Poplar Point Campground — Jordan Lake State Recreation Area

Popular Point campground is one of my favorite places to pitch a tent in the Jordan Lake area.  It's often not as crowded as the others at Jordan Lake are, esp., during the week and outside of holidays or summertime.  The views are nice, with sites next to the water.  Tents and RVs can camp in the same areas.  We normally camp in a tent here, but never in the hottest part of summer, which is most of the summer in the Piedmont area of the state.  You gotta go up to 3000 feet, as in the mountains of NC, for a cool weather experience in summertime, but for a night to get away from your regular routine or a weekend when the weather is nice, this is a suitable place.  Locals like it because the drive isn't far from Raleigh, Chapel Hill, Durham or Pittsboro.

Amazing spots for RVs on the water! There are TONS of spots that are right on the lake yet have plenty of trees for privacy. Each has a nice fire pit/grill and picnic table. Dump stations are not far from any of the circles, and were not too busy (we were even there on 4th of July). There are options for boat or jet ski rentals VERY close. For those that care about working on laptop or streaming TV while camping, our cellphone hotspots worked great. We got anywhere from 30-55mbps with our Verizon cell coverage. There are tons of small beaches that you can walk or boat to that are secluded enough to allow your dog to run freely. Also, Idk how....but we had VERY few bugs at our site the whole week we were there...lol. I can not speak for the restrooms (which seem to get bad reviews), as we only used the one in our RV. We loved this place and will definitely be back.

Spent one night camping at Jordan Lake. The site was plenty big for two cars and two tents in addition to a mosquito net over the picnic table. Best part was the waterfront access and we were able to tie our boat up to a tree overnight. Only complaint was the bathrooms/showers. They were completely covered with dead mosquitos. Overall, great value and I would highly suggest booking in advance since waterfront sites book up quick.

We’ve stayed here for 4 nights, couldn’t be happier. The sites are private enough and many have lake access (ours does) right from the campsite. It’s very peaceful, friendly people, lots of fun. We fished for hours, kayaked on the lake and the kids caught minnows. Lots of wild life to watch (turtles, fish, birds and more). Beautiful well kept, clean and private.

Poplar Point is located on the banks of the lake in the Jordan Lake State Recreation Area. Jordan Lake State Recreation Area has several campgrounds with plenty of lakeside sites, if you make your reservation early. We happened to camp in Poplar Point during the busiest time Labor Day weekend. Even then it was surprisingly quiet, because campsites are generously separated among the pine forest. And after the weekend we were practically alone. So, If you love to be alone in nature, this is a great place for that experience. We have a video about this campground on our YouTube Summertime RV Rovers channel- 4 Great Campgrounds in North Carolina. We stayed there in our Super C Dynamax DX3. We camped at Poplar Point Campground- Jordan Lake SRA in a Motorhome.

Poplar Point Campground could quite possibly be the best campground in all of North Carolina! Yes, I know, that’s quite a statement to make, considering all of the amazing places in the great state of North Carolina. So let me explain why I reached this conclusion:

• Some of the most outstanding hiking trails

• Heavily wooded forest paradise that delivers privacy and solitude

• Perfectly maintained amenities such as picnic tables, fold-up fire ring and grills

• Bathroom facilities are some of the best I’ve experienced with state-run facilities

• Direct access to a fantastic lakeside experience, complete with boat launches

• Designated swimming area complete with life vests

• On-site park staff were nothing short of amazing, helpful and incredibly friendly

• Close access to purchase anything that might be needed 

Insider’s tip? Be sure to get down to the lake from wherever your campsite is just after sunset and bring a couple of folding chairs and a telescope (pre-planning here is needed!) to catch a glimpse of one of the most amazing star-studded night skies you’ve ever seen in your life! 

Happy Camping!

Loop G had access to park your boat, no ramps or docks. Bathroom with shower was close. Had a great time.

