Best Glamping near Sparta, NC

We stayed for one night only on our way to Dreher Island SP. We didn't get in until after 4 pm, but there was still enough daylight to see how pretty the campground was. We had site 60 for the night. We tow a 19' a-frame camper with a Toyota Tacoma and had lots of room on the pad. The pad was pretty level so set up was easy. The site also had a huge area for the picnic table and the fire ring is far away from your camper. There was a huge grassy area behind our site with a creek, lots of space for our dog. We were in campground B (electric) and the sites were decent. There wasn't a lot shade for us, but up in the tent area they were surrounded by trees and it looked like they all had tent pads, some better than others. The shower house was nice, clean, flush toilets, and good showers. By the shower house they also had an outside sink to wash your dishes. We didn't get to hike, but everyone said we should if we ever go back. It's on our list to visit again.

While there's a few dozen great places to stay in and around the Blue Ridge Mountain Parkway, there are few campgrounds as prized as Julian Price, which has plenty to explore just steps from your tent's front door (er, flap!). 

After a 3+ hour drive from nearby Raleigh, my very great friend Gary (or'Gariatica' for short) and I landed at the D Loop, which is one of four campgrounds you'll find here. What's important to know about the'Big Letter D Barrio' as the locals refer to it as, is that the campground perches up almost immediately after entering it, so you'll be first met with a few of the lower campsites (which must receive a decent amount of noise from the passing traffic that is only 30-40 feet away from them) before coming to the ground's bathhouses (while just mediocre and not the cleanest, there are bonus points here for providing 'no coin required' individual, private stalls (8 in all), so no group showers, which will be disappointing for some, I suspect). 

After passing the communal bathing facilities, you will circumnavigate the D Loop in counter-clockwise fashion (although many tried to swim upstream and go in the opposite direction, which I don't recommend, as apart from being hit from oncoming traffic, even if there was none, you would need to conduct a 17-point turn-around to park your car in the provided parking spot) to tour the 40 or so campsites. 

While there were only a few free slots to chose from at the time of our booking (about 3-4 weeks in advance, so book early if you can!), we did get relatively lucky with our campsite, good 'ol D20, which had plenty of space for our behemoth 24 person tent cabin (OK, so you can't really sleep 24 in this sucker, but it sure would be fun trying!). 

I would actually recommend the sites that were located directly across from ours - while ours slanted upwards(revealing our entire site), those on the other side of the road sloped downwards so had a solid amount of privacy. Basic amenities were had at most sites we saw- solid (yet aging) picnic tables, fire rings (with pull down grill) and wooden-encased tent platforms. Warning: no nearby running water (to clean dishes, you'll have to load them up in a bucket and trudge back and forth to the bathhouse (donning a towel is optional). 

Also, I would suggest if you are looking at campsites here or in the other areas of this campground, do look at whether or not a trail cuts through or by your campsite. I don't know how you feel about 100's (this is a popular campground with loads of people hiking trails when we were there, so I'm not overestimating here) of strangers passing by your front door (dang it, I meant'flap' again!), but you might want to avoid the heavy foot fall traffic. 

Also, unlike any other campground I've ever visited (I lost count after the first 100), I've never stayed at a campground where it was so easy for anyone to simply drive up and around the campground (usually, you have to persuade someone at the front gate that you belong there, right?) as this location has an EZ access point that avoids the ranger at the gate(who left promptly at 5pm anyway), which made me a bit uneasy, although we had no problems to speak of. 

Last tip? My buddy who knows the area fairly well took me to Gamekeeper's Inn [https://gamekeeper-nc.com\\\\\\\] for one of the best meals of my life. This oversized log cabin chalet has an outstanding bar, simply fantastic staff, upscale smarts and feature exotic meats and rare game, so while I would have preferred hot dogs and beans fireside, followed by endless amounts of s'mores, I was instead dining on grass-[hand]-fed Bison and dungeon-free Emu, the likes of which I had never savored before. Quite delish, washed down by very fine Sauvignon Blanc from Marlborough in the land of kiwis and finished off by, what else? You guessed it, a fantastic creme brûlée. Very nice and quite expensive, but hey, you only live once, right?!. 

Happy Camping!

Sites are very close together with just a small spot of outdoor personal space. The campground sits on a hillside with multiple gravel roads. Although the landscaping is nice, there’s no trees near any campsites for shade. It’s right near the main highway which is convenient, but also noisy. No picnic benches on the sites unless you rent one and $10 to rent a fire ring. There’s 2 good-sized ponds for catch and release and also 2 kids playgrounds. There’s on bathhouse near the main entrance as well as laundry facilities. This is an okay place to stay if you plan on not spending much time in the campground.

