Looking for a place to camp near Dewey Lake with your horse? Finding a place to stay in Kentucky while traveling with your horse is easy. You're sure to find the perfect site for your Kentucky horse camping excursion.
This recreation area is part of Dewey Lake
Hidden deep under the northeast forests of Kentucky, strange formations with names like Giant Turkey, Headache Rock, and The Cathedral mingle with cave corals, underground waterfalls and thousands of endangered bats. This is what awaits visitors to Carter Caves State Resort Park, approximately 90 miles east of Lexington. The park was only established, and the cave environments protected, in 1946. Prior to this, the land—and caves—have a long and storied history. It begins millions of years ago, when North America was in its development stage, with the land rising and falling, cracking and washing away. This began forming the caves as seen today. Fast-forward to the 1800s, and the caves served as a resource during the War of 1812. Today however, this 2000-acre park—both above and below ground—serves as a recreation destination for campers and adventurers. The resort at Carter Caves offers a variety of overnight options, including camping, cottages and a lodge. Campers will find a large campground with 89 RV sites with utilities, 30 primitive tent sites, eight equestrian sites, and two bunkhouses. Most RV sites are back-in, and can accommodate vehicles/trailers up to 60 feet; bunkhouses can accommodate up to six people. The campground features bathhouses with showers, water faucets, picnic shelters, horse stables, and a playground. The park’s cottages are fully equipped with linens, cookware, and most have wood-burning fireplaces; these can accommodate up to eight people. The Lewis Caveland Lodge offers 28 rooms with full amenities, balconies and patios. Dogs are permitted in designated areas, and must remain leashed. Campsite rates are $18–$55/night; cottages and lodge rooms are $75–$240/night. The main attraction at Carter Caves State Resort Park is … the caves! There are six named caves in the park for exploring. Some are open year-round, some are only open during the summer. The park offers guided walking tours in four of the caves. Tours range from 45 minutes to 2.5 hours, and require some stair-climbing and stooping. There are also two caves open for self-exploration. These are undeveloped, and require visitors to provide their own light source. For the adventurous, there are also two cave crawling expeditions. These tours are three hours long, and explore tight, undeveloped passages that require lots of crawling, stooping and duck-walking in muddy conditions. For visitors who would rather stay and play above ground, the park features 26 miles of hiking trails, guided horseback rides, putt-putt golf, rock climbing, and fishing and paddling on Smoky Valley Lake.
Nestled on the shores of Cave Run Lake, this camp is part of the larger Twin Knobs Recreation Area. There are more than 200 sites spread out over 10 loops under a dense forest of mixed conifer and deciduous trees. The recreation area includes two reservable group picnic areas. Group camping is also available.
Summer amphitheater programs and scheduled campground activities provide family fun and entertainment. The campground also has volleyball courts, basketball hoops and horseshoe pits. There is a boat ramp and beach. Popular lake activities include fishing, swimming, motor boating, windsurfing, sailing and water skiing. Scenic foot trails include the 2.5-mile Twin Knobs Shoreline Trail and the 1.5-mile Knob Overlook Trail.
The Daniel Boone National Forest embraces some of the most rugged terrain west of the Appalachian Mountains. The forest lies within the Cumberland Plateau, where steep forested slopes, sandstone cliffs and narrow ravines characterize the land in this region. Cave Run Lake is in the Cumberland District in the northernmost part of the forest. The lake is surrounded by the rolling hills of northeastern Kentucky.
The Morehead Office Visitor Center offers information about the Daniel Boone National Forest in addition to interpretive exhibits. A popular attraction within the Daniel Boone National Forest is the Red River Gorge Geological Area, which features more than 100 natural sandstone arches.
$40 - $43 / night
$20 - $30 / night
$16 / night
$20 / night
Ranger
Start off by saying the staff were super great!!!! Stayed in space #1 and all the upper spots are open, wish they had more trees around the spaces. Overall it was still a great experience staying at this location.
Traveler
A very nice state park with an abundance of natural resources surrounding the campground. There are many hiking options, some that explore the various caves around the grounds. The caves themselves are quite the treat.
