Best Tent Camping near Pennington Gap, VA

Cherokee Dam campground is literally one of the most beautiful campgrounds in the area! The grounds are so well-kept, and the lake is just breathtaking. The campground is near town, so you can grab some bbq or hit the local hardware store for anything you need. The campground also had a camp store for essentials. They even delivered firewood to our site.

The people running the campground were just amazing. So nice and helpful. Most of the sites have lake views. We were in site #36, and we were in our camper. Lots of space, no shade at all in this one. Most of the sites had some shade though. Picnic tables and fire rings at all.

I’ve noticed the TVA campgrounds don’t have many showers, so I was glad to have that in our camper, just be aware, you might have to wait for one if you are tent camping. The tent sites were awesome, right on the water, and a short walk from the parking lot. If you have a rooftop tent, you won’t be able to park at your site, so you’ll be sleeping in the parking lot, but you could make it work.

There’s a swimming area, boat launch, and walking trails. This is a great spot to have a great time on the lake!

Very unique state park. Expensive tent camping $40/night no hookups Visit tunnel at night if open

Good tent camping sites. Lots of trees; level sites; fire pit; picnic table. Very clean & well supplied restrooms. Great individual private room showers with plenty of good hot water.

Great little park located in the Appalachian mountains of Virginia beside of Leeman Field park in Pennington Gap. Easy sites to get into with full hookups. Clean restroom/bathhouse on site, group picnic area/outdoor fireplace, and horseshoes at the campground. Neighboring Leeman Field park has multiple playgrounds, picnic shelters, swimming pool (Admission to the pool is included in campground fees.), tennis courts, and disc golf course. There is a gorgeous walking and biking trail beginning at Leeman Field that winds along the river leading to a local grocery store and restaurants. Maps are available for ATV trails that can be accessed from campground also.

Tent camped for a weekend to hike Devil’s bathtub. Campgrounds were well kept. We had water and electric at our site. Fire ring and table. Level gravel tent pad. Bathhouse very clean. We hiked down to the tunnel. Beautiful. The chair lift was running and the kids loved that. (We rode just for fun) park rangers were friendly. Dogs were welcome leashed.

I have tent camped here a couple of times in the past few years. The campground is clean and neat, and some sites offer great views of the lake and surrounding cliffs. It's a beautiful place to hang out at during sunset or sunrise. The shower and restrooms are clean, and the general store is nice and convenient. The laundry facilities are a nice place to get things cleaned up while you're on the road. The biggest problem I see with this area is the noise. A lot of the Wahweap workers live in an area of mobile homes above the campground, and they definitely like to party at night. A group of motorcyclists also thought it was a good idea to rev their Harleys up at 6 am one day. I am sure camping in and RV would isolate you from the noise, or maybe camping during a weekday would be better. Either way, I would stay here again. As for tent camping, some of the sites have zero shade, so be prepared with your own shelters. Just make sure you anchor them down; afternoons can bring some strong winds to the area.

I camped here back in June 2018. It was one of three sites I camped at that week on my trek to ten VA state parks in the south eastern of the state. This was my favorite of them all. It offered primitive, trailer and tent camping. Since I was by myself I choice the tent. Very clean, helpful and friendly folks. the site was easy to pull through with my truck. I been to some that were not so easy.

Campsites are nice but electric hookups only at certain sites. Its a national campground so its beautiful with nice bathouses but not much activities other than hiking. There are a limited amount of sites that would accommodate a large RV, mostly tent sites. It is first come first serve with no reservations. There is no rv parks close if the campground is full.

I was a little underwhelmed compared to what I was expecting from camping at a national park. The positives are the cheap rates and there are bathroom and shower facilities. If you want old fashion tent camping the park does have some backcountry campsites.

The cons are the lack of actual campsites. They are more like parking spaces. Probably to appeal to the people who use campers. The noise of the highway was constant and annoying.

Overall I enjoyed my time staying here. Wish I could have done more backcountry camping but the weather didn't permit it.

