Dewey Lake is an ideal place for camping adventures of all kinds. There are tons of hikes and other fun activities to partake in, as well as sights to see and explore. Search nearby campsites and find top-rated spots from other campers.
"**The National Forest has hiking, multi-use trails, and boating (there is a ramp nearby). This is dispersed camping, meaning there are no amenities besides a pit toilet and a few fire rings."
"We rolled up on a Tuesday night in mid-July and found the campground about ¾ full but still plenty of space for our little trailer."
ScoutOverall; nice place, bathrooms get gross quickly when campground is at full capacity. Not handicap friendly. Good cell service, 4G. Small beach area, clear water for swimming, but have quite a few steps to walk down to the lake. Playground equipment was taken down, only had a couple of swings. All sites have electric and water, picnic table, two poles to hang garbage or lantern, also fire rings with grates for cooking on Pets allowed on leash. Firewood and ice available.
Attendant on site, not a ranger, maybe a "workamper?" Bathrooms cleaned only once in the midmorning. The commodes have a button to flush which is difficult to push. I think young children couldn't push it, so the toilets got nasty and full. Toilet paper ran out by early evening. There was no commode in the handicap stall in the women's room. Hot showers with regular handle for continual flow (as opposed to some places that only run a couple of minutes before you have to push the button again.
Most sites are shaded and grassy areas. Sites 7, 8, 26, 28, 31 are washed out, not good for putting up a tent. Lake surrounds campground but not visible through the trees. A few very steep trails from some sites down to the lake.
Beach is about 100 yds long. Water was clean and clear. It might be a slight challenge walking back up the steps to the parking lot if you're not in good shape. If you plan on hanging out at the beach area for awhile, I suggest bringing a beach tent, it gets hot. There is a drive way down to the beach for handicap access, but the gate was locked. There is a marina on the other side of the road. I believe you can rent a pontoon there.
While we were there, somebody with a super loud speed boat was racing around, so be aware that if you're wanting peace and quiet, there is boating noise. There was also a group of campers that had speakers set up and played their music Sat night that was annoying. Not super loud, but we just didn't care for their style of music. We tolerated it, but don't know why they weren't asked to turn it down. To me, music shouldn't be heard much past your own site.
It's about 5+/- miles in either direction for a store. There is an ice cream place about 2 miles away that also sells basic prep fried food and breakfast.
Our electric didn't work (site 33) but we were with another couple and plugged into theirs next to us. We usually primitive camp, but because of the Aug heat, it's nice to have a fan at night.
We might camp there again. The main thing is that the bath house needs to be updated and attended to more than once a day. It's better than nothing, but I'd rather go in an outhouse than see an overflowing toilet.
ScoutCamping: As far as camping goes there’s a little variety. On top of the hill there is camper sites with full hook ups which is actually quite spacious and spaced out from other sites compared to other campgrounds, but some sites are better than others of course. There is also primitive tent camping on top of the hill, but appeared slightly cramped. In my opinion the best sites are the boat in tent camping sites down the hill by the lake. The sites also run along a gravel rode that can be used to hike in. All sites throughout have fine gravel pad, picnic table, a fire ring and access to numerous bathrooms of which have a compost toilet and running water for the sink. Camp staff will deliver ice or firewood to any site if requested. Extras: The main attraction is the lake of course which is quite clean for swimming, boating or fishing, but can be a little busy at times. There are a few hiking trails near by, but I wouldn’t come here for that. There is a golf course and I did notice, but didn’t get to check out, there is a place called The Cove at Yatesville lake that has a beach for swimming with climbable inflatables in the water, kayak rentals and among other things. Conclusion: A great local place to have fun on a lake, but not somewhere I’d travel an extended distance to see.
ScoutI lived in the Dewey Lake-JWSP area with family members, until 2002. Currently, I live about 10-15 minutes away from JWSP and visit the park at least once a month, depending on the weather. If you want to mix up your trip besides going camping or doing any recreational activities: Jenny Wiley Theater, mid June-early August, Outdoor Theater, (kinda like Summer Stock); Theme or special dinners at the Lodge, (mostly on weekends), year round; the community/ state park swimming pool is currently being "refurbished" and will be reopening, (hopefully) in Summer 2019. And, speaking of recreation, you can "hit the links" at the Stone Crest Golf Course, nearby.
But, as for other recreational activities: there's bike riding, hiking, boating: recreational, travel, kayaking and fishing types. If you want to do any horseback riding, you have to bring your own horse and gear, but contact the JWSP office first on where you can ride your horse. Better yet, you can take about a 30 minute drive from the Lodge to the German Bridge Campground area up Cow Creek, which is also in the Dewey Lake area, Contact the Dewey Lake US Army Corps of Engineers for more details, (in other words, Google it). Plus, there are picnic shelters in different areas of JWSP, some of them right next to Dewey Lake.
Now, as for camping, you have 3 type choices... #1. reserving a cabin near the Lodge, (and Dewey's, the local "watering hole"), kinda like "glamping", but it's rougher. (BTW, this area and the Lodge are the best places for getting a cell phone signal). #2. RV (Recreational Vehicle) Camping. There is a RV camping site not far from where I used to live, but from my personal experience, call the JWSP office at least 2 weeks in advance before the date you plan to use the site to see if there is going to be anything available on the dates you want, before making your reservation. First come, first served! #3. A. There are tent campsites next to Dewey Lake in various areas around the lake accessible by boat only, which are overseen by the Corps of Engineers, contact them or the JWSP office. Best place in my opinion: Campsite near the Dewey Dam/ Spillway Area. B. Other Outdoor Camping: Contact the Corps of Engineers or the Park Ranger's at JWSP. If you want to see some wildlife also, contact the local KY State Fish & Wildlife office that handles JWSP and Dewey Lake.
