Nickell Branch Campground

Nickell branch is a Backcountry area in Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area in Kentucky. This is a very primitive camping that is first come first serve. It requires a Backcountry or dispersed camping permit which is available at any of the visitor centers.

Penny for your thoughts

Nickell Branch was a miss. It has one set of bathrooms, but they’re not centrally located. There are campsites close to the water, but not a lot of flat ground close to it, so you’re camping higher up and away from the shoreline, and even then the ground wasn’t very flat – so not a good place if you want to sleep in a tent. The sites were primitive – a picnic table and a fire pit, but not all sites had both. The nicest thing about this place was the road in and out which was nicely paved and allowed for some enjoyable biking, but given the options of campsites in the park area, I would look elsewhere before considering this place.

Much better spots within LBL to set up camp

**Nickel Branch** is an example of a _basic campsite._ Which you purchase an annual permit for at one of the visitor centers. Realize when you are at a _basic campsite_ there are no frills...thus the name ;)

Nickel Branch ,down a gravel road off The Trace in Land Between The Lakes,Ky is a nice enough area and perfect fit people who want to go all natural in the woods.

There is only one restroom, pit style, not really convenient to any of the camp sites....then again when I'm camping all natural I don't usually walk all the way to a restroom....just sayin.

There is a boat ramp, also not real convenient, though there are a few sites pretty close to it. So hopefully you like one of those or you will be walking a little way to put in. Unless you enjoy bouncing off a drop off and hoping for the best.

There is a trailhead for the Canal Loop at the front of the campground, once again, not convenient to any campsite (are you noticing a theme here). The trail is bike and hiker friendly, be courteous to each other. Will take you along the lake edge and there are some nice views. (Moderate).

There has been a lot of rain this year and some high water levels. When the water goes down trash can be left along the shores as well as a lot of drift. So if you have a minute feel free to pick some up and throw it away. Leave it better then you found it:)

Basic Camping

Nickell is the northernmost campground in LBL. It is a self-service campground with 11 designated sites. The access road FR-102 is gravel and in pretty good shape aside from some large potholes. There is a large loop with a big open grassy area once you get to the pay station. From there, 3 short offshoots A, B &amp; C - A is the boat ramp area and site #1; B is where the single vault toilet is located and sites #2 &amp; #3; C loop has the remaining sites #4 - #8 which are for small to medium RVs, and sites #9 - #11 are grass tent sites. There are picnic tables and very nice fire rings at each site. Besides the toilet, boat ramp, and a new dumpster, those are the only amenities.

The 11-mile Canal Loop Trail crosses the road just before the pay station for hiking and biking (it connects to the North-South Trail). The campground is near the Barkley Canal that connects the two lakes making for lots of boating and paddling options. The North Welcome Center has fresh water and a dump station just a few miles away.

The cell reception is great - I got download speeds of 18-34 Mbps. Also, several OTA TV channels. These sites are all situated in the woods near the water so none are particularly good for solar. But otherwise, for the price this is pretty sweet dry camping.

Great time

I camp here often several times a year either bringing my camper or my Tentsile (tree tent). I love the convenience to Grand Rivers, the ability to launch my boat onsite and all the shade trees overs sites along the shore.  

Super Lake View

The Land Between the Lakes area is packed with campgrounds. This was one of the first I encountered as I headed south, and I didn't feel the need to look further. It is very, very nice. Note that this is a primitive campground, with just a single vault toilet and no potable water available on site. (The lovely town of Grand Rivers is just a few minutes away, though.) The upsides were the very reasonable fee, the lack of crowds, and the beautiful views. There was a slight fishy odor wafting up from the lake, but I'm not very sensitive to this and it didn't bother me. There was also a skunk hanging around the dumpster at dusk. I kept my distance and we didn't bother one another.

Aside from fishing, there isn't much to do here. However, I enjoyed staying here and left feeling refreshed. Quite a different experience from the crowded, civilized campgrounds.

Beautiful primitive camping

Stayed 2 days in this northern LBL campground. Well maintained and level spot. 8. Has 3 spots for bigger motor homes. Also tent areas. Will definitely come back to this place. With America beautiful pass only 5 bucks. Only drawback was that a train station was about 1 mile away and could hear them pulling out at night. Not bad though 