Best Campgrounds near Gray, TN

Coordinates take you right to the site and there’s a small gravel road you can pull into. The campsite is directly off the forest road, maybe 20 feet. It’s a nice spot with some flat areas to put a tent if you don’t mind being close to the road.

Right across the road there’s actually a second road that goes into the forest on the opposite site. Buddy and I actually set up our tent over there instead, as it was more in the tree line, a bit more protected, and farther back from the road. Had a nice night and no one bothered us. Absolutely no verizon service.

We often camp in and around the Linville Gorge area, mostly in the primitive campsites down in the Gorge on Linville River.

We stayed before Hurricane Helene but haven't been back since then.

There are primitive sites along the foot trail (Linville Gorge Trail) but you still need to call to let the park ranger/main office know when you're planning to camp and provide how many people will be camping.

There are not great tent sites along the trail since it's at the bottom of the Gorge (not much flat ground and rocky). But there are some nice spots further south from Linville Falls. We usually hammock camp and trees hanging has more options.

Hiking out is moderate to hard as it's straight up through switchbacks and good elevation gain.

Pack everything out and practice LNT in this area. You may also be able to trout fish in Linville River if it's trout season and you're licensed. Speckled and Rainbow trout are beautiful in this area. Most fall within the 8-12 inch range. Check bait restrictions. It's almost always no live bait allowed when we've camped there.

Creekside Stayz is a clean, well maintained facility.  There is a porta-potty available, or you can use the bathroom/shower across the road at the owner's house for a fee.  Water and electricity are available for a fee.  (If you park on the grass, also a fee...)

The general area is on the edge of town, so there are buildings around you.  You are on a narrow strip of land between a road and the creek.  There are four named camp sites.  "Del Linnea" has a glamping setup, "Happy Camper" has a permanent travel trailer, and the one between them "Rio Relaxing" is large enough for an RV or a travel trailer.  From what I could see, any of these would be good.  

The fourth camp site, "Rio Rustic" is where I pitched my tent.  It is the closest to the road.  My vehicle was 10 paces off the road.  It was 40 paces or less from the road to the creek. So on one hand, I was camping next to a creek.  On the other, I was camping on the edge of town next to a road that had traffic somewhat late and then again early in the morning. So I really can't recommend "Rio Rustic".

Open May-September, this property is located on Cherokee Lake. There are four glamping tents (two with king beds and two with queen beds) and the newest addition is a Micro A-Frame with a king bed. This used to be a dedicated campsite and can still be used as one as the A-Frame is on wheels and can be moved. We stayed in the A-Frame which has a private fire pit and picnic table. 

The A-Frame is cozy with the bed taking up 95% of the space. There is also a small beanbag-type chair, dorm fridge, coffee maker, and two charging pads. There is electricity and light, but it is not bright enough to read in the evening. One of the nicest features is the window side that faces the lake can be opened, making it an open-air accommodation. However, despite it being on the lake, you will also hear almost constant road noise. 

The glamping tents are located further away from the lake in the woods so I imagine the road noise would be less or non-existent here. 

Ben and Kim, the owners, are still working on this property and they recently completed a very nice bathhouse with two toilets, two sinks, and two outdoor showers. Towels are provided. They are currently working on a boat dock. 

We chose the SUP n Stay package (middle price option); included in our reservation was the rental of either a SUP or kayak. The Stay package includes accommodations plus a floating lake mat. The Stay n Play reservation includes the SUP or kayak rental plus a two-hour lake excursion. Unfortunately, it started to rain after we had been out on the lake for about a half hour. The rain resulted in a very muddy area around the A-Frame and Tennessee mud is no joke. We accumulated about an inch of the thick gooey mud on our shoes. 

Ben and Kim were very welcoming and gracious hosts. Communication was great and they made sure we had no questions. Our stay in the micro A-Frame was a very unique stay. The only reason for four stars and not five was the mud and road noise.