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Dispersed Camping

Uwharrie National Forest

Uwharrie National Forest, near Asheboro, North Carolina, is a fantastic spot for those who love the great outdoors. This area offers a mix of established campsites and dispersed camping options, making it a flexible choice for different camping styles.

The forest is known for its beautiful scenery and challenging hiking trails, perfect for anyone looking to stretch their legs. Many visitors have praised the variety of campsites available, with some even finding great spots right by the water. As one camper noted, “Drove out in the Tacoma and slept in the bed of the truck near the water,” highlighting the ease of finding a cozy spot to settle down.

Amenities include picnic tables, fire pits, and access to drinking water, which makes it easier to enjoy your time in the woods. Reviewers have mentioned the peaceful atmosphere, with one saying, “It’s like our home away from home,” which speaks to the welcoming vibe of the area.

For those who enjoy biking or hiking, there are numerous trails to explore, including options for OHV and mountain biking. Plus, the nearby trails offer a chance to experience the natural beauty of the forest up close. Whether you're planning a weekend getaway or a longer adventure, Uwharrie National Forest has plenty to offer for a memorable camping experience.

Description

USDA Forest Service

There are approximately 51,000 acres of National Forest System lands in Montgomery, Randolph and Davidson Counties. The Uwharrie National Forest includes the Uwharrie Ranger District Office, located at 789 NC Highway 24/27 East, Troy, NC 27371. At the district office you can obtain information about the area, get brouchures, camping information, trail passes, and permits. You can also obtain a Senior pass, Disabled Pass. We also have USGS Topo maps for sale. Primitive dispersed camping is allowed throughout the Forest, except in those areas that are posted "No Camping". These sites can be found along most of Forest Service roads and trails. Please remember when using these sites to be careful with camp fires and carry out your trash and debris. Please leave your campsite in good clean condition so that others who follow you may also enjoy the Forest. The Uwharrie National Forest is part of the 2 million acres of public lands managed by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission for public hunting, trapping and fishing, and are designated as Game Lands. In addition to the appropriate basic annual hunting license, a Game Lands Privilege license must be obtained to hunt on the Uwharrie National Forest. Information concerning seasons, bag limits, and special Game Lands Restrictions are found in the annual N.C. Inlands Fishing, Hunting and Trapping Regulations Digest, available where licenses are sold. Camping and Day-use Information Enjoy camping or a picnic at one of the many day-use areas. A list of camping and day-use areas in the Uwharrie National Forest can be found here. You may enjoy this story on a QR guided trail in the national forest. OHV Trail Vendors. Shooting Range Vendors. Recreation Maps Uwharrie National Forest map Trail Strategy Documents, Presentations and Maps Badin Lake Area map Morris Mountain Area map North Eastern Portion map South Eastern Portion map Wood Run Area map Documents... Presentations... Be Safe The national forests in North Carolina offer a wide variety of outdoor recreation opportunities. From the mountains to the sea, there are many exciting adventures awaiting your visit to these national forests. Please keep in mind that all outdoor recreational activities on the Croatan, Pisgah, Nantahala and Uwharrie national forests, including activities at recreation sites, have inherent risks due to the natural setting in which they occur. Always remember, your safety is your responsibility. Badin Lake OHV Trails close December 18th at 8:00 am OHV Trails will reopen April 1st in the morning OHV annual passes will be available from the Uwharrie Ranger District office or the Eldorado Outpost

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Location

Uwharrie National Forest is located in North Carolina

Detail location of campground

Coordinates

35.36344229 N
79.86283197 W

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Access

  • Drive-In
    Park next to your site
  • Walk-In
    Park in a lot, walk to your site.

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  • WiFi
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Site Types

  • Dispersed

Features

For Campers

  • Market
  • ADA Access
  • Trash
  • Picnic Table
  • Firewood Available
  • Phone Service
  • Reservable
  • Showers
  • Drinking Water
  • Electric Hookups
  • Toilets
  • Alcohol
  • Pets
  • Fires

For Vehicles

  • Sewer Hookups
  • Water Hookups
  • Pull-Through Sites

DISPERSED CAMPING

Enjoy dispersed camping on government land and leave no trace. Pack in and pack out. No (or limited) services at this camping area. Permit may be required.


PERMIT might be REQUIRED

We curate permit requirements across the US for our PRO members. Try PRO to see if Uwharrie National Forest needs a permit.


Reviews

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15 Reviews

Reviewed Nov. 11, 2022

Uwharrie National Forest

Good challenging hiking, and plenty of campsites along the trails. This is a good place for a 'shakedown hike' if you ever plan on through hiking the AT. There are a few different trailheads, so you are never too far from your car or civilization. 23/27 trailhead has a decent sized parking lot and allows for overnight parking for backpacking etc. Rt 109 trailhead has slightly smaller parking.

