depending on how busy check in is at the time you show up without a reservation (again, only for non reservable sites), they sometimes will let you drive around and pick out a site from the left when entering loop, then come back to gate and pay. You will see reserved signs on every reservable site whether anyone is actually in them that night or not. It saves a lot of trouble for all concerned by not letting you pick a site you THINK you can have by not understanding their system. On to the review: I have camped at Hardin Ridge since the 70s. I have tent camped in regular primitive, hike-in, and in electic with a camper. All the sites are large and well-shaded with tables and fire pits/grates. The grounds are kept very clean, as well as the shower rooms, bathrooms, and vault toilets. There are many electric, some electric/water, and a few full hook up. Water spigots are heavily spread throughout each loop. Also, there are the RV water spigots avail along the lanes in some of the loops in case you want to fill tanks before parking at site without it's own water. The camp hosts have always been great to me and since I usually camp alone, someone checks on me each day. That includes when I pick the most secluded hike in spot. They have never been intrusive. They do expect every rule to be followed at all times and will tell you to pack up and leave if you are an asshole about noise, dogs, etc. There are at least one pair, some two, camphost pairs in each loop. While the campground is not a rest home by any means, it is not a party place such as Allens Creek or Paynetown campgrounds that share the same lake (Monroe). Some of the loops do not allow generators and or have restricted hours of usage. The is a small beach, boat launch, multiple small playgrounds, and an ampitheater, but there is no campstore. It is about 11 miles to the nearest small baitshop/store/gas pump. There is ice and wood for sale at the gate.

This campground is huge. They are family owned and at first glance seem a little dingy or that they have a lack of care but this is not the case. They are very laid back and allow their campers to enjoy their experience as they wish to enjoy it whether that is long term or short term. They do have certain rules like every other campground but as long as you bide by those rules it's a very relaxed environment with very friendly staff and campers. If you are looking for a clean polished luxury campground, this is not the campground for you. But we like a little dirt so it suits us just fine.

Located on a Navy Base, so only open to active duty, retired military, DoD civilians and their families. Must have ID card to get on base.

The base is very large in area and wooded. Watch out for wildlife, especially deer and pay attention to speed limits. Don’t mind the occasional explosions and distant machine gun fire ; they test ordnance there. But no worries, it isn’t loud at the campground.

The campground is located by Lake Greenwood, so the MWR operates a marina where you can rent boats, kayaks, paddle boards and so on. They sell bait and ice. There’s a nice boat dock if you need to launch your own boat and plenty of dock space to tie your boat up. You can fish or waterski on the lake; it’s that big.

The campground is not real large. It’s all gravel, but full RV hookups. The electric, water and sewer services are reliable, but no Wi-Fi and unless you have Verizon, no cell service (but they are supposed to have a new AT&T tower up soon). They have nice cabins and a separate tent site area, where there’s a small beach for swimming. Pets are welcome. They have a little shack with firewood; $5 a wheelbarrow load. Every site has a fire ring and a picnic table. The shower house is a bit dated, but clean. There’s dumpsters close by. Very pretty location.

They do have daily, weekly, monthly and seasonal rates.

There’s a base exchange and commissary on base, but the closest town is about 20 minutes away, a small town called Odon, but you can find whatever you need there. Bloomington is about 50 miles away. The tiny village of Crane is outside the gate. There’s a bar and a pizza place and that’s about it.

RV’s and trailers must use the Crane gate, located off I69 exit 87, then south on US231 a couple miles. You’ll see the signs. Call ahead for reservations; they do fill up most weekends and you’ll need them to explain the check-in procedure once you get on base.

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Approx $35 / day

Happy Campers Campground

5.0 (1 reviews)

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Remember to enjoy these campgrounds in a sustainable, respectful way. Clean up after yourself, be friendly with others, and don't overstay your welcome :)

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Details

Call 812-239-6263 for reservation. Plan to arrive before dark.

5 full hook-up sites, 1 primitive site, and one primitive cabin. On a lake stocked with fish. Port-a-potty and shower house available.

Location

Contact

39.4931, -87.0188

https://happycamperscampgroundinc.com

Cell signal

Verizon LTE

AT&T LTE

T-Mobile LTE

Sprint LTE

Weather

Averages

Forecast

Jan

2.57"

34.6°

16.8°

Feb

2.48"

39.6°

20°

Mar

3.39"

50.5°

28.6°

Apr

3.99"

62.9°

39.4°

May

5.41"

72.4°

49.3°

Jun

4.67"

81.1°

58.7°

Jul

5.19"

84.2°

61.7°

Aug

3.37"

83.2°

60.2°

Sep

3.73"

77.3°

52.3°

Oct

3.49"

65°

41.2°

Nov

3.98"

52°

31.8°

Dec

3.26"

38.3°

20.7°

Seasonal scales

Spring

Summer

Fall

Winter

Crowdedness

Others between 10 and 50 feet away

Fullness

Almost full

Noise

Occasional man-made noise (trains, cars, etc...)

Shade

Mostly shaded, but still some spots with sunlight

Cleanliness

Pristine, no trash at all

Safety

Very safe

Road difficulty

No problems with any vehicle

Features and amenities

Water hookup

Sewer hookup

50A Electric

Showers

Picnic tables

Toilets

Pets allowed

Wifi

Fire pits

randyorsusan

Great place to stop overnight or for a few days. Can hear the highway; but it's not very loud or intrusive. Camp host/owner is very friendly. Plenty of room for kids or pets to roam and play. Very clean and safe.

