Best Cabin Camping near Madisonville, KY

I love this park! Camping, cabins, hiking, horseback, swimming, and even mini golf. There are numerous trails, and a plethora of wildlife. We even saw a bald eagle within 15 minutes drive from the park.

Most sites have great views of Lake Barkley! Large camp store with a restaurant that serves sandwiches, pizza, beer and sodas... Golf cart rentals and the marina has boat rentals. Full hookups on most sites including cable, and lakeside sites have the “honey wagon” that comes around to empty tanks. WiFi is pretty ok. Cell reception is good. Cabin rental and seasonal sites available.

Great place to visit. Is beautiful with a lot of walking trails 10 things to do. In summer for swimming and rental boats paddle boats and some battery powered boats.I was there for a fall photography contest it was a little too soon and theirwas very little color. You can camp in tents or campers you can ride horses or enjoy the lake and many miles of walking trails. They also have hotel rooms and cabins if you care to spend multiple nights the beautiful Park and I highly recommend it to anybody that enjoys outdoor Beauty.This year 2019 makes the fifth year tha I've gone to Pennyroyal for the fall photography contest I've also been there a few springs for the spring photography contest. These photos are not the best cuz I took them from the restaurant through a window screen so you can kind of see it in the in the images I'll try to upload better ones later.

When I stayed at Prizer Point, I felt as if I were in a small coastal town. It is the first campground I have been to that has condominiums. It doesn’t matter what kind of camping or glamping you do, this campground has it, except for yurts. However, they do have tree houses. There are also choices of cabins,“chalets”(although it didn’t look like a chalet when I looked at one), bungalows, floating cabins, etc. Of course, being a tent camper, that’s my choice. Some of the tent sites are on top of each other, but if you are lucky enough, you can stay at a site beside the woods. You still don’t get complete privacy, but it is better than being on the other side of the path where the tent sites are on top of each other. The tent sites are grassy, which I like. I prefer a grassy site over a concrete pad. Some people love the large campgrounds with lots of activities, especially when there are children with you. Since I am mainly a tent camper, I prefer the solitude of being in the woods. Fortunately, I was there at the beginning of the week, and it wasn’t as crowded as it normally would be. Personally, and subjectively, I would rate this campground one star; but objectively, I have to rate it five stars because it offers so much. While I was there, I toured the campground and was amazed at how much they have. They have go carts, oversized chess, swimming pools, a soccer field, a marina, a restaurant, and a section called Prizer Lagoon. You can also rent golf carts to get around, and you will want to do that unless you want to walk for miles. There, you can play in the inflatable obstacle course or ride in a paddle boat. There is also a zip line that crosses the water. For RVers, you have quite a few options. One section has formal concrete pads with hookups. Another section is not as“sanitized” but offers everything you need for your RV. I was surprised by the size of the marina, which was huge according to my limited knowledge of marinas at campgrounds. There is also a boat ramp for when you want to launch your own boat. If I wanted to RV, I would choose the little peninsula beside the boat ramp. Great view! If I wanted to stay in a cabin, there are some cabins next to the lake that also have great views. Overall, this campground has everything you want in a resort campground.

We were getting tired on the road and we called them at 9pm. They picked up and helped us greatly. Its tough with 2 small children. They got me a spot right up front to pull through and even put a flashing light on the site so I could see where I was going. They went over an beyond to help a wherry traveler. The site is on the lake with cabins as well. They have full hookups and they were in good condition.  We were in and out. Will will be back through for sure to check the place out during the day. 

Thank you!

Stayed here for a week and it was great. Plenty to do to keep you busy. Nice pool with retractable roof. Playset for kids. Full service marina with boat rentals. Golf cart rentals as well.

