Best Tent Camping near Rockwell, NC

Uwharrie National Forest-Badin Lake Campground, New London, NC.

https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/nfsnc/recarea/?recid=48934 

https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE\_DOCUMENTS/stelprdb5368418.pdf

Campground Overview: 34 sites, two loops...upper loop and lakeside loop. Relatively large sites with vegetation that blocks constant view of neighbors. 

Each site has a gravel parking pad and separate gravel tent pad, a standing charcoal grill, firepit with adjustable grate, a picnic table and a metal pole for hanging lanterns, etc. I would advise securing online reservations, but they do have an Iron Ranger to drop your payment in should you find an empty site. Note: There are warnings that online reservations take precedence, so if you use the Iron Ranger payment drop chute and someone reserved the same campsite...you will be required to move to a different location when the online reservation campers arrive. Just so you know.

No electric. 

Oddly, no firewood for sale...although scrounging produced plenty of things and fallen branches to keep a fire going.

I preferred the lower loop as nearly every outer site was on the lake with great views and lake access and sites are spread out. The inside sites of the lower loop are pretty spacious and deep. Water spigots were spaced out around the loop, so a short walk as we were equal distance between two. 

Restroom/showerhouses were quad door buildings. Separate men’s and women’s restrooms and two separate shower rooms. Facilities were kept clean and stocked by resident hosts. 

With Verizon, I never lost signal...a plus for a National Forest!

The upper loop appeared to offer a little more solitude than the lower lake loop...but no lake views. 

The lake loop trail crosses the main campground roadway between the two loops. This trail is relatively flat and meanders around the lake and it’s many fingers...offering lovely lake views and some nice fishing locations. 

During my midweek visit it was quiet day and night. The sunset across the lake was gorgeous and relaxing. Loud powerboat noise was minimal as only a couple bass boats thought it essential to travel at high speeds from location to location. Next visit my canoe and mountain one will accompany me. 

What I enjoyed: as much as I dislike tree rats, I was entertained by two feuding squirrels that chased each other relentlessly and knocking each other out of tree tops. Woodpecker and Turkey wake up calls. 

For a National Forest, I was surprised by the level of daytime industrial noise nearby. 

Overall, a fantastic location relatively close to Raleigh/Durham and Fayetteville for a great camping getaway. I was only able to stay one night as the campground was booked, all reserved in advance. So plan ahead.

We had 4 families with children on 1 RV and 3 non-electric tent sites over Memorial Day weekend. Even though the park was at max capacity, it didn’t feel crowded or swarming. The facilities and activities at Morrow Mountain are awesome - a huge, clean pool; canoe rental from a well-maintained boathouse; hikes of various lengths; slightly aged but clean and cared for bath houses; and (our favorite) a gorgeous mountain top picnic shelter (A), which we rented due to a rainy forecast. Great place for family camping. Sites are nicely spaced, but by no means are they private or secluded. Staff were very friendly, but the no alcohol rule is a bummer. If you want to be alone in the woods, Morrow Mountain is not for you. Its also worth noting the climate is much more like south central NC (hot and super humId) and nothIng like the cool mountain air in Western NC. But if your looking for a fun, interactive family or group camping weekend, it’s the perfect spot!

Site is so good. This site i stayed at was site 18 and it was so clean and had everything i needed such as the restroom showers, picnic table and fire ring. the site here do fill up fast so you should make reservations. It costed me 25 dollars and I called ahead 2 weeks. At the visitor center they said the weather here is unpredictable and sometimes it starts raining out of nowhere. There is electric hookups here and there is a lot of RVs which is pretty noisy from the t.v and radio. I came in the summer and the temperature was around the 80's. During the night it is around 60 which is pleasant. They do sell for 6 dollars for a bunch of firewood

I guess my GPS needs updating since it took me down the wrong road to get to this state park, so if you haven’t updated your GPS, do it before you attempt to come here. Other than that, it’s not that difficult to find. 

There are quite a few things to do at this state park. Hiking, horseback riding, and boating/kayaking are just some of the activities. The trails range from easy to strenuous, and there are lots of them. In addition to the typical outdoor activities, there is also an outdoor museum devoted to Dr. Francis Joseph Kron, one of the first doctors in the Piedmont.   There is also a history and geological museum located within the park.

The campground has three loops, some with no hookups and some with electric hookups. Water access is a few steps away. I didn’t do my research and I got the campsite farthest from the bath house. However, it wasn’t so bad since the road was paved and there was a moon out. I think the tent pad at my campsite was one of the largest, even though part of it was used for the picnic table, the lantern pole, and the fire pit. It was fairly level, but it was fine gravel. Driving tent stakes in was a little difficult but not impossible. One of the best things about this campground is that there is plenty of space between the campsites(at least where I was), so you don’t feel as if you are on top of the other campers. I also liked that there were plenty of trees for shade. The only drawback is that this state park is close to the Fort Bragg Army Reservation, so you will hear an occasional jet or helicopter(s) flying overhead. 

Even though the bath house has everything you need, including hot showers, it does need updating. Paint was peeling off the walls, but if that doesn’t bother you, it will be fine. Most campers are in their RVs, so I guess it doesn’t really matter. One thing I did not like was that the bath house is cleaned from 9:30– 10:30 am. Knowing that, however, I was able to work around it. If you decide to go exploring, you will want to go to the Morrow Mountain overlook. There are some pretty spectacular views from there. Overall, I enjoyed my stay here, and I wish I could have stayed longer.