We followed our RV GPS into the quaint city of Franklin and turned right off of Jefferson Street onto Fairgrounds Street that leads a short distance to the gate. Waze wanted us to continue on King Street coming in from I-65, but there is a sign that says no trucks and the street is not RV friendly. Our RV GPS had us going the right direction to get to Jefferson Street. As we had made reservations on the day of arrival we were texted by the fairgrounds camp host asking for an estimated arrival time. The camp host site is right at the entrance of the campground (CG) area. As they only take cash or check, we paid the host upon arrival and the host walked us over to show us the site they selected for us. Upon arriving at back-in site 34 with FHUs and 50 AMP, we asked if we could change to the adjacent 30 AMP area, so we could have some space and yard. The camp host said that due to the age of the wiring they do not allow 50 to 30 AMP adapters. However, a 5th wheel came in a day later and hooked into 30 AMP with an adapter. The CG has poor site and utility placement with multiple sites sharing water. The sites back up to each other and the utilities are down the middle. There isn't dedicated site utilities like the majority of CGs, you just pick the water and electric that happens to be open and is closest to you. There are no picnic tables nor fire pits. Be sure to have plenty of water hose(we needed 50’) to reach a spigot. Our area had full timers and short stayers. There was another site area across the field that was either long term or seasonal with decent spacing but we weren't offered any of the empty 50 AMP spots and no one else was put in that area. Wifi was very useable for checking mail, Facebook, and such. Water pressure was good. We got 3 bars on Verizon. With an unobstructed view of the northern sky we used our Starlink. There’s plenty of area to walk your dog inside the fenced fairground areas. The next time we are in the area, we’ll pass on this CG.

Our first time camping at a KOA. Nice and shaded sites with full hookups. Clean bathrooms and showers. Nice laundromat. Staff was very friendly. Was a little pricey but with water electric sewer and cable hookups and a laundromat. Definitely worth the price. And the town of Nashville Indiana is about 10 minutes away with lots of neat shops and food. We had a great time.

This easy-access-from-the-highway RV park is really nice. The spots are accessible, the bathrooms are AMAZING (no…seriously), the little attractions are adorable and the host is terrific. I think they’re still “a work in progress”, but once they’re up & running, it’s going to be an excellent spot to be. It was kinda expensive for me - just one person in a compact RV for one night was $65. If I’d been staying & really using the amenities, that price would be fine - considering the extras. I would definitely come back on another cross-country trip!

Very nice place! Hiking, fishing, kayaking, and horse riding trails. It is located just a few minutes from Brown County State park and Nashville In. There is a few RV sites (9 or 10) mostly tent camping sites. There is water available and outhouses, there is a dump station for RVs. I would have given 5 stars, but need some more sites for RVs (some of the sites are not real level). There is NO reservation.

Sites for rvs are concrete and you will need to level some on all of them. They have electric and water. Reasonable prices. Our only complaint is you can’t get near the water to fish anywhere by the lake due to the weeds.

Starve Hollow offers camping from full hookup, electric only (by the lake), tent camping, and cabins.  The lake has a swimming area (no lifeguards), playgrounds, and bathhouse.  The lake allows boats with electric trolling motor only. 

We stayed in the full hookup section (camping facilities: electric, sewer, and water hookup as well as fire ring, picnic table, and parking spur at each site. Modern restrooms/showers(wheelchair accessible) are available nearby. 53 sites available, sites 222, 232, and 234 are wheelchair accessible).  The bathhouse was clean (even though it rained most of the weekend).  these sites are a good size and able to get any size Trailer or RV into these sites.  There is mostly grass on most of the sites in this area.

The campground also offers electric only sites (camping facilities: electric hookup, fire ring, picnic table and parking spur at each site. Drinking water is available in area. Modern restrooms/showers(wheelchair accessible) are available nearby. Dumping station is available. There are 87 sites available. Sites 28, 44, 65, 75 and 90 are wheelchair accessible).  They have about 20 sites that back up right to the lake allowing fishing from your campsite.  Keep in mind that a lot of the electric only sites are very tight with a lot of trees in the area.  I can probably only get my 36 ft 5th wheel into a third of the sites, but there are many of sites that had shorter units on them.   

Cabins:  Starve Hollow has 13 rent-a-camp cabins available March-Nov.(closed Dec.-Feb.)(NOTE: Local sales only during off season/winter months, contact property for details). Each cabin has a front porch with a swing, outside electric outlet and front porch light. Inside there are two small rooms each providing a ceiling fan with light, a heating/cooling unit and electrical outlets. The front room offers a small table with bench seats, corner shelf, chair, rocking chair, and a loft. The back room offers a bunk bed(single) and a double bed(NO LINENS or MATTRESS PROVIDED). Air mattress recommended.

Fishing/Boating Starve-Hollow Lake has three boat ramps to choose from, one at the dam and two in the electric campground. Kayak, rowboat and canoe rental is available. A valid Indiana fishing license is required. Rowboat and canoe rental is available from mid April through October. Starve-Hollow Lake is a trolling motor only lake. For campers a fish cleaning station is available.

Swimming A large beach is available for swimming from the Saturday of Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day. Restrooms, dressing facilities, showers, and food concessions are available to visitors. Wheelchair ramps allow access to beach and concession area.

Picnicking There are picnic areas and picnic shelters that can be reserved. Both shelters can be accessed by wheelchair. The East shelter has an electrical outlet. Picnic tables and grills are located at the picnic sites. A wheelchair accessible playground, basketball goals, softball fields, horseshoe pits and a sand volleyball court are located on or near the swimming beach.

Hiking Trails Starve Hollow has several hiking trails to explore that total approximately 11 miles.

Campground is very basic with clean level sites. Tent, car and van camping friendly, but smaller RV (less than 30 ft trailer or camper) would also do okay. Quiet hours 11:00 pm to 7:00 am. Generator okay but recommend use away from other campers.

There are lakeside camping lots. Also there are larger full hookup lots away from the lake