Douglas Dam, TN 9-12 July, 2016

Campground Map

Douglas Dam Headwater Campground

We met the Giles/Ball/Marrow clan at Douglas Dam Headwater Campground in Sevierville, TN.  Jenn and her family took sites 19 & 20, which ended up being a long pull-through type combo site that worked out perfectly for a group trip.  Our site, #26, was just across the road, nicely shaded, water views, but a bit short (and slightly steep) at the entrance so it was a bit tricky to get 6 tons leveled.  There was a large, grassy area in front of the sites, which worked out perfectly for a kids' play area.  The google maps photo above of the campground shows the water level MUCH lower than it actually was while we were there.

Our yard art

The swimming beach

We arrived on Saturday afternoon, and after about an hour or so of finagling to get into our campsite we were setup and ready to go.  The entrance to the site had a downhill slope before leveling out and our camper was so long that we had to have the front jacks on the hill.  That made it tricky to get the camper leveled.  We also had some power issues at the site, and had to reset the breaker on the power box a few times.  Once settled, we took the kiddos down to the water for a swim.  Whomever maintains the campground clearly brought in some sand for the beach - it was nice, clean sand.  Once in the water, the ground became super muddy.

Site #26

On Sunday, we rented a pontoon boat (great call Jenn!) and spent most of the day on the reservoir.  We stopped a couple of times for some food/drinks/swimming, but otherwise puttered around and checked out the area.  Saw some cool primitive campsites where people clearly only had boat access.  

Auntie Jenn with the kiddos

Beautiful scenery on the water

Castaway Keith

Sleepy grizzly bear

  

On Monday we made the 30 minute drive out to Pigeon Forge and Dollywood.  The kids had a blast! Nestled in the Smoky Mountains, the park was scenic and a great park for kids of all ages.

Who's watching the road?

Thumbs up for the water ride

Keith & Warren

To much awesomeness for one bee to handle

Ferris wheel fun!

Overall, what a great weekend.  Next time we go back with this crew, we'll grab site #18.  It's a pull thru, and we can position ourselves so our door opens up to the picnic table area between sites 19 & 20. Probably would stay away from the other loop, not so much shade, crowded, and tricky to get in and out since it's a dead end.  

Pros

- Nice shaded site

- Great water views
- Nice beach, easy access

- Close to Smoky Mountains

- Pull-thru sites
- Large grassy area
- Firewood and ice delivery
- That Dam Store just up the road
- Marina around the corner has a dock bar with live music!

Cons

- Many sites difficult to navigate

- Parking lot between sites and lake
- Bathroom light ruined the ambiance at night

Baileys Point, KY 1-4 July 2016

Bailey's Point Recreation Area - owned by the Army Corps of Engineers

Our setup, site A15, if you look REALLY close, you can see the lake through the trees

Finally picking back up the blogging idea after a 2-year hiatus.  Oops.  Anyway, we

went to Bailey's Point campground on Barren River lake for July 4th weekend.  We stayed in spot A15.  When I booked it, I thought there was a good chance we'd have a rockin' view of the lake, but, alas, we weren't so lucky.  However, the trees provided lots of good shade during a hot, sticky weekend.  

Each loop within the campground seemed to have its own character.  Many of the people in our loop were either camping together, or at least knew each other.  They were all friendly, and absolutely loved the girls.  One guy labeled loop A the "geriatric" loop, and told us that loop B was more of the "family" loop.  I'm actually pretty happy that we chose loop A - loop B was crazy, kids everywhere, and lots of vehicle traffic since there was a small concession shop there and better lake access.  This campground seems to be a place where boat owners go, everyone we met owned a boat, and many people tied their boats up right at the campground.  That explains why the campground books so quickly - the small sites and steep hills would seemingly make it less popular, but the easy lake access is a selling point for boat owners.  

The girls' first ride on the kayak

Addi and I at the beach in C loop.  

On Saturday, we drove over to C loop to put the kayak in the water and spend some time at the small swim beach there.  The water was very choppy, because of the large amount of boat traffic on the lake.  The walk down to the "beach" was rocky and steep.  I use quotes on the word beach, because it was a rocky area with lots of branches and debris, with a small area roped off for swimming.  However, the girls didn't mind, and the water was shallow enough where I wasn't concerned.  My gimpy leg situation prevented me from being able to go swimming with the girls.  

Gimp's view of the lake

We originally planned to return home on Sunday, but had the site booked through Tuesday, so we weren't in any hurry to get moving.  Good thing, because on Sunday morning our next door neighbors, Gary and Jan (?? dang, forgot her name) came over and offered to take us out on their pontoon boat with their dog Layla.  Of course, Olivia befriended them earlier in the weekend and was constantly over there to pet Layla.  They loved her.  Anyway, we took them up on their offer and spent about an hour and a half out on the lake.  Both of the girls even got to drive the boat.  Gary took us to a cove area where lots of people get out to swim, and there's a rock outcropping that people jump off of.  Olivia considered doing the jump, but ultimately was a bit too scared to do it.  

Captain Addison

Olivia doing the Titanic pose

After our boat excursion, Bob wanted to drive around a bit to get the girls to fall asleep.  So, I had him take me out to Paradise Point - a goofy, eclectic store/weiner stand/junk store.  http://www.paradisepointky.com  The wieners were amazing, and I loved wandering around the store.  If only they served beer there... I could see spending an afternoon there.  

Paradise Point

Don't Postpone Joy!

Happy gimp

After we returned from our adventures, we hung out in the trailer and napped, then spent the remainder of Sunday afternoon watching the girls ride their scooters (dammit, Olivia scraped her elbow - thought we were going to get away with a no booboo weekend).  The weather report predicted strong storms Sunday night, so several people left the campground.  We stayed, and got to fall asleep to the sound of rain on the camper.  Pretty soothing, if you ask me.  Apparently there were tornado warnings back at home, so good thing they didn't head towards Barren River Lake.  

Sisterly love

We headed home Monday morning with yet another great camping weekend on the books.  Pro and con summary:

Pros

- Friendly people in the campground

- Nice shaded site

- Camp store onsite

- Nightly movies at the amphitheater

- Camp host handed out coloring books and lake safety information to the kids

Cons

- Steep hills leading down to lake

- Limited lake views in loop A

- Sites with lake views have very little shade

- Limited hiking

- Lousy cell service
- Lots of boat noise without the added bonus of actually SEEING the lake