Kingdom Come State Park is a little jewel in southeastern Kentucky! There are 6 tent sites (7 if they allow you to reserve the one next to the duck pond), each with a gravel drive, mulch tent pad big enough for two smallish tents, fire ring, and picnic table. The nearby shelter house provides restrooms and trash cans. The local ranger was most helpful in providing firewood (free!) and offering to bring us water to wash up with or for drinking (there is a water fountain across from the CG, but it wasn't turned on and there is running water in the restrooms). The area is known for bear activity, but we saw none. The surrounding mountains provide many short hikes that can be easily strung together to make for a longer trek if desired. We look forward to camping there again!

The is a cool little campground. a mix of RV, Cabins and tent sites. All have power and water. Some campers are more tenants who live there but all are very friendly. You are right on the water which is so beautiful and is a lullaby at night. Also at night the train comes and far off in the distance you see this light coming around the bend across the river and passes right by. it really is a site to see at night with the river as a beautiful accent. Asheville is right down the road with all the river outfitters running there shuttles stacked with tubes. The River District is centered to the arts and is a cool place. Downtown Asheville is just a bit further. That’s a whole other review....

Campground Review:

If camping with a side of luxury is your thing, then this is the place to be. While this is a huge campground with over 200 campsites, they do a great job of separating tent sites from campers and RV's. There is at least one loop that is tent only, and another that is tents and small campers. The RV's were kept on the far side of the campground away from any possible tents. They also had great (for those who want it quiet) hours/restrictions for generators. Tent sites were level with picnic tables, fire rings, and each had some trees, though small in size, that were irrigated underground so you know they will survive the heat and blazing sun. Each loop had its own very clean and new looking bathroom, and showers were available at the campground general store/check in. I have to tell you, I still cannot believe how much time you get for showers- 15 minutes for $2!!!!!! This is a great location for playing on the lake, taking the dam tour (insert dam jokes here), going to Antelope Canyon (spectacular!!!), Horseshoe Bend, Grand Escalante Staircase, and even going to the Grand Canyon.

Gear Review:

As a Ranger for the Dyrt, from time to time I get to test products. On this camping trip I tested the Klymit Insulated Static V sleeping pad. I was looking for a new pad that was lighter and packed smaller than my old Thermarest. At 25 oz, I thought the Klymit was going to be a bit heavy, but it actually seems much lighter (and in fact is lighter and warmer than the thermarest). And can I just tell you about it's packability? The pad packs down to about the size of a nalgene bottle! I loved that I could roll onto my side and not have my bony hips jam into the ground. The pad was interesting to blow up as it looks huge when un-inflated, but it "shrinks" to the proper size as you add air. It took about 12-14 breaths to blow it up, which I think is reasonable. My friend struggled with the valve a bit, but I had no issues. She also had one night where the pad seemed to deflate some, but I truly think it was her operator error due to her dislike of the valve. Again, I had no problems, found it very easy to blow up to use and deflate for packing, and I'm looking forward to using this pad again on my next camping trip. My former pad has been put to rest, I have a new sleeping pad I love! https://www.klymit.com/insulated-static-v.html

We camped in site B-11.

Sites, even in the RV loops, are well spread out with mature trees separating them. Sites can be hilly, even the RV paved pads, so be cautious on site selection. That said, the roads and pads were recently re-paved and have nice curb stops at the ends to assist in backing in.

The bath houses are generally clean and updated, with separate shower facilities that are independent from the bathrooms. It’s not especially cold right now but it did seem that they’re at least heated.

We tent camp in an RV site since we have an EV, allowing us to charge. The power post on our site was typical with 120V 20A (5-20) and 30A (TT-30) connections as well as a 240V 50A (14-50). Power supplied was at 248V while pulling 32A.

Our site accommodated our larger 9-person tent (16’x9’) well, with only a slight slope on the back end of the site. This left plenty of space for the supplied table, fire ring, and parking in the paved pad. We are across the street from the bath house.