The staff are all very friendly and there are camping sites for tents or rigs. However, like many state parks that have not been updated, navigating into some of the spots with a large rig can be challenging. On the one hand, this is nice as there are mature trees throughout. On the other hand, they could increase the size / length of the existing campsites. There is a nice playground and a camp store for any items you have forgotten.
The lodge is available down the road (within the state park) for dinner if you are looking to mix up the trip. Not fine dining, but decent food. There is also a pool available at a discounted rate for campers - which our kids enjoyed. Note: there are no full hookup sites, which is not uncommon for KY State Parks.
Guide
Chief Logan has a lot of interesting things to see, including an outdoor animal exhibit, a lodge, a pool, a theatre, and a museum all close together.
Our site was full hook up and very level. There was creek nearby and walking paths all over. We went over to the lodge and was able to swim in the pool and hot tub as part of the price of our campsite. There was solar event with super rare aurora light show for this part of the world while we were there.
Scout
Roads in campground are rough in places. Electrical boxes are in rough shape at some sites. 30 amp kept tripping the breaker. WiFi does not work. Several sites have full hookup but sewer hookups need to be repaired and water hookups are far away.
Guide
Stayed 4 nights in section D. Our site was ok. There were a lot better sites to stay though. Staff was helpful and friendly. We had full hookups. Lots of shade.
ScoutLevel site. Staff cleans the bathhouse every hour.
GuideBeautiful, quiet spot. The staff was very easy to work with and very friendly. The wildlife exhibit is a fun detour ($2/person). We saw a water slide, putt-putt, and enjoyed the restaurant at the lodge. They have tours for the local elk there too. The town itself is cute and we enjoyed a date night at the local steakhouse. Great spot, perfect getaway!
Scout
Stayed on the F Loop next to the lake, fire pit, picnic table, level tent site and bathroom showers a short walk. Camp hosts very friendly and helpful. campsite are close together.
ScoutWe went with three small kids. Great facilities, hiking, caving etc. We plan to return because two nights was not nearly enough to do all the things we wanted to. The tent sites are close together so we may not have enjoyed it as much if it were busier but we were lucky enough to get a site with no immediate neighbors. Pictures online made it appear that tree cover was not as good as it actually was.
ScoutWe always make sure this is our #1 spot to go it's our home base campground , love the mature trees in the campground and the trail around the lake . It's beautiful ❤️ down here must visit.
ScoutThere’s a quiet time reserved for after 11pm. Apparently no one cares because people were LOUD the first night we were there. The second night was less crowded and much more enjoyable. There’s so much to do at Carter caves that I didn’t mind it too much. Lots to do within walking distance of the campground too.
GuideWe stayed on an inner loop and was happy with our site but after scouting other sites, we would definitely go for an outer loop lakeside site next time. Gravel pads. Bathroom and showers were good. Quiet, peaceful campground with friendly staff. Enjoy all the lake activities!
GuideThe area is very pretty, lots of hiking and plenty of things to do. The campground itself is nice, sites aren’t very level side to side or front to back and the hookups are very far from the site. Be prepared to bring extra electric cord and hose. The spacing is good though on some spots. The ones that back up to the woods are pretty.
ScoutAll sites are small and on top of each other. Low water pressure (20) weird placements for water and electricity. However the things to do at this park are great from hiking to cave tours and more.
GuideGood level spots. Quiet the first week of April. Good picnic table and fire pit. Restrooms are not far from any of the site in the loop. Will update after we use the shower house. I thought that we would be able to walk from our location to the camp store. It is possible but not easy. The camp store and laundry were closed March 31, bought firewood at entry for $8 a bundle.
TravelerThe night we arrived it was pouring rain. After sleeping in the car to stay dry we explored the park. The park really came alive with the rain, which really made the trip. Water was running over the edges of cliffs and boulders throughout the park into the river that flows through the park. The cave tours were cheap and interesting, although the self guided tour was closed due to flooding. We did the Three Bridge Trail which was moderately challenging but worth the unique geology and natural bridge formations.
