Best Tent Camping near Daniel Boone National Forest

Stayed at Middle Fork Campground in March 2021, love Daniel Boone National Forest and love the hikes/views at Natural Bridge but the campground is not what we had hoped for. Primitive tent sites are almost right on top of each other with little to no foliage to create privacy. Tent sites are a hike from the restrooms, if you have to go in the middle of the night just hope no one is driving over the ridge from the RV lot, you likely will get surprised! Though the area itself is beautiful, we will not stay at this primitive site again. We have reservations coming up for Whittleton, the other campground across the street, and are eager to see if it is right for us. This is only a short drive for us and a great distance to get away for the weekend. Happy camping!

There are two campgrounds within Natural Bridge State Resort Park—Whittleton and Middlefork. Three friends and I stayed at Middlefork, with a tent site right along the Middlefork Creek. The front part of this campground is RV/hookup, and you have to go over this hill to get to the primitive sites. The bathroom (toilets, showers, sinks) was decently kept (facilities were in the front half of the campground so we had to walk over that hill to get to it). We were able to purchase firewood on the grounds. The sites were pretty well spread out, but if you're looking to hang a hammock, it's not the most ideal spot with the trees tucked away or spread really far apart. We were a short drive from the park/bridge and several other hiking opportunities. The bridge was definitely busy, even at the end of September, but all of the trails we were on otherwise were pretty quiet. You can access some trails in the Daniel Boone National Forest by the Whittleton Campground. Overall, we had a great time, and plan to return!

Natural Bridge State Park is within Daniel Boone National Forest and Middle Fork is the campground in the State Park. Unless you are a distance hiker you will have to drive to most of the attractions from the campground because they aren’t close. So that’s a pro and a con. The campground is not in the traffic flow but it’s not conveniently located either. My favorite sites are in the back row, shaded and more private. Otherwise it’s a mid size campground that can get a little busy when it’s full. Well maintained. Check out Hoedown Island on Saturday’s , Miguel’s for food and no dogs allowed on the Natural Bridge trails.

Been camping here for more than 40 years, as a kid we loved it, as an adult camping with kids, love it even more. A few of the sites we have stayed in recently are D011, G007, and I008. All were great, plenty of privacy, sites are far enough away that you don't feel right on top of each other but close enough to the amenities (trash, bathroom, etc.) that you don't feel lost in the wilderness!

This portion of Daniel Boone National Forest is peak beauty in the summer, the beautiful mature trees and well maintained sites make camping so much more enjoyable. The camp hosts are always helpful when needed but not overbearing. Amenities are near enough if you forget something, you'd never know staying here that there is a Walmart about 20 minutes away if you forget something important.

Get a site close to the water to bring your canoe/kayak or do some fishing from the shore. This is BY FAR our favorite place in Kentucky to camp. Happy Camping!

Negatives: This campground is pretty hilly. Many of the spots don't have a great space for a tent. The flattest spots are in the middle of the circle with an open field behind them (but then you won't have any privacy or tree coverage). Even the RV camping on the inside of the loop across from us had its front tires suspended about a foot in the air to make it level though. Considering the flat spots are very limited, I don't think its a great tent campground and geared more towards RVs. One side of the campground runs against a golf course. If you're tent camping over a weekend, be prepared to have golfers tee-ing off next to you beginning at 7am. On Monday morning, be prepared for them to start mowing at 7am. The opposite side of the campground sits against a tree-line and therefore has much better spots. Many of the picnic tables are in pretty rough shape. The ones that have been replaced were done with the metal style that is dipped in plastic and are much sturdier. Likewise, some of the firepits are in pretty bad shape. I'd recommend having a grill grate with you just in case if you cook over the fire like we do. The firewood that is sold at the campground is kept in a shed but it was very wet, there also aren't any options around for buying wood outside the park. The office is supposed to be open until 6pm but one night it was closed earlier and the camp host wasn't on premises all weekend so we were stuck resorting to finding and burning downfall to get dinner cooked. 

The positives: Its a good location and there are plenty of kayaking spots on Grayson Lake. Going to "The Grotto" aka Clifty Falls is a must (4.5 mile round trip). The same boat ramp has a decent place to get in and swim. Lick Falls Loop hike can be done from the campground and was nice (4.5 miles). We also kayaked the Southern portion of Grayson Lake in Laurel Gorge and that was much quieter than the Clifty Falls area. The campground bathrooms were clean. Most of the campsites were a decent size.

showers, tent camping, little to no trees for shade. friendly

One section is for campers and rv’s with electric hook ups. While one is tent camping . Showers available

Very popular for RV. I was just tent camping. Decent sized plots. Bathroom facilities were good. Nice stay.

This park is so beautiful in autumn! Even if a person comes for a picnic only a couple of hours they will enjoy the scenery. The hike-in tent sites are nice. I did expect a bit more privacy from a walk-in site but it was not busy when we were there, so it wasn’t a great issue. If it was busy, that may have impacted our experience greatly! There is a nice dock area if you have a boat otherwise there isn’t a whole lot to do (no hiking or anything like that). But an okay place to escape for a bit :) (the photo posted by another reviewer is a great view of the tent sites!)

Whittleton Sites are level, not huge, well kept. Good mix of shade and sun. Small creek runs behind camper and tent sites. we plan on returning in a month for the fall leaves.

We stayed here Mothers Day weekend. Had perfect weather and our tent site was by the creek so we could here running water all night. It was so peaceful! You can stay in the tent site only area which I recommend if you want to be away from the noise and lights of a campground. The campground was not noisy but with the travel trailers and RVs you always get a little more noise. Campground was clean and the shower house was clean but very small for the size of the campground. They did run out of toilet paper in the women’s bathroom but replace it quickly. It was quite a walk to bath house if you stay in the tent only area. We will definitely go back though! The Red River Gorge and Natural Bridge area is beautiful with great hiking!

The campground is brand new and it has new bath/shower houses.  It has 10 RV sites and riverside tent sites.  The sites are level and pull through with 50 amp service.  There is city water available and a dump station.  Very clean place and the staff are great to work with.  They have kayaking at the campground or shuttle service if you bring your own kayak.  The ride from the dam down to the campground is beautiful and serene.  It is great for beginning kayakers.  The tent sites along the river are so peaceful with the river running below you.  There is a lot to do in the area with Cave Run Lake for water adventures and Lockegee Rock and the Sheltowee Trail for hiking.  The Licking River has several fish species from the fun to catch bluegill to the Muskellunge.  This is a must see place that I will definitely return to.