If you are car camping, there are established campsites for that, and you can basically disperse camp anywhere there is a site in the Uwharrie.

Month of VisitJuly
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Marvin D., November 11, 2022
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Marvin D., November 11, 2022
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Marvin D., November 11, 2022
  • (5) View All
Reviewed Jul. 29, 2022

Good location in the national forest

Beautiful campsites, plenty of room for our camper. Neighboring sites were a bit rowdy when we were there, no ranger to enforce the rules. Other than the loud neighbors the campground was very nice, lots of nearby trails to ride and hike.

Month of VisitApril
Reviewed Mar. 7, 2022

Camping near the water

Drove out in the Tacoma and slept in the bed of the truck near the water pulled off on the side of the road. The spot we found already had a fire pit made which was so nice. Only a short hike down to the water and the weather was beautiful!

Sitefree spot off of road
Month of VisitMarch
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by evangeline , March 7, 2022
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by evangeline , March 7, 2022
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by evangeline , March 7, 2022
Reviewed Nov. 3, 2021

Primitive camping

We primitive camping here at least every other weekend. We love it. Great trails, beautiful scenery. A peaceful experience

Siteprimitive sites
Month of VisitOctober
Reviewed May. 25, 2021

Into the woods

Nestled in the middle of NC is this great forest. There were lots of established camping spots. We picked a nice one near a stream. There was a lot of road traffic even late into the night. People were friendly when we saw them but everyone kept their distance.

SiteN/A
Month of VisitApril
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Terri F., May 25, 2021
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Terri F., May 25, 2021
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Terri F., May 25, 2021
Reviewed May. 22, 2021

Uwharrie campground

The State Forest has camping. We used our pop-up with a generator in rustic locations. There are hiking, horse, OHV, dirt bike, ATV, and mountain bike trails.

  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by bart , May 22, 2021
Reviewed May. 1, 2021

Truly Primitive Camping in a National Forest

Personally, I would give dispersed camping here four or five stars, but I have to be objective from the point of view of many campers. This is not an RV camping area, at least not the dispersed camping area. You cannot drive up to the campsites. There are no electric, water, or sewer hookups. There might be at the more developed campgrounds, but if you are camping along the Uwharrie Trail or the Dutchman’s Creek Trail, it is completely primitive. With that said, I have enjoyed camping in the Uwharrie National Forest. 

This makes my third time in the Uwharrie National Forest. The first time was with a Royal Ranger Junior Training Trails group when I was a Royal Ranger leader. We camped along the Dutchman’s Creek Trail. The second time was with the Boy Scouts when we were preparing the boys for a longer backpacking trip to Philmont in New Mexico. This time was my third time, and I was by myself. I hiked along the creek at what was marked as campsite 1 along the Uwharrie Trail. It was a short hike and easy to moderate. Unfortunately, it wasn’t far enough away to hear distant noises from Hwy 24, so if you want to get away from traffic noise completely, hiker farther in. 

Obviously, there are no facilities, so I had to take my own water and a water filter. Since I was close to a stream, I had to take care of personal business about two hundred feet farther away. There was evidence that others had been at this site because of the trash, but as always(and I am not patting myself on the back), I left the site cleaner than I found it. I am sure there are other views, but my favorite view was from Dennis Mountain, which is only about 700 feet above sea level. I didn’t make it to Dennis Mountain this time, and I wish I had taken pictures when I was there before. On my previous trips, I also wish I had taken more photos. Nevertheless, backpacking and camping in the Uwharrie Mountains gives you a sense of being in the wilderness.

SiteUwharrie Trail Primitive Campsite 1
Month of VisitApril
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Myron C., May 1, 2021
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Myron C., May 1, 2021
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Myron C., May 1, 2021
  • (20) View All
Reviewed Nov. 26, 2020

Dispersed camping

This is a great area for dispersed campers with 4WD or AWD. It's pretty popular so head out early to secure your spot. Some of the sites may have a little trash left from the last user, so please try to leave it cleaner than you came to. No toilets for disperesed areas. Most sites have rock fire pits and room to set up. Love it here. Plenty of OHV trails as well.

  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Zachary S., November 26, 2020
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Zachary S., November 26, 2020
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Reviewed Sep. 14, 2020

Nice sites

The tent sites nice and clean and level. The host drove through many many times in the 3 days I was there. Bathrooms are what you can expect from a state park clean with little bugs here and there but nothing you can do about that in the middle of the woods. Overall great place good four-wheeling and nice accommodations

  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Chris , September 14, 2020
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Chris , September 14, 2020
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Chris , September 14, 2020
  • (4) View All
Reviewed Oct. 5, 2019

Uwharrie trail

Along the Uwharrie trail. Water available on both sides of camp / trail.

