Mammoth Cave Backcountry Camping

Great site. Lots of room, easy access to the river, easy trail.

The trail was as expected but the campsite was overgrown and unusable. Luckily previous campers had a small spot nearby where they had to use as a campsite that we had to use too. There was no burn ring or level area to pitch tent.

Great campsite. Would like to see the trails better maintained for hikers. Had to walk through quite a bit of mud.

Loved the park and all of the rangers were extremely helpful. Completed the full Sal Hallow and Buffalo Creek loop. The trails were decently maintained and marked very well; never questioned direction. The Sal Hallow campsite was another story. It was impossible to camp there and was extremely overgrown. I’m 6 foot and the overgrowth came to my chin. After hiking 8 miles, we just found a clearing and set up camp. Please send someone to clear the site if you are going to continue to sell the site. Everything else was perfect for a weekend backpacking trip. Of course, see the awe inspiring Mammoth Cave (even the shortened self guided is so worth the ticket price) but I highly recommend getting out and seeing the other parts of the park.

I camped solo one night at the Turnhole Bend backcountry site. I did fail to notice when I made the reservation that your vehicle has to be ferried across the Green River en route from the park headquarters to the Maple Springs Trailhead where you start your hike into the site. So be sure to account for that since the ferry shuts down at some point each day. (I also failed to note the warning on the website that the ferry is closed for maintenance in 2020, so I had to tack on an unanticipated 45 minute drive to the other side of the river. This issue should be resolved after 2020).

Trails to the site are easy to follow. Looks like they see a fair amount of horse usage - they're kind of chewed up. Due to my unexpected detour, I arrived at the site after sunset. A fire pit, one of those poles (I guess for hanging food), and a sandbox tent pad are provided. The site itself was nothing to write home about, there was no view of the river or any reason to justify walking 3 miles to it. A site located 1 mile from the road would have the same aesthetic value. I had a 9:30 cave tour in the morning so between hiking and 45 minutes of driving back, I had to leave before sunrise so it's possible I missed the reason for this site. But my general impression was there's nothing special about it.

Party of 2, two night stay. 1st night Sal Hollow, 2nd night Homestead campground.
All around great experience with back country camping at Mammoth Cave.

Starting with website and Registration on recreation.gov. Though some website navigating was a little confusing, it was a very quick and easy process to register and reserve our camp sites. Generally backwoods camping is first come first serve and I liked having the ability to reserve sites. The online map and campsite descriptions were very detailed and allowed me to chart an accurate hiking itinerary for the whole weekend.

Parking facility was well marked, spacious, in good shape, and had a bathroom. Each trail head was well marked. The trails were marked very well and included .25mile markers throughout, which was a unique feature for backwoods camping. I really liked the option to track progress as we hiked. The hike was leisurely, and not much up and down.

The clearing where Sal Hollow campsite was located was very overgrown unfortunately. Luckily someone had created a small stone fire pit along the spur trail leading to Sal Hollow. Though it was not the official site it was satisfactory for our needs and felt fairly typical for a backwoods camping experience.

Homestead, on the other hand, was a beautifully kept up campsite. It was very cleared out with tons of flat surface for multiple tents. It had a metal fire ring with a cooking grate, posts to hang things, a log bench, and a makeshift sandstone table. Very awesome spot.

One issue we had was finding water. As I recall there were only 2 times during our 17 miles of hiking where flowing water was available. But it has been dry the last month or so there would be more water sources during wetter times for sure.

Overall great camping experience. I definitely recommend to any backpacking enthusiast, especially those that would appreciate the benefits of reserving sites, of having well laid out spaces, and having detailed mile markers.

This is a beautiful campsite and we had a wonderful time but there are a few things to know before you book this site. First, be prepared for the hike. It is 3.3 miles if you take the shortest route but the last .5 mile is what I can only describe as treacherous. Mostly downhill (which means uphill on the way out) and lots of loose rocks, steep declines (tough with a big backpack), and lots of slippery rocks in some spots. Also, note that the trail is not as well maintained as the main trails. Triple check the map with all the campsites on it so you can plan your schedule out. The Green River Ferry was closed and we didn't know how much that would impact our trip (we had to drive all the way around the park). I would recommend calling in and asking a ranger as many questions as you can about accessibility and road closures. There is NOT a water source at this campsite, even though I found info saying there was, so bring a gallon per person per day. There's no bear can so "pack it in, pack it out" although we didn't have any animal problems. There's a pole to hang your trash and food on that squirrels and raccoons can't climb. There's also a nice cooking grate on the fire ring so that made cooking easy. Overall, it was a great secluded campsite and we had a good trip, just make sure you are extra prepared!

too many ticks :c

Due somewhat to COVID I’m sure the trail was not well kept up. The camp site was stupendous with lots of rocks to scramble on. I’d like to revisit with some bouldering pads.