Note: Site B-10 across the street has a significant slope for the RV pad and the grassy area that could accommodate a tent is also significantly sloped.

None of the sites I’ve seen have water at the site- there is a spigot at the bath house.

The dumpster area is at the end of the B-loop road, and also has bottle and can recycling available.

We could occasionally hear traffic (mostly engine brakes when it happened), but I think that is more an issue in the further back loops. A-loop is furthest from the highway. As a tent camper, the HVAC units of neighboring RV’s were louder than the traffic (not an issue - we know what we’re signing up for in these sites. Just giving a comparison.)

This park is located about 15 minutes off I-81 just south of the VA/TN border, making it extremely convenient, and a great place to stop for anyone traveling that stretch of the country.

There are a total of 134 campsites. 94 are available year round and have electric/water hookups, and the remaining 40 sites are in an overflow section that is only open from Memorial Day-Labor Day. The overflow sites do not have electric or water hookups, and accommodate trailers up to 60 feet (site 106 only; all others sites can only fit smaller RVs). The sites open year round are primarily used for RV camping, accommodating trailers up to 40'. Sites have asphalt driveways and are otherwise gravel, with picnic tables, grills, and fire rings. Sites 94, 73, 57, and 28 are ADA accessible, and site 90 has a pull-off parking spot with the campsite set down from the road (this is an excellent tent site!). Most sites are very shady, and sites on the northern side have a view of the lake from late fall to early spring. The bathrooms have electricity and running water, are single stall and include a shower, and are some of the cleanest campground bathrooms I have ever experienced. And since we were there in late March and it was still fairly chilly, we appreciated the space heaters!

Amenities at this campground include hiking, fishing, boat rental, golf, disc golf, a swimming pool, and the best playground I have ever seen--this campground is worth it for the playground! It is huge, has an interactive story trail based on "The Lion, The Witch, and the Wardrobe," a creek that runs through it, and the best part is that it is universally accessible, so children of all abilities can enjoy the park (sensory-friendly areas, and all signs include brail!). There is also a concession stand at the boat house, and two miles of trails are horse-friendly.

My only complaint about this campground is, given the proximity to the town of Kingsport and I-81, there are still a lot of civilization noises at night. This should not be an issue if you are in an RV, but for tent-campers you will still be able to hear distant traffic while falling asleep, instead of just the sounds of nature. But while we may not choose this as a place to "get away from it all," as frequent travelers between eastern TN and central VA, this campground is a perfect place to stop, and beats a hotel any day!

-CAMPGROUND REVIEW- I was pleasantly surprised when we pulled into this campground. It accomadates to all, without being too showy. There are cabins you can rent and full RV hookup sites as well if that’s what you’re interested in. I was particularly interested in the primitive tent site. This is only a 45 second walk from the provided parking area- and well worth it for the privacy and seclusion. There is one bathroom in the campground- one men’s shower and one woman’s shower. I wouldn’t say it was stellar in cleanliness- but it wasn’t disgusting by any means either. For the tent and primitive sites there are two portable bathrooms- one was better than the other. The guy who runs it is super nice and accommodating- even letting us have a fire with our family in one of the easier to get to camp sitesp so that my grandparents could enjoy a nice campfire.

The campsites were as a whole pretty close together- we went midweek and before their peak season so there wasn’t really anyone else around, but could see it being less than desirable to stay here in the on season. It gets pretty busy in the on season. Would highly recommend the primitive tentsite or site 17 for optimal privacy (especially in the on season.)

-GEAR REVIEW- Being a Ranger for the Dyrt, I get to test out some killer equipment from the best guys out there. This time was no exception. The Renogy Water Filturation system is probably not something I would have ever thought I needed. I’m one of those people who carelessly drinks out of any body of water as long as it seems to be moving fast enough. While I’ve never had any problems in the past- it’s always a stress in the back of my mind. What if I have some kind of parasite living inside me just waiting to come out and kill me? What if on my backpacking trip I drink stream water and end up pooping myself because of contracting giardia? Real worries.

