Lake James State Park Catawba Area Walk-In Campground

All Tents grounds have prime location on the lake (ps. It’s a cliff so no boat /kayak access), Bathrooms are Clean and Shower got hot water. The only downside is the distance from the parking to the tents, Steps and hills so pack light and definitely get a cart. Also if you’ll kayak as i did so be ready for some workout rolling it to the boat deck. Over all great place to Camp. (Campsite #8)

This is a fantastic spot. Pack light as it is a walk-in spot of about 150-300 meters depending on the camp site you’re at. I would like to point out to the negative reviewers that the state park website advises it is a walk-in with varying terrain and people are advised to pack light. The views and the campsites are wonderful- ours was right off the lake. The bathrooms were some of the best I’ve used at a campsite although make sure to pack your headlamps as it is all the way back up at the parking lot. If the campsite host isn’t present to buy wood or the park office is closed, the Lake James Marina has a general store with wood and they are open until 5 or 6.

Very beautiful views!!! However, it is a hike to most of their sites. This hike includes a lot of stairs. Great for people packing light or without kiddos. Site 19 and 20 are great if you can't do stairs, and it's the shortest distance from the parking lot. Camp hosts Jeff and his wife were great and attentive.

“Walk-in” is a misnomer. My site was 100ft away from the parking lot on the map but it didn’t show the topography. My site required a 500’ trek with several flights of stairs not what I anticipated when I planned to take two wagon loads a short jaunt from the car. The camp host misinterpreted her title and instead of being welcoming and helpful she treated the campers like a parasite ruining her vacation. The spot was beautiful but I will never be back.

I camped here with a large group and we had a blast. Near lots of fish and places to rent gear. Some great parts about this camp: The bathrooms are very well cared for and the showers are clean. The view is beautiful and everywhere you go you can see the lake. Firstly, especially in the summer, it rains A LOT. Expect it to rain twice or three times a day. It'll either drizzle or storm and it can get wet fast. This area is by some of the most humid rainforests in NC so a lot of the water floats into this area and pours on it. Unfortunately, the camp sites were not well optimized for the rain, which caused many camping areas to flood (the gravel sites acted like 'bowls' keeping the water in, and creating a huge puddle around my tent. You can imagine it soaked the bottom of it real good). Th