Wonderful Stay
This site worked out perfectly. Rock Island has some nice trails and wonderful falls in the area. The site was great with everything out back. Peaceful site.
This site worked out perfectly. Rock Island has some nice trails and wonderful falls in the area. The site was great with everything out back. Peaceful site.
General: Three distinctly different areas: tent only section, cabin area, and the main campground. I didn’t see the inside of the cabins, but they looked very luxurious from the outside, so I am sure they are very nice. The tent area also looks nice. This review focuses on the main campground.
Site Quality: Camper pads are all paved but vary in length from 18 to 51 feet. The width of some can also accommodate two cars side by side. Not all are completely level. Each site has a picnic table, lantern hook, fire ring, and grill. All sites have electricity and water, and eight of the 50 sites are FHU. There are many trees to provide separation and privacy, and sites are spaced a decent amount of space apart. Some sites can accommodate tents, and these are indicated on the post.
Bath/Shower: Very clean. There was a sign saying the bathrooms are cleaned twice per day. Soap, paper towels, and utility hooks are all appreciated as was instant hot water from the taps.
Activities/Amenities: Many outdoor activities including tennis, basketball, volleyball, horseshoes, and a playground. There are two hiking trails accessible from the campground. I hiked a short distance on the Bluff Trail until it became narrow and overgrown. There are other hikes that require a drive from the campground. The best hike is in the Twin Falls area but that is a 10-15 minute drive from the campground. There is also a swimming beach with a rentable pavilion and picnic tables. It is possible to walk there but easier to drive. We also saw people kayaking on the lake and fishing is permitted. Each bathhouse also has one washer/dryer for a reasonable price. Free WiFi with a good, strong signal.
We enjoyed our two-night stay at this campground and for us, it was a five-star stay but I gave it four stars due to some sites not being completely level and the necessity to drive to the best hike.
We camped here over the weekend. Our campsite was perfect. Very private and enough space for 2 tents. Not all campsites are made for tents, some have just a concrete driveway. We had the usual amenities, like a picnic table with a bench, fire pit, and a lantern pole. The bathhouse was clean and well stocked. Rock Island offers a lot hiking trails and stunning waterfalls. There is a little coffee/icecream shop just outside the park, which was awesome. We would camp here anytime again.
Stayed there a lot.
Checking in was easy and fast. The park was clean. The bathrooms were clean. The only issue we had was leveling our camper, there was a 7in difference between the sides and being new to camping we weren’t prepared to have to lift one side that much!
We stayed in spot 50. Very quite campground. Well kept up park. Clean bathrooms. And the hikes are amazing!!!
We spent the thanksgiving holiday weekend at this campground. It was easy to get in and out of the park, staff was super friendly and helpful. Hiking trails are well marked and in good condition. The campground was excellent!!
This is a great state park with great hiking and beautiful waterfalls. This is the third time we have visited and the gorge has been closed every time! Boooo! This was our first time to camp here.
The campground is nice and well maintained. However, most of the sites are small. This is not a big rig friendly park, but lots of people still crammed their campers that were too big onto the sites leaving no room for them to park their vehicles.
This campground is full of extra amenities that we usually don’t see at most parks. They even had a ping pond table with paddles and balls! Nice playground, horseshoe pit, tennis, basketball, and a new group fire pit area.
We had a great stay and will definitely be back.
The campsites are shady, although not very private. Restrooms were average but they did have coin operated laundry machines. The best part was the beautiful setting, plenty of short pretty hikes, swimming and activities for the family.
We enjoyed our trip to Rock Island St Park Campground. We stayed on site 50. The park was clean and probably the quietest ewe’ve ever been to. The bath house was nice and clean. We hiked all the trails at the park. The waterfalls are a short drive. We loved getting ice cream at the train cars after leaving the waterfalls.
This a nice, less heard of state park (in my opinion) that offers a lot of options for things to do. The campground is on hilly ground, but the parking pads are fairly level. Many of the sites have multilevel (parking pad on one level and then table and fire pit on another level). Many of the sites also have railings because of the steep terrain on the edges. If you like hiking and waterfalls, there is a lot to experience. There are also kayak outfitters near by to rent equipment from. This park is a little more remote in the respect that if you need supplies there are some local convenient stores with limited supplies about 5 minutes away and a Dollar General about 15 minutes away. If you something more than that you will have to drive about a half hour.
Clean and nice.
Joined family at the last minute. Reservations a must. Some areas very hilly and sites not level. If it says slight incline. Think twice or call. Some sites will not accommodate large rvs. If the site looks like it is close to another,IT IS! Shower house and toilet facilities were a 3, on a scale of 1 to 5. Have seen better and much worse. Sis have electric and water which made it a plus. Wifi was ok. Phone reception for Verizon ok if your site was on the same level as camp store and washroom. NO reception if down the hill. We were there in Oct first half. Site near hickory trees. We felt like we needed hard hats when sitting at sites. When the nuts fell out of the trees it sounded like someone throwing rocks. Or when they hit the camper shells would explode sound like gun fire! Nice hiking trails. Some challenging. Twin falls were very cool.
Beautiful state park! Unbelievable waterfalls with many of hiking trails! There is a lot of history in the park! Tent campground was nice and level! Each tent site had a tent pad, lantern pole, fire ring and sturdy table! The bathhouses was clean and warm water! Wood is sold in the near by town or at the park visitor center!