The tent campground was quiet but the RV campground was pretty full and lively. At site 110 we struggled to find a flattish spot—the sites closest to the road to the horse campground were much better. The bathrooms were randomly closed one night on a Saturday which was a little annoying. There wasn’t any clear communication of restroom hours.
It was hard to find firewood nearby, we ended up seeing a sign of a guy selling firewood and we called him. It was $23 for 35 logs delivered to the site. This ended up being way more than we needed and we left some behind after giving some out for free to other campers, which was a cool experience.
We left for the day on our second to last day and packed up most of the site in the car as we’d be gone a while. When we came back what we left was gone along with our reservation slip at the site entrance. It seems the rangers took it that we left and now I’m out a water jug.
There was some scavenger hunt race going on too and people would come out of the forest and run through our campsite with no regard to us being right there which was a little odd.
Overall I didn’t know what to expect as an out of stater but had a great time through the weather and all.
RangerKOA Review
The campground it’s self is very clean and taken care of. We were there in early March with winter temps. The staff was extremely nice and helpful, bath house and laundry was clean. The water at our site was inoperable and they offered to move us without me even having to ask which was nice. The site could be maintained better ours had lots of tire ruts and fire pit could have been better for the price. Overall it’s a good campground with amenities in great shape. A good little dog park that was extremely clean, putt putt, and more. I would come back again in the off season just cause we like camping with less crowds.
GuideThe coolest things about this campground are the access to caves and hikes. Tent sites are closer together than photos made it seem. It wasn’t BAD but it also wasn’t my favorite campground I’ve ever been to. Bathrooms were fine. Firewood was expensive but there isn’t another place to buy that’s close, so prepare for that. $25 for 3 bundles. Best sites are 102 or 100. Campground is patrolled often by security/staff (?)
GuideThe campground was nice, the staff friendly. Apparently there is a lot of bear activity, although we did not encounter one. The sunsets are to die for!
GuideStayed here again, apparently this KOA has new owners. Not sure about it now, didn't seem as nice as before, atmosphere felt 'stuffy'. Sites were still OK. Gravel and level where we stayed. Grand daughter loved that we were beside the pool and playground. Mini golf was run down, but had a fresh coat of paint.
TravelerFull hookups at a reasonable price. 10% senior discount. Beautiful location. My only complaint is the bath house. The shower floor was slippery and dirty. Painted black for some reason. Drains were clogged. Happy that we had full hookups.
RangerWe were there on Thursday thru Saturday. Thursday was so nice and quiet and then the weekend crew came in on Friday and it filled up fast. Unfortunately our neighbors were very noisy!!! We stayed in loop A, the other loops had many campers set up for the recent flood victims. Loop A was our favorite and it was close to the lake!
ScoutWonderful area. Bath houses/restrooms were very clean and nice. (Single occupancy). Nice area. Beach area of lake was closed due to flooding.
GuideStayed a couple of nights and we had a blast. Hiking right near the campground and lake is not far away at all.
GuidePretty good Koa. Sites are level gravel, ground are clean. WiFi is pretty good. Bathhouses are new, clean and adequate. Easy access from I64 but no noticeable road noise.
TravelerThis campsite is great, nice if you’re okay being a bit closer to other campers but definitely not cramped. The bathrooms are showers are very nice and clean and the camp store is super convenient and has whatever necessities you’d need and some nice gifts. Having a table is super helpful as well. It is beautiful and this time of year the fireflies are gorgeous in the trees. We visited this site on the way in and out of our trip because we enjoyed the first stay so much and felt safe staying here.
Guide... but nothing special. They have a pool and mini golf to entertain the kids who have been driving you crazy on the road. Excellent food trucks which is good since there's not much else in the area. Flooding is an issue after heavy rains but it seems to affect all sites equally.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which is the most popular equestrian campsite near Dewey Lake?
According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular equestrian campground near Dewey Lake is Jenny Wiley State Park Campground with a 3.3-star rating from 15 reviews.
What is the best site to find equestrian camping near Dewey Lake?
TheDyrt.com has all 8 equestrian camping locations near Dewey Lake, with real photos and reviews from campers.