But there's some stuff I've learned over the years living and camping in this area, that I think you must know, some of this you might have run into on other camping trips at other parks...
And last, but not least...
6. DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE A MOTORBOAT! NO ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES ON THE BOAT! EVERY PERSON ON BOARD MUST BE WEARING A LIFE JACKET! The Fish & Wildlife officers do surprise checks on the recreational boats to see if the rules are being followed... if they aren't following the rules... you may have to pay a fine and/or do some time!
TravelerKoomer Ridge is really an excellent campground! As of April 2023 all sites were first-come, first-serve (no prior reservations permitted). We camped one night and thoroughly enjoyed it! No hook-ups but the site was level for a 21" campervan and had a HUGE tent pad, 2 lantern posts, fire ring and picnic table in a spacious site. Plenty of trees for hammocks, too! Sites were more than adequately spaced out around the campground and some were quite private. Multiple trails leave straight out of the campground and head into the Red River Gorge, a nice feature. Campground is heavily wooded, too, so plenty of shade should be available during the summer months.
The shower house is next to Site 14 and was clean though chilly but had hot & cold running water and was modern/updated. Only ding here was that a couple of the toilets were out of service during our stay - no big deal as the campground was fairly empty and I hope they'll be addressed before summer crowds arrive.
The campground is on a ridge - so apart from the sites themselves, there is very little flat ground to be had. Not a drawback, just an observation. But the hills make for a lovely setting and beautiful sunsets/sunrises filtering through the trees. Only criticism is the proximity to the Mountain Parkway nearby; had we been tent camping, the traffic noise would have been a nuisance all night. But in the campervan it wasn't noticeable, fortunately! Not enough to cost a star, but worth noting if you're using a tent or soft-sided camper.
Red River Gorge is an extraordinary and beautiful place to explore, and Koomer Ridge is an excellent basecamp from which to do so!
TravelerWe've stayed at Twin Knobs twice now in our popup camper. First time was at F26, second was at F24. We love how the outer loop sites have such quick access to the water.
Both sites are shaded very well and the sites themselves are huge. We could see other campers through the trees but we felt pretty well secluded.
Each site has several tall poles with hooks for trash bags/food storage. as well each site has a large fire pit with flip-over grill for cooking.
The firewood bundles are a bit pricey ($7) at the checkin shack, but I'm glad they are available. we purchased at least 7 bundles to have a pretty much constant fire through the day and night.
The bathrooms are clean and easily accessible. There was a bit of an overflow issue our first day on site but it was resolved in less than an hour by the loop hosts.
Pop's bbq was a hit both nights we were there. We ordered carryout (covid) and ate at camp on the provided picnic tables. The Dollar General is also adequately stocked.
All in all a fantastic visit which we will repeat ASAP. it's too bad they close at the end of October. I bet winter camping there would be a treat.
Cheers,
Chris
TravelerWe tent camped at one of the hike-in (it's a well maintained gravel path) sites at PLSP, #33. This is the first site on your way in. I was by myself with my son and dog so I felt more comfortable being here near the bathhouse. There are raccoons who like to eat so be sure to put your food up at night. The lake is really calm. There are boats coming in and out but not "traffic" per se, no issues at all kayaking and we went out several times. Fishing was good with rooster tails and panther martin spinners (silver), 1/8 and 1/16 oz. The water was down so there were a lot of places to paddle onto the shore and wade fish. There is some access right at the campground for littles to get in the water. I really recommend water shoes as there are some hooks/lures in the water. We never left the campground during the weekend, so I can't comment on the proximity to restaurants but it was only 5-8 min or so back to town. I had terrible phone service with Sprint here. We did have one new camper come in at 3am on Saturday morning to set up their tent and being so close to the entrance of the hike-in spots, I woke up. That was tough. When we go back, I'll pick a site further back up the hiking path and bring a wagon to tote our stuff. The staff at the gate are amazing and so friendly. The restrooms are clean. Three showers. NO ONE other than the tent campers seemed to use the bath house so I never waited for a shower or anything and there were several families tent camping and the rv sites were completely full. It's a really nice and safe place. I really recommend it and look forward to going back. One thing, the actual tent pad was 11x13 and seemed a bit small but worked fine for us.
LegendWe camped here over the weekend in a double campsite. It was very spacious and clean. The site had 2 picnic tables, 2 lantern poles, and and a fire pit. Everything was leveled, so the tent set up was really easy. The campground is very well maintained. Some sites have stairs in order to reach the tent pads. There is a bathhouse with flushing toilets and nice showers. They also have pit toilets, which I never used. There are several trails, that start from the campground. The area is absolutely stunning, but it was extremely hot, so we couldn't do too much hiking. But the plan is to return in fall.
LegendNegatives: 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.
LegendThis 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!)
Tent camping near Dewey Lake in Kentucky offers a serene escape into nature, with various campgrounds that cater to outdoor enthusiasts looking for a peaceful retreat.
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According to TheDyrt.com, the most popular tent campground near Dewey Lake is Pleasant Ridge with a 0-star rating from 0 reviews.
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