We stayed in loop G.  Nice sites with adequate privacy.  Mostly all shaded or partial. Be careful with some larger rigs some of the sites would require a PH.D in backing.  Some sites are right on the magnificent lake.  Very nice beach with adequate parking nearby.  Gets a bit crowded with day users on a nice hot weekend,  Boat ramps very nice.  Only 4 stars due to fact that shower/ lavatories were not well maintained.  Not cleaned thoroughly, nor functioning.  Water and power availability at sites could be updated.  However they were functional.

Sites are well kept and mostly shaded. Waterfront sites have great views of the lake and easy access to the water. You’ll get more wind, and in early spring/late fall it can get quite cold, but it’s great during warmer months! Bathrooms could be better- bring your own toilet paper and soap.

The sites are big and woodsy. Some are even lakefront!

Have been enjoying Jordan Lake for years!  We live about an hour away and whenever we want to just get away, we hop online and reserve a spot.  I think the only time they are booked solid is maybe a holiday weekend.  If you want like on the lake, you can't do it last minute, but we don't care.  The sites are HUGE..they aren't those parking lot type sites where everyone is on top of each other, except around the lake they are a little closer.  Electric and water and two dump stations, so be prepared for along wait if you are leaving like a sunday.  Each site has a very clean picnic table and fire pit.  Bathhouses are very clean.  Lots of walking trails or just enjoy the quiet.

Bathrooms: 5/5 clean & air-conditioning in all of them.

Sites: 3/5 just average/fine

Pools: 0/5 no pool

Beach: 2/5 private beach but not upkept. Loads of rock/Carolina clay/trash sea grass

Waterfrontness: 5/5 weird water but pretty to look at

Closeness to other sites: 1/5 you are up each other's buttcracks

Dog rating: 4/5 no problem but also SO dog friendly we had to be very mindful of others not having their dogs on leash.

Sites are clean and well maintained, no issues with hookups. Facilities are not very well kept up an little to no Verizon service but overall a beautiful campground and lake for fishing.

Site was nice and level. Clean bathhouse. Water and electric only. Dump station.

Nice big sites cut into the trees with pretty good privacy.  Clean bathrooms and showers and easy access to the lake from most loops of the campground.

AT&T coverage was a couple bars, enough to get connected to email and check in with the rest of the world.

We passed through here during our cross county travels. The staff was super helpful and nice. The lake was absolutely perfect for swimming and cooling off. We even got to see some bald eagles as we floated on the lake. The showers and bathrooms were clean and there was even hot water. The campsites are a little close to one another but it wasn’t an inconvenience and it still felt private. Overall a great spot !! Highly recommend.

We were on a two week trip across NC and actually stayed here twice. It was clean, had hookups (which was really nice!), and great sites. First night we had a couple stair walk up which I really enjoyed as a separate space so the kids could sleep and we could hang. Second night was closer to the lake and had a great view of the sunset. Several dumping stations, pretty flat, and enough space to maneuver. Would definitely stay here again!

My family and I come to this park often for little reunion trips and for family camping get aways. It is such a nice park and the spaces are spread out beautifully. Sometimes you get a loud neighbor out here in the summer months but there is a noise curfew and almost everyone is respectful of it. We keep coming back for the nice lake, great views, and large spread out sites.

I have camped here 3 times and loved it every single time. The camp sites are large and have room for two mid size tents. You can reserve a camp site or do first come. We have gotten the water front camp sites each time and loved it. We have a boat and kayaks so leave them in the water and enjoy the small beach. There is great phone signal and you feel very safe. We did Halloween weekend here and lots of people were carving pumpkins! It was a great time! Family friendly but also you have your privacy. Little secret is if you get a spot with the beach you get an amazing sunrise!

We camped at C-52. This site was very spacious, easy to back into, and level. This was a HUGE site, lots of space between neighbors. We love camping with lots of trees and nature. Great campground for biking.

This campground is fantastic! Our site was right by the water. The site was clean. The water and power worked. The campground was quiet but I imagine that’s because it’s early in the camping season here and the campground was no where near capacity. We watched squirrels build nests and dig for nuts.