Beautiful setting and well maintained park. We had plenty of space on our site and many shade trees. At&T had 1 bar but the WiFi pole was right next to our site so we had exceptional connection and were able to stream movies, etc. Large beach area and not crowded at all. We had our bikes and rode around the park and even to an ice cream trolley about 2 miles away. We enjoyed the park and surroundings. We didn’t use the bathhouse but we’re told by other campers it was clean and nice. Only negative is lack of sewer hookups on most sites. A few sites do have them.
Camp store is right across from tent area entrance. Easy access to most parts of the park. Best trails are on the other side of the river. It rages after a good rain.
I grew up around here. The locals don’t appreciate its beauty like they should. Lots of natural waterfalls and old buildings.
We were in spot 22 on the cul de sac and you get to know your neighbors really well. One neighbors fire ring was 8ft from our camper. Nice state park with lots to do. Go see twin falls.
We really enjoyed Rock Island State Park. The campgrounds are easily accessible and roomy. We were there only couple days but would love to go back and visit some of the cute shops and ice cream trailer at the entrance later. It is probably lots of fun in the summer with the huge beach. We plan to visit again soon. FYI there are some sites with sewer. I didn’t realize this when I reserved. They have great dump station but prefer to have that taken care of before we pull out.
Rock Island State park is a great place to camp. The campground is large and the campsites are spacious and far enough apart that you feel secluded, even when it’s full. It’s heavily wooded, so you don’t feel like your neighbors on right on top of you. The sites are paved and have water and electric, no septic where I was, however and they have a dump station that was large enough for two people to use at the same time. There are so many things to do at the campground, or the park, you will not be bored. Rock Island has some of the best waterfalls in Tennessee, and you can get right up to some them, if you are brave enough to kayak close to them. They also have a swimming area, and sand volleyball. Great biking in the park also. The area has lots of little shops and antique stores, if you’re into that, and Calf Killer Brewery is a short drive, and I highly recommend visiting there. Overall, this is a great park to visit, and a great place to camp.
This is our first experience at a state park, so we really don’t have anything to compare it to. It’s clean and quiet, with wooded sites that are spaced out so it feels very private. The hosts and rangers are friendly and helpful. To get to waterfalls, it’s quite a hike. A tow vehicle or bikes would be ideal to get around because the park is expansive. We did the Bluff trail which was nice and easy. The moonshine trail was very easy.
Tip!!! If you are coming from Nashville area, you are MUCH better coming in on 70 S through Murfreesboro than the way Rv trip wizard will route you! We learned the hard way.😐
Gorgeous waterfalls (pictures don’t do it justice) close by and hiking. Campsites are very small and on top of each other. Gravel pad. The trees provide partial shade. Glad we anchored our tents well, as their was a tornado warning on our first night with down limbs. Rangers were friendly and came by to check on everyone just before the storm hit, as well as after.
Bathhouse was pretty standard, nothing special, but at least it was clean.
Hiking trails are not well marked, and due to the terrain; I would not recommend taking small children. I mean, it IS named Rock Island after all.
The swimming area had very stagnant water and it was not appealing whatsoever.
Nice play area and some really cool things to look at on your way in. Dollar general 10 mins away.
The campground was well kept, bath house clean. Signs and paths for hiking were very confusing.
I would give this place 10 stars if I could!! Probably my favorite state park to date. It's absolutely breathtaking!!! The park features several waterfalls, swimming, rock jumping and plenty of hiking!!! We had the best time!! The campgrounds were very clean and had showers and restrooms! Each site offers a picnic table, fire pit and gravel area for your tent! There are also hookups for RVs. Would also reccomend Fall Creek Falls State Park and Cloudland Canyon State Park!
Our family just took a 3 night trip to Rock Island State Park. As a mama, I felt totally safe and comfortable at this park with 10 year old twin girls. The playground and restrooms were a short bike ride so they were never too far from camp. We were also VERY impressed with the cleanliness of the camp. Park rangers could be seen cleaning the restrooms and grounds every hour. With all the craziness going on, it was really comforting to see them going above and beyond to keep everyone safe. We took time to hike a few of the trails in the park. The trail that goes by the bluff was nice and easy. Our favorite was the Eagle trail. The views and trail itself were stunning! We will definitely be back!
I’ll start with the reservations! Easy for sure, and they were great with last minute changes. The site was easy to get into with our 27’ 5th wheel. (Site16) plenty of recreational space on this site. We have two 10 year olds who had a blast riding their bikes. The park staff did a great job keeping the bath house very clean. Plenty of good hiking and views on all the trails. The Eagle trail was a great one!
You have to experience it your self
We spent the weekend at the park in our 21’ camper. Site 28 was fairly level, and had water and 30a power. A few looked like they had sewer at them, but ours didn’t. Fair warning, sites all seemed to be pretty small. My kids loved playing at the playground. The whole park was just really well kept. Bathrooms and showers were clean and in great shape. The staff and rangers were all great, and the gift shop at the park entrance was pretty nice. Small, but had shirts and a couple souvenirs, as well as firewood. The falls were nice, but be prepared to get your shoes wet if you walk the trail down towards the main falls. There was a cold snap that weekend, so we didn’t feel like getting that wet. We will definitely be back in the spring.
I love the water falls and hiking in the area. Beautiful landscape makes this a great place to spend the weekend.
We visited this state park in our 40 foot motorhome. While there are only a few spots that will accommodate a rig this large, it’s worth the time to haunt the reservation system and snag one. The road to the park is winding but we had no issues. Nice big sites with picnic area and fire ring. Onsite camp hosts that are accommodating and friendly. The hike to the water falls was gorgeous and just sitting outside was worth the trip. Close to Cumberland Caverns where we enjoyed a concert in the cavern. We will definitely go back!!