Renogy has changed all this though- because now- I know I’m only getting purified water. This filter easy to use and put together, very minimalistic, and light as a feather. It for sure will simplify my backpacking trips from now on (I usually pack two or three gallons- which as you can imagine gets pretty heavy.) It comes with the purification system, two tubes, a suringe for cleaning out the filter and a few replacement parts. It all fits in its little pouch.

Going to go ahead and give this a 5 star rating. Thanks Renogy! Grab your own here- https://www.renogy.com/renogy-portable-outdoor-water-filter/

Booked a 3 night stay over the weekend and had the primitive camping area to ourselves. 5 spots with tent pads, picnic tables, fire pit, hanging poles, and bear box. Then there is a very large, communal fire pit, and an open but covered shelter with picnic tables and an outlet to charge your tech things. Water spigot at top, a little walk, uphill, for water. The camp store people said they are unable to use spigot nearby common shelter because it’s no good. 🤷🏻‍♀️ Glad we brought our large bladder so we weren’t constantly going up and down the hill for water. Camp store with some basics at entrance, and person on golf cart drives around checking on things. Trash dumpster, up the hill just past water spigot. Couldn’t have asked for a more peaceful place, especially for the price, $15/night. Took advantage of some of the hiking trails, which were well maintained and marked. Also, went and checked out the natural tunnel via chairlift. The other two campgrounds looked nice, with big, fancy bathhouses. And the cabins, wow, fancy! Hooray for Virginia State Parks!!

If you’re looking to get into the woods and hear nature sounds this is not the place to go. We had to get a refund because the site was so small we couldn’t even fit our tent, a four person tent on it. I saw very few tents, mostly RVs and they were shoved right up next to each other. There were kids running everywhere. The place was packed. No green spaces between campsites at all. So if you’re looking for a place to park your RV and let your kids run wild with other kids it’s perfect. But if you’re a couple trying to get out into the woods and fall asleep to the sounds of nature in a tent, go somewhere else. All that being said the park is amazing with a lot of amenities. So I would considering going there for the day. We’re mountain bikers and wanted to try out the trails but had to leave because of how crowded it was and the campsite being impossible to put up a tent. The lady working at the campsite told us we could just put it on the cement pad which was literally right next to the road so I said no thank you. They were very kind though and they gave us a refund so the staff is very nice.

Stayed here for one night in late April. Campground was clean, pretty wide open area with nice views to Lake Powell across the street. Little to no privacy. Bathrooms were clean. Showers available for a fee ($2 I think?) next to the camp store/check in area, we didn't use those though. We stayed in a campervan - loop 2 site 51. It was close to the bathroom but not annoyingly so. We had reserved a site ahead of time but your site is assigned to you - first site we were given had a very sloped parking area (fine for a tent, but there was no way to level a vehicle you are sleeping in. Fortunately the campground wasn't full so we drove around and found a few sites that would work better, and they switched us with no issue. There are a few RV loops with full hookups, some tent/campervan sites, and some tent only sites (those had nice level tent pads to pitch the tent on). Wifi is also available if needed but the signal wasn't great near us (I needed to get a little work done while there so the wifi came in handy, signal was fine near the camp store and there are a few tables to sit on outside of it). Not the kind of campground I'd want to hang around in, but it was a convenient stop when we drove from the Grand Canyon to Page. We chose it based on the convenience of booking a site ahead of time, the fact that we were staying for only one night, and its proximity to Page (we did an Antelope Canyon tour). The group in the site next to us was a little on the loud side at night, but that's a risk at most large campgrounds. If we were going to be in this area longer than a night, I'd look for a more remote and peaceful location. Wahweap is a nice choice if you prefer a more "RV" type campground.

We stopped here for one night on our way to the Richmond area. Awesome family run campground. Super friendly staff. Clean campground. Great surprise in the mountains of Virginia! beautiful creek nearby!