My only gripe is the women’s bathroom. The toilets and sinks were clean but the showers looked like they don’t get cleaned much based on the same large clumps of hair and a bandaid that remained our entire 4 day stay. Also, the shower heads are motion activated and makes drying off a little difficult as you will get sprayed while toweling off if you get near the sensor. I used the larger accessibility shower after I sprained my ankle. The stall has a handheld showerhead that is supposed to mount on a pole but the mount was broken so I ended up sticking the showerhead between the handle rails and the wall while rocking back and forth on the bench to keep the water flowing. I’m docking a star off this review for the showers alone for the fact the showers aren’t cleaned regularly, but not for the motion activated water or the broken mount as I’m sure campers are to blame for both.

On the recreational side of things, there is one hiking trail. There’s a beach for swimming. There’s fishing and any other small boat craft activity. It was relaxing to watch the boaters out on the water fishing from the campsite. But if you bring a boat make sure you don’t have a shared driveway like our campsite did with three campsites that had a partially blocked driveway due to a neighbor having a large rig, a truck AND a boat that didn’t all fit in their space.

Funny side note: There are signs everywhere saying alcohol is prohibited in North Carolina campgrounds but the recycle bin by the restroom was FULL of wine bottles.

For those who work and travel like us, on Speedtest at 8pm on a Monday–Verizon via iPhone 12: 52 mbps down and 3 mbps up with 32 ms ping; I totally forgot to test our T-Mobile speed. I worked on T-Mobile all week even with video chat.

I absolutly love this campground. Everyone that works here has always been super helpful and friendly. My kids love the swimming areas and playgrounds too.

We enjoyed our mid-July trip here. There are so many loops and roads within this park, we had a blast on our bikes. We were in site G41 and loved the private feel of the site. We had trees and shrubs on 3 sides. This is a huge campground. The only downside is that they literally lock you in at night. You cannot attend an event or concert that runs late....because YOU WILL BE LOCKED OUT....LOL.

I guess I didn’t take any photos of this trip...not sure why.

We stayed in Loop B and it was the loveliest lakeside campsite, nice level spot for our very large tent and a private sandy beach just below the site. This was especially nice over the summer because the public beaches were closed due to COVID. 

This would have been one of my favorite campsites if it weren't for the noise. Some people were fishing on the lake between 1-3am just off our campsite, being really loud and shining a large flashlight over our site. We didn't sleep very much. I'm going to assume this was a fluke and give this campsite another shot because the beach is so nice.

We enjoy this campground because it is so close to home. It's pretty basic. The bath houses need updating. Most sites are well spaced and there are plenty of shade trees. Sites on the water are really great but you can usually find a path to the water even if you aren't waterfront. (Beaches have been closed during COVID however, you can still access water from campsites.) Some little hiking trails are between loops.

Plenty of wooded space between camp sites, good for pets or families who aren’t looking to have a neighbor.

Camped at poplar point camping area site 27 loop H. Good access to the lake with slight drop off with no beach front. Good for kayaks, SUPs or canoes. Near the communal bathrooms. Trash cans provided on site.

Been here twice this summer with friends. Loved being able to just chill in the lake away from it all. Rangers can be very ticket-happy if you bring beer so be aware. Bring a mask for the bathroom -- nobody is wearing one -- be ready for rude folks who will laugh at you for having one on. 🤷‍♀️ I'll keep coming back -- it's a lovely spot, quiet except for passing boats, and beautiful.

Jordan Lake is a all around Great place to take the family for a weekend getaway or a 2 week adventure.  We the Flynn Family  are always looking for a family getaway and found Jordan lake to be perfect.  Or stay at Popular Point was really nice.  Camp site was a drive through and gave us enough room to spread out a little was  with in view of the water and close to the restrooms. We highly recommend spending family time together at Jordan Lake

One of our go-tos since it’s close to home. Love access to the water. Sites are big and most have plenty of woods between them to block neighbors. Amazing how it can be so quiet with so many people around. Love!!