Campground Review: Whittleton & Middle Fork At Natural Bridge State Resort Park, KY
Friday, May 1st, 2009
We hiked the Devil's Gulch Trail back after hiking up to Natural Bridge. It's a steep stairway that leads down to Battleship Rock Trail and then comes out by the Hemlock Lodge and the parking areas.
Located in Eastern Kentucky, about 75 miles southeast of Lexington, is my favorite area to camp and hike. The Natural Bridge State Park and Red River Geological areas are adjacent to one another and offer more than 80 miles of official hiking trails, incredible views, sandstone cliffs, and dense forests. The biggest disappointment about outdoor camping at Natural Bridge State Resort Park and the Red River Gorge Geological Area is that there are so few camping spots with electric and water. That means you have to reserve them well in advance if you want to go on a weekend. In fact, if you want any spot in the campground period, you need to reserve them a few weeks out – that includes the primitive sites at the campground. (However, if you enjoy primitive camping, you might instead want to backcountry camp which is allowed throughout the Red River Gorge and Indian Creek areas. You’ll need to buy a permit at the Gladie Center or Ranger Station. Permits are $3/1 day; $5/3 days; $30/Annual. For more information visit the USDA Forest Service site.)
The two U.S. National Park Service campgrounds in the area are Whittleton and Middle Fork. They are located within a half mile of each other. Whittleton hosts a total of 40 sites, 17 with 30 amp hookups, 3 for tents (or a small popup) with 20 amp hookups, 11 with water hookup only and the rest are primitive. Middle Fork has 47 spots, 35 with electric the rest are primitive.
Of the two, Whittleton is my favorite. Of course that’s my personal opinion. My reason revolves around the setting. Where Middle Fork is more open, and can be loud at night due to the highway wrapping around it, at Whittleton the majority of the campsites with electric are in a row with a hillside to the front and a nice wide stream at the back (A24- A37). You feel like you’re camping in the middle of the woods, instead of in a parking lot. OK, well it’s not that bad. But, the way Middle Fork is, unless you get a spot across the creek (B27 – B35) you can be in the middle of a ring of RVs. It reminds me too much of a subdivision. However, if you have a big RV getting into the spots at Middle Fork will prove easier. The ones in the middle (B19 – B26) you can even pull straight through, while all the Whittleton spots have to be backed into. One word of warning about spots A001 – A003 at Whittleton, these sites are right at the main entrance to the campground and right on the road – no grass, no lot, just a spot to park. I would only suggest these if all you wanted to do was have a place to park your RV for the night. Additionally, spots A038 – A040 are on their own road, but adjacent to the campground entrance and the entrance lights are on all night. So if you like it extremely dark, these might not be for you. And though they say they are for tents, you can get a popup on them. (I can testify to that!)