  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Wayne R., October 5, 2019
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Wayne R., October 5, 2019
Reviewed May. 30, 2019

Backpacking In Uwharrie

It should be no shock to those familiar with North Carolina’s geography that if one is seeking higher altitudes and breathtaking overlooks, Uwharrie is not the place he should go. Notwithstanding, as much of the higher elevations are impassable during the winter months, the forest offers backpackers an opportunity to stay on the trail a few days. The Uwharrie Trail, which pretty much spans the park north/south is about 20 miles point to point. The trailhead is kind of hard to follow sometimes, sections of the trail are prone to flooding and creek crossings can become difficult following heavy rains. Overall, however, the forest is a good place for backpacking in this region of the state. Th streams, provided one has filtration or iodine tablets, provide ample sources of drinking water.

  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Sean R., May 30, 2019
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Sean R., May 30, 2019
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Sean R., May 30, 2019
Reviewed May. 26, 2019

Great off-roading

First time at Uwharrie and we drove about 5 hours to get there but it was worth it! It’s a huge area with several campgrounds. We stayed in 2 different dispersed primitive sites and they were both great. Plenty of space and trees and privacy! There are a 6 different stores/gas stations that have the overnight passes available for purchase. We got our passes from Eldorado outpost and the attendants there were very knowledgeable and helpful! We also took our Jeep on the OHV trails and had a blast. There are several places you can take a canoe or kayak on and the scenery on the lake was beautiful as well. They also have several hiking trails throughout. Canebrake horse camp is located in Uwharrie and has horse trails throughout. We didn’t come across a park store but they did have showers and bathrooms in the actual campgrounds. There’s a store/gas station (Eldorado Outpost) right down the road and they also have an air compressor for inflating tires (which is handy for off-roading). It was definitely a long drive but we will definitely be making the trip again. We really liked the secluded primitive campsites and the various trails we were able to take our Jeep on.

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  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Erica , May 26, 2019
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Erica , May 26, 2019
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Reviewed May. 22, 2019

Dispersed camping/hunting area

This area was a place that I went often to deer hunt in the fall. I have never came across another camper/hunter at this location. It is a good location if you are looking for an area that is away from camp grounds and heavy traffic. I never shot a deer here but they are in the area.  The area is just SW of Troy, NC down HWY 109/24. On the map below, it is the most western forest area. 

Link to Map: 

https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd485941.pdf

SiteN/A
Month of VisitNovember
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Wyatt M., May 22, 2019
Reviewed May. 22, 2019

Little River National Forest Area

This area was one of my favorite ares for dispersed camping in Uwharrie National Forest while living in North Carolina. The area can be accessed by boat on the Little River, or by hiking in. Me and my friends would always float our kayaks down the river to a place we called "Bird Dog" and camp for the night. If you are looking for a place that has very little traffic, this is the place you want to go! This area would be limited to dispersed camping due to no campsites. It is a National Forest so be mindful of rules and regulations while visiting!

link: 

https://www.fs.usda.gov/Internet/FSE_DOCUMENTS/fseprd485941.pdf

 There is a boat ramp where PEKIN ROAD crosses the Little River.  PLEASANT GROVE CHURCH ROAD pretty much cuts right through the area on the PDF.

SiteN/A
Month of VisitApril
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Wyatt M., May 22, 2019
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Wyatt M., May 22, 2019
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Wyatt M., May 22, 2019
Reviewed Oct. 10, 2018

Wear bright colors during hunting season!

Make sure to wear bright colors during hunting season because there are a tong of people out deer hunting in this area. That being said there are a ton of great campsites that are private and secluded.

Month of VisitOctober
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Brandon D., October 10, 2018
  • Review photo of Uwharrie National Forest by Brandon D., October 10, 2018

Frequently Asked Questions

  • Does Uwharrie National Forest have RV hookups?

    According to TheDyrt.com, Uwharrie National Forest has water hookups and sewer hookups.

  • Are fires allowed at Uwharrie National Forest?

    Yes, according to campers on TheDyrt.com, fires are allowed at Uwharrie National Forest, although make sure to check current fire restrictions in the area.

  • Does Uwharrie National Forest have wifi?

    No, according to campers on TheDyrt.com, Uwharrie National Forest does not have wifi.

  • Is there cell phone reception at Uwharrie National Forest?

    According to campers on TheDyrt.com, Verizon signal is available, AT&T is unknown, and T-Mobile is unknown.