Best Tent Camping near Madisonville, KY

We stayed here in the middle of July in 2019! Wow was it hot! It also had a bit of flooding, how ever it made it easier for our girls to launch their kayaks and swim. Great spot for kayaking and tent camping. We were the only ones there so it was perfect! Highly recommend for tent camping.

Great family campground where you can do anything from camp in a tent to rent a bunkhouse.

Energy lake is at land between the lakes but you pay for your site at the gate. You can choose a primitive site, a camper site with utilities, or a bunk house with heat and a/c. You can also rent a canoe or a kayak for the day. There is a private beach and great fishing.

I would recommend energy lake to any type of camper.

Our family has been camping here for 20 years now. We love it! Very peaceful and clean. Tent sites are right next to the beach so kids can go back and forth easily. Bathhouse is very clean and kept up. Sites can be on an incline but if you are from here you know that terrain near the lake area is very hilly! If you need a flat site be sure to scope out before hand:) only con for us is having to walk through the rv sites to get to the tent sites. Makes it a little awkward. But the view and atmosphere is worth it. Very good prices as well!

We love all the bays and coves at LBL. We prefer less crowed camp areas and that is what sugar bay offers. Right on the water with access to several other things close by. Spots are in the grass and nothing fancy but perfect for us that love to Tent camp and enjoy natural comforts over amenities.

A park on the outskirts of Evansville Indiana. Has many things to do for the weekend. Many nearby attractions and activities. They have primitive tent sites RV sites with E&W,some also have sewer. Stay the weekend or up to 3 months or longer.

We’ve gone when there was nobody (it was fall and pretty cold) and got to tent camp by the water and LOVED it. We went back on a weekend in June and it was awful. Packed, and RVs were loud and honestly rude. No tent only sites and RVs won’t hesitate to park next to a tent rather than by an RV. Bathroom was stocked but rancid and had no water. The site would be great if it were less busy so scope it out before hand.

I stopped here on my way back home splitting up a 14 hour drive. The campsite was clean and had a good size. Each campsite has fire pit, tent pad and picnic table.

The bathrooms were clean. Most of this campsite is for RVs but tent campsite was still nice. However there are tons of golf carts.

we got a tent last year and the same day we hit up Hillmans Ferry. it’s been years since I’ve been camping with my parents and it was fun. so we decided to take the kids and boy was it fun it was quiet where we were located at and next to the water too. it was the end of September the weather was nice and a chance to relax. the campground was very clean cheap to tent camp no power and just a nice experience. the spaces were pretty good size and spread out.

This huge campground has the best tent sites near the water on loop B that aren't reservable, so you'll likely get a good one just showing up on a weeknight in the summer or less busy weekend. The kids had a great time at the beach/swimming area and there's a nice store and not too much traffic for riding bikes. Firewood was dry and reasonably priced. Definitely a favorite family campground at LBL!

We visit this campground every year. There are about 45 sites. Camper sites have electric and water. There are tent sites also. There are about 15 waterfront sites, a playground, beach, boat ramp, and small bath house. They can accommodate all sizes of campers. All sites have picnic tables and fire rings. Several sites are current being renovated. Most sites are fairly level. The attendant was very helpful and we saw him checking the campground several times.

I often camped here when I wanted something mildly primitive but still somewhat accessible not completely away from all people. They have many sites to choose from that are near the waters edge or further away. There is always a trailer there for the host of the area. I have never seen this place plum full so it’s likely you will find a site, for tent camping. It provides some beautiful scenery and a gorgeous view in the morning as the sun rises. You occasionally get people docking or putting in water craft as they have a ramp nearby, but usually not much activity in the area.

Hurricane Creek is off of Rt 274 in Kentucky on the east side of Land Between The Lakes.

The campground is tucked away in its own little area with lots of shade trees and it's very own boat ramp. The sites are close but not stacked on top of each other.

the RV sites are both next to and near the water. You can park your water craft nearby. There are also several sites up in the trees, some back in, some pull through. It is an older area so the pavement is not all flat and pretty.

The tent sites are walk in, from the boat ramp parking area. Shaded and accessorized with tables, and fire rings. There were a few that tree tents would work well on.

The shower house is a little bit of a walk, but centrally located for the entire campground.

Overall a nice , quiet area, I will definitely be back.