I've stayed at Energy several times, and thought this would be a good time to update the review. Energy Lake is in Land Between the Lakes (LBL) and is ideal for nature viewing, hiking, swimming and hanging out by the camp fire. There are four loops, with A being the newest camping loop, B has been converted to all single room cabins, C & D remain unchanged, but are well kept and maintained. The staff at this campground is AMAZING, and very knowledgeable about LBL and the two small towns on either side of LBL (Aurora and Cadiz). The lake itself is man made, and motorized water craft are not permitted being there is a nature sanctuary in the back creek end of the lake, which makes for great swimming, and my favorite lake to kayak through with all three dogs on board. There are multiple access points to the lake with roads leading to the lake from both sides for launching, or you can paddle across.  There are NO WATER or SEWER hookups at any of the sites, and the sites in A & B are compacted gravel, designed for either RV or tent, loop D's sites are all paved and preferred by RV's.

This is a resort not a get away from it all camping. It is well maintained, friendly staff, lots to do for kids. Sites are close, as in any resort style campground. Full hook ups, good cell service, WiFi is an additional cost.

Probably one of the smallest campsites I've been to and it's never been crowded when we went which is nice for our family. There are some very nice hiking trails and a great museum and nature center. We live right across the Ohio in Evansville thus this is our go to park for a last minute getaway where we don't have to worry about making reservations months in advance to get a decent spot.

We like this campground for its beauty and it’s size. Pros: Swimming beach very nice Quiet campground Clean facilities Nice size lake with canoe, paddle board rentals Great kid environment Easy access from Interstate Paved sites

Cons: Sites are very sloped. Worst I’ve ever seen. Major drawback to this campground. Beach is free to public so very crowded and some elements are not family friendly. Prices are higher than most campgrounds. Camp site sizes are small and difficult to navigate.

Summary: I’m really surprised that all sites were paved with such bad slopes. If the state would come back in and level the sites then pave this would be a jewel. Also, charge a fee for beach access to control the rowdy’s from taking over the beach.

Overall a beautiful park that is one of my wife’s favorites.

First of all, the drive to Dawson Springs is GORGEOUS. Rolling hills, farmland, trees, really gets you in the mood! Upon arrival, the camp store worker was very friendly, gave us a campground map and hiking map and answered all of our questions. We stayed in the regular campground but they also have a campground for people with horses/horse trailers, as the park has horse trails to go on as well! We didn’t swim in the lake, but it did look beautiful and looked to be a nice place to swim and kayak and paddle boat (which they have for rental as well). The hiking trails are gorgeous and vary in length and intensity. The spot that we were at had plenty of room to spread out and relax. One side had the picnic table and fire pit, and the other side was a grassy area with trees where we hung our hammock. It was stunning! We will definitely be back!

Campsite Review

I wound up staying at five different campsites within the Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area, and this was my favorite. That largely is due to them having showers and canoe and kayak rentals, but hey – when you’re here in the summer, that’s what you want! Actually, Energy Lakes has the most amenities of all the campgrounds – including ice and firewood to buy and some additional common areas like a designated swim area (no lifeguard, but I imagine this makes it easier to keep an eye on kids) and basketball and volleyball courts. The only downside to this place is the lack of boat ramps, which is also surprising considering more primitive sites in the area offer those. I guess that’s the trade off – showers for no boat ramp. Luckily there are ample spots around the rec area in the park if you need to launch your boat. I would highly recommend a reservation here given it’s the most popular campsite in the park and only a few spots will get you truly “lakeside”. It is $10/hr for the boat rentals.

Product Review

As a Ranger for TheDyrt, I am given products to test from time to time. Today I was testing out the Showers Pass Waterproof Socks. You can watch the video review here. I didn't think there was any way someone could make a sock waterproof. I thought it would be more like a dry sack shrunk to mini proportions with some fitting elastic and it would be called a 'sock'. But here's Showers Pass, this Pacific Northwest-based company (I heard it rains there a lot) making this coolmax inner lined comfortable foot shield. Like, how?

I did a few bike rides in these, and the coolmax liner is definitely necessary since the socks are thicker to give you that water protection and in summer heat (it was about 90 degrees most of the days I was in this campground park) I was sweating everywhere. Energy Lakes has canoe rentals so I left my shoes in my car and dragged out a boat into the water and went for a paddle around the lake. It's a super cool feeling to walk into water just wearing socks and not get wet. It's like a wet-suit for your feet.