Campground Review:

Pilot Mountain State Park is located in Pinnacle, NC, approximately 2.5 hours away from Asheville, NC and is known for it’s giant pinnacle, Pilot Mountain, that rises 2,000 feet into the clouds. At the base of a windy road leading up to Pilot Mountain lies the campground, approximately 2 miles from the top. This beautiful campground was centrally located within the state park and gave quick access to a wide variety of easy to strenuous hiking trails. Most of the trails leave directly from the campground. In addition to hiking, Pilot Mountain is known for it’s steep cliffs that give easy access to rock climbing and rappelling. There is a trail leading from the parking lot and traverses above the climbing area so you have quick access to set anchors from the top. Additional anchors are bolted at the top of most routes for easy top roping. The campground itself offered a fire ring, picnic table, and a man-made flat area to pitch a tent at each site. The sites were somewhat close together but we did not have any issues with noise during our stay. There were several clean bath houses throughout. Each one offered flushing toilets, and hot, running water for showers, all of which were free. There was potable water located next to the site and a separate area to clean dishes. Each site also had a ton of shade. Trees surround every inch of the park so there was plenty of space to hang a hammock and get relief from the burning sun. Most sites looked large enough for the average sized RV. The park’s host drove around checking in and offering $5 bundles of wood. The one negative draw back to this campground is that all the sites are on a slope so when it rains, most likely your campsite will too. The park does require a two-night minimum stay if camping over a holiday weekend. Also be aware that the campground entrance closes at 10 pm. You will not be able to enter or exit until the gate opens the next morning. The closest town is 10 miles away in case you forgot anything. Overall, would highly recommend this campground if you are looking for a great place to rock climb and camp for the weekend. We will be back!

Product Review:

As a Ranger for the Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time. During my climbing adventures at Pilot Mountain State Park, I got to test out three different Meal2Go packets from Greenbelly: Cranberry/Almond, Peanut/Apricot and Dark Chocolate/Banana (https:// www.greenbelly.co/products/meal2go?variant=19912486532). Let me start by saying how amazingly delicious these meals are. I’m a super picky eater and when I first saw cranberry and apricot, I had second thoughts about trying. Thank goodness my sense of adventure overcame my lack of tastebud exploration. The Meal2Go products are full of mouth watering flavor that I could eat over and over again which is crucial if spending time in the back country. They contain all natural ingredients and 1/3 of your daily nutrients. It lacked that chemical flavor most hiking bars have giving way to a natural tasting bar. They also had the right balance of chewy yet crunchy. Greenbelly designed these products with backpacking in mind. While we didn’t get a chance to use backpacking, it did supply a ton of energy for a full day of climbing. The one draw back I will say is the weight of the product. Since it was designed for backpacking, I was expecting it to be much lighter for what you get. There are two bars in each packet and the weight is 5.5 ounces. And while that doesn’t sound like a lot, it seemed heavier than my average backpacking bar. I will say though, I’d much rather be carrying slightly more weight in my pack if it meant I get to have a healthier/tastier option while rock climbing or playing in the back country. I would highly suggest checking out this product!

My husband and I just returned from a May visit to this campground. It is fairly small, 43 camp sites. No water and electric hookups which we sort of prefer as it seems to be less attractive to mega sized RVs with noisy generators. It was a ratio of about 75%/25% tents to smaller RVs when we were there. Camp site has raised level tent sites not concrete, but hard packed dirt. Also, picnic table and fire pit. The grill on the fire pit was adjustable for height to the coals which was kind of cool. Bath house was a little rustic but plenty of hot water. Firewood is available from the camp host for $6 a bundle. Cash only. If you’re not in good shape get a site above the bath house. Below the bath house involves a good little climb every time you have to go!

Best part of this campground is that it is right on the trail to the summit. The first trail is Grindstone Trail which is a 2 1/2 mile up and back. It’s a moderate trail with equivalent inclines, declines, and level switchbacks. I’m 63 and healthy and it was an appropriate challenge for me. To get to the summit it’s about a half mile of strenuous climb on the Ledge Springs Trail. That part is strenuous in my opinion.

You can also drive up to the summit where you get views of the Yadkin Valley and the knob of Pilot Mountain. It’s crowded up there but accessible for a wide range of people so that’s good. If you don’t prefer crowds go at the beginning or end of the season. Season runs May through October I believe.

We go back here multiple times each season. Very family friendly. Sites are relatively clean, easy to park at, bath house is clean& easily accessible. They even have a"coffee shop". The staff here are amazing! The campground is tucked away outside of Boone, but not so far that if you really need something you cant get it. The staff does a great job making sure the quiet hours are really quiet and no craziness happens. After looking around at other campgrounds, we really love this one. Most of the sites are shaded so in the heat of the summer it is really pleasant to hang out at the campsites(usually with a nice breeze). The location is also not far from the Blue Ridge Parkway and lots of great hiking.