Cataloochee Campground

I LOVE this campground! I am a local and Cataloochee is near & dear to my heart. Full disclosure, I am a VIP (Volunteer in the Park). The campground is fairly remote, no cell service in the park, very clean, friendly park volunteers, if I do say so myself (we LOVE talking with visitors ) and the campground is heavily wooded which makes it the perfect get away. Lots of hiking in the park and old structures. I love the wildlife! Turkeys, elk and an occassional bear (it is not crawling with bears but it is bear country). By far my favorite campground. If you have children ask a volunteer about the antlers! Another volunteer in the park may have them but we love sharing them with everyone, they're pretty cool & kids get a big kick out of them. Please! Keep you distance from wildlife. They are

We loved seeing all of the elk, turkeys, and one bear! What a great experience that was. However, the Camp Host was incredibly rude from the moment I pulled into the campground. It was very unexpected and I am not sure why she had such an attitude! The campsites are on top of each other. I like to have a little privacy when camping, but there is absolutely none here. Even though the campsites were extremely close, the campground was quiet. Also, beware you will need to bring your own wood in from a local NC store. I called the campground the day before my available and was told that there would be wood for me to purchase when I check in. So, when I checked in I was told that they never have any wood, and have no idea why someone would tell me that. So, of course, I had to drive ba

Just an okay campground. As of 8/15/2025, half of site #5 is closed off, so you don't have as much room as the website states. This is the only site like that and I wish we had known before we reserved it. With no electricity available, we expected a peaceful stay, but due to a generator running, loud families, and someone chopping wood at 7 am, it wasn't. We have stayed at many campgrounds that were a lot better. Just my opinion.

Great location. When there are rock slides etc the crews need to get on it full send. Surprised forest rangers Wildland firefighters don't help clear the roads like they do in other states. One stream of water, road shut down for weeks.

AMAZING!!! We spent three days at site 16. The bathrooms were clean and well maintained. Showers would be a nice upgrade. Some families bathed in the river. 🧊 🥶 We made multiple trips a day to see the elk and bear. The history surrounding the valley was incredible.