I did try to soak my feet, see if there was a "breaking point" for these guys. No surprise really, but if you walk into water that goes above the sock line on your leg, water is going to seep in since you've now completely submerged your sock and the elastic holding them against your leg really shouldn't be designed to be airtight, since then you'd have all kinds of other issues going on with the comfort and breathability of this sock. I imagine the majority of people using these aren't canoeing, they're bike riding and so unless you're trying to pedal through a waist deep puddle, I think you're going to be ok.

I do canoe a lot and these are my new favorite accessory. What I think is really promising about their performance too is since these socks were designed for activity, portages would still be enough for these socks to handle. Seriously Showers Pass how did you make these so freaking comfy and waterproof!?

The sites are hard to back in with a camper, we had to buy longer extension cables and a longer water hose, sites are very close together, the activities were good had to pay for them not very much. The miniature golf course was good but a little expensive. The beach was amazing but it’s first come first serve regardless if u camped there. It opens up at 10am. The lodge restaurant was amazing buffet and the banana pudding was amazing as well. They do serve a sandwich called Hot Brown I guess it known in Kentucky was good.

Pennyrile Forest State Park off Ky69 outside Dawson Springs, Ky. A newer trail Pennyrile Nature Trail is 13.5 mile long hiking trail, from Dawson Springs to the park. There is also a site for the Pennyrile Trail which is a 75 mile driving loop connecting several Kentucky parks.

The park is multi-leveled with the views and some cool rock formations. The beach has some confusing parking signs, but we figured it off. It was busy and had some loud visitors with loud vehicles and loud vehicles. Not surprising considering the neighborhood it is located in.

The campground has some interesting sites all along the roadway. The campground and horse campground are connected. Several of the sites can be challenging due to not being level or being shallow, but they are workable.

I'm not sure if biking would be great due to the hills but it would be challenging. Hiking and backpacking definitely and of course swimming and horseback riding( on your own horse)

Beautiful area! Really nice swimming beach, hiking trails, and campground. Paved sites, most with plenty of shade. Campground host very nice and people in nearby towns very nice also. Enjoyed talking with the locals. Only reason I don’t give campground a 5 is due to the very sloped sites. Most are very difficult to level up.

Pennyrile Forest State Park was a pleasant surprise, especially compared to the many state parks I visited in my earlier years in North Carolina. However, when you reserve your site make sure you ask about the specific site’s terrain. Site 48, where I was, was sloped with no grass and had just been repaired. There were a lot of grassy sites, and they were much better. When I talked to the campground host, he was very pleasant and explained that you do not have to have a horse to camp in the equestrian sites. Those sites are level pull-through sites. There is a camp store, although it is small and limited, but they do sell firewood. Not only does this state park have a putt putt course, but it also has an 18-hole golf course complete with pro shop. The thing I enjoyed best about his state park is the waterfront. There is a large sandy beach and a place to rent canoes, kayaks, and paddle boats. Also at the beach are picnic tables, grills, a playground, and concessions. From the beach area, you can hike the lake trail, but it is moderate. There is a good view of the lake from the trail, and if you walk to the left before crossing the wooden bridge, you can see a very small waterfall. Even though you have to drive a little from the campground to get to it, there is a swimming pool and a lodge. Other activities include tennis courts and basketball. Staying at the campground, other than the sloping site, was a pleasant experience. It was not crowded and the bathrooms have hot showers, but I would suggest paying the extra$15.00 to get one of the equestrian sites.

We stayed at sight #58. We were on the very corner and even though it was close to the road it was beautiful and not super traffic heavy. There was however a streetlight at the corner and it was extremely bright. We were prepared enough though so we put a dark tarp up on the outside of our tent to block it. I do wish we could have seen a better picture of the site before hand it would have made choosing easier. This wasn’t the best spot for a tent, but we made it work :)

If you want a campground that has it all, Pennyrile State Park is where you want to be!

It has a GORGEOUS white sand beach with breathtaking blue water. Crazy to see that in KY!

Explore their caves, kayaking, canoeing, basketball and so much more! They even offer a wrangler campground if you want to bring the horses.

A little pricier than others, but worth it.