Like everything, know what you're getting into. I would give this site 3 stars for me personally because I thought it would be a typical state park experience but it is way more built up and resort-like (well, it is in the name!). A fantastic place to go with kids or people who aren't as into tent camping. Tons to do in the park and the quaint towns nearby. Campsites are nice, shady, not too close together but not a ton of privacy. Lovely lake surrounds the site. If you want sometime more rustic there are lots of other choices, but for more modern or upscale camping this is the place for you!

We ended up at this campsite by accident. We were looking for dispersed camping sites, but right as we were pulling into one of the only good tent sites at the campground, someone snagged it from us. We ended up in area D right by the restrooms. Hubby and I would’ve never camped there on our own because we prefer to be more secluded but it was perfect for our daughter! Our site was tucked in the trees across from the restroom. Bathroom was clean and convenient. We woke up the next morning and rented kayaks and got out on the lake! Good experience! Probably better for RVs and Campers than tents, though.

Returned to Smith Bay to tent camp with our adult boys. Same campsite on the water and with it's own pebbly beach. Unlike last week when both Smith Bay and Birmingham Ferry were quite busy, we have been the only campers here! I'm guessing that the rain over the weekend scared folks away. We returned with the beautiful weather, but no one else did. The only negative is that the pit toilet has not been cleaned since before we arrived a couple of days ago, and there have been plenty of boaters using it. (Note: this out of the way boat ramp stays busy from early until late.) On a side note: this is a great place to launch a drone.

Eddy creek RV park is very well kept, clean, and somewhat secluded on Lake Barkley. Only open from April through Oct, the RV camp area is behind a code locked gate, which helps to keep the park private. There is a dump station, laundry facility, bath house , propane available and Echo Charlie's restaurant that serves typical American food that includes large servings!  I didn't see any tent sites, only RV sites, most with newer looking decks, level sites, electric and water hookup to each site.  The beach is private, the pool is private, everything is within walking distance, but most people were using golf carts, as it is a good distance from the RV area to the restaurant or the pool.  Bicycling would also be ideal, most areas are paved or at least compacted gravel.

Canal Recreation Area is right by Grand Rivers, Ky and Patti's Settlement. That right there is enough said as far as outdoor activities go. Then you have Canal Rec Area that just adds too the vacation.

Book early because the best sites stay full, but really they are all pretty good sites. The different areas cover just about anything you are looking for in a site from big rig pull through sites, tiered tent sites, water and beach access sites and boat ramp sites.

There is a trail within the campground to walk, a day use area, newer showerhouse/laundry facilities and dump stations. The area is large enough to jog, bike and golf cart. If your not interested in the nearby entertainment there is enough to do right on site to keep you occupied for your entire vacation be it a day or a week+

We stayed for 2 nights and had a very quiet, comfortable stay. You can see the lake through the trees, and there's a trail down to the shore off the back of the site - looked like a great spot to launch a small canoe of you don't mind hauling it back up the hill afterward. We tent camp and the site is level and fairly easy to back a car into. I imagine more challenging for a camper though. We had enough space and trees to hang a couple hammocks for lounging too. The bathrooms and showers were directly across the way and relatively clean, though there was a dirty bandaid on the sink in the ladies (shame on whichever last left it instead of throwing it in the trash 2 feet away), and bar soap for hand washing (I ended up taking my own bottle of Dr Bronners with me when I used the loo). The showers are campground showers and as such are nothing to write home about, but they were clean enough and I like that they are set up as individual, lockable shower rooms, rather than one big shower room.

A friend and I and our 4 kids stayed in a camper cabin here in September. We normally tent camp but it was a weekend with record heat. I love this campground as an alternative to Hillman Ferry, where we have often stayed. The cabins were clean and comfortable with cold AC, the hosts were friendly and the no-wake lake and canoe rentals were fun. I would advise checking with the hosts about canoe and kayak rentals upon check in, there is limited availability when camp is full and hot weather can also affect. This campground is also in a good location to explore all LBL has to offer when compared to Hillman, it's closer to the Elk and Bison Prairie and Wranglers Campground, as well as the Nature Station, which is great for us since we like to trail ride and hike. Downfall is the beach is muddy and rocky and the playground is old with just a metal slide and swings. We didn't want to swim here so maybe plan on doing that elsewhere at the lakes. Next time we will camp, likely on loop D, which had some nice lakeview sites. You can't see the water from the cabin loop. There is spotty cell service throughout the campground.