Long Branch CG (Center Hill Lake COE), Lancaster, TN

Date of Stay:  Sunday September 18 – Wednesday September 21, 2016 (3 nights)

Rate:  $13/night (Access Pass discount)

Website:  Long Branch CG
   478 Lancaster Road (use gps 36.09903,  85.83176)
   Lancaster, TN 38569
   615-548-8002

Description:  Located near I-40 about 50 miles east of Nashville, Tennessee on the spillway side of Center Hill Dam on Caney Fork River.  We stayed on site 35.  There are 60 sites here with 3 of them being FHU (50A).  The rest are W/E (50A) with fine gravel manicured sites and paved roads.  All sites are reservable.  There are several that are sat tv friendly (30, 26, 27, 29 and 32 to name a few).  There is a boat ramp to the river near the spillway and across the dam (which you drive over) is another ramp and a nice Nature Trail of 0.75 miles.  There are other COE campgrounds and a state park on this lake.  Next to site 25 is a concrete stairway leading to the river which is full of trout.  There are two bath houses and both have inexpensive laundry.

Trash and Recycle:  There are a few dumpsters in the cg but no recycling.

Activities:  The mornings were foggy but the water was clear and cool.  Many people enjoyed kayaking the river to the spillway and there were quite a few people fly rod fishing.  We stood on the bank at the bottom of the steps next to site 25 and watched the water rise after it was released at the dam.  We could see some Brown trout and Brook trout.  The current increased and the lazy river got about 3 feet deeper in about 10 minutes.

 

On site 35

 

View from our patio                                Boat ramp to Caney Fork River

 

Center Hill Dam spillway

 

Information signs

 

Driving over the dam…  Center Hill Lake on one side and Caney Fork River on the other

 

Center Hill Lake                                         Caney Fork River

 

On the dam                                           Buffalo Valley Nature Trail

Shadrack Campground, Bristol, TN

Date of Stay:  Monday June 8 – Thursday June 11, 2015 (3 nights)

Rate:  $20/night (PPA discount)

Website:  Shadrack Campground
   2537 Volunteer Parkway
   Bristol, TN 37620
   423-217-1181

Description:  The entry is a bit of a hill but the sites are all level gravel.  We were on site 181 (FHU 50A) next to D&T.  Since this wasn’t race weekend, we were almost alone and enjoyed the PPA discount.  A space was left between our rigs.  The place was well maintained and a little creek/river bordered the park.  They have several nice rental travel trailers set up.  Also a mix of W/E along with many tent sites by the creek.  Nice place but I wouldn’t want to be here, or anywhere near Bristol, when there is a car race.

Trash and Recycle:  There is a dumpster near the exit but no sign of recycle.

Activities:  We stayed here because it is close to the Virginia Creeper Trail which is a wonderful Rail Trail in the mountains of Virginia.  It has been on Tricia’s radar for quite a while.  Our front air conditioner died so Gin had a mobile tech look at it.  He said it needed replacing and didn’t charge us anything since he was already in the park.  The surgery that Gin had on her knee this past winter didn’t help her much at all so she didn’t join us for a 17 mile (mostly downhill) bike ride.  I joined D&T and rented a bike at Shuttle Shack in Damascus.  It was certainly worth the price since we knew that they checked their brakes often.  We got shuttled to the highpoint at Whitetop Station and rode the trail through woods, pastures and rock outcroppings along a creek crossing it several times on trestle bridges.  The next day, we all relaxed at camp next to the creek while Dan smoked some delicious chicken thighs.  Yum!

 

On site 181 with T&D on site 179

 

Whitetop Station                                        Green Cove Station

 

Dan and Tricia on the Virginia Creeper Trail

 

We loved stopping on the trestles

 

There were many Christmas tree farms in the area

  

Inside the Green Cove Station

 

Rock outcropping along the trail             Creeper Trail Café has good ice cream

 

Taking a break in Whitetop Laurel Creek

 

Love a trail next to a mountain stream!

 

Love the trestle bridges over the Whitetop Laurel Creek

Seven Points CG (J Percy Priest Lake COE), Hermitage, TN

Date of Stay:  Tuesday June 4 - Thursday June 6, 2013 (2 nights)

Rate:  $12/night (Access Pass discount)

Website:  Seven Points CG
   1810 Stewarts Ferry Pike
   Hermitage, TN 37076
   615-889-5198

Description:  Only 10 miles from downtown Nashville but a world away.  Paved roads and parking pads.  Water and electric (50A) with nice views of J Percy Priest Lake.  One loop with 60 sites that are all reservable (no walk-ins so no open weekends).  We were in site 35.  Nice gate attendants.  Clean swim beach and boat ramp within cg and day use picnic area and boat ramp near by.  Tight dump station for big rigs.  Large sites with privacy, for the most part.

Activities:  We met our summer hitchhiker Pam (Gin’s cousin) here.  Her friend Danny had driven here from NC to drop off the recent retiree who will join us for about three months.  We basically relaxed and talked at our beautiful site on the lake.  We would have loved to stay here longer but this place was booked solid for the weekend.  They don’t have a single walk-in site.  The squirrels are quite tame.  We tossed out peanuts and they ran with them.  Nice place for a jog or bike ride with slight hills.

Trash and Recycle:  Dumpsters and recycle bin near exit (aluminum cans and plastic bottles).

 

Site 35

 

Nice view of J Percy Priest Lake

River Plantation RV Park, Sevierville, TN

Date of Stay: Wednesday August 8 - Sunday 12, 2012 (4 nights)

Rate:  $37/night

Website:  River Plantation RV Park
   1004 Parkway
   Sevierville, TN 37862
   800-758-5267

Description:  Gravel roads and parking pads with FHU (50A) and cable.  They do offer Signature sites which have concrete pads on the Little Pigeon River that borders the park.  A rock quarry is on the other side of the river but not noticeable due to the trees on the bank.  We stayed on site 165 which is a pull-thru in the middle of the park.  Laundry is in the bathhouses.  Swimming pool and LP tank fill also near the office.  They have a nice Conference Center for rallies.   The park is between Sevierville and Pigeon Forge which leads to Gatlinburg and the Great Smoky Mountain National Park beyond.  It is a very commercial area with lots of restaurants, shops and live entertainment.  The park itself is relatively quiet.

Activities:  This is a busy area and anything and everything is close by for entertainment.  We have camped here several years ago in Gin’s parent’s Winnebago and again in April 2011 for an RV-Dreams Rally.  In 2011 we spent a day at Cades Cove which is part of the Great Smoky Mountains.  This time we enjoyed a ride on the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail.  It was like a leisurely hike in the woods without leaving the car.  A young black bear even strolled right in front of us and ignored our presence. 

Trash and Recycle:  A few dumpsters throughout the park.  No recycle bins in the area.

 

 

 

Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail