Dennis Cove Campground

What a great time at Dennis Cove! Stayed for a long weekend while sons attended football camp at ETSU and took advantage of exploring the area. We have a 28ft travel trailer from Centeal VA. We stayed at site 10. Toilet house was cleaned and the campground host Dale was most helpful! So glad we choose to get off the beaten path.

We had a great stay at Dennis Cove. We stayed at sites 6 and 7, which both were on the river coming by the campground. A beautiful, small campground with very close access to the AT as well as other varied length hikes. Flush toilets and sinks were well-taken care of, cleaned daily, and worked well. Campground host was very kind and helpful. He checked in to see if we needed anything and gave great recommendations and info for the area. Couldn't have felt more thankful for our stay here, and hope to be back.

Wonderful little campground. All of the camp sites except for 15 and 14 are rather close to each other. Great hiking and fishing nearby. Dale, the host, was welcoming and helpful with tips about the area. Bathrooms were clean and trash cans emptied regularly. If you like a rustic camping experience, away from the hustle and bustle, this is lovely.

Great!

Great!

I love this place. Dale was super nice. So peaceful and quiet.

Very quiet and pretty

Nice quiet (most of the time) campground (it was 4th of July weekend). The hosts were not there when we arrived and were frequently unavailable.

We have been to Dennis Cove in the past and had a good experience. However, our recent visit was a disappointment. The campground was not as clean as our previous visit, the bathroom smelled bad and had an empty soap container the entire weekend, and, most troubling, the campground host played loud music and laughed and talked loudly until early in the morning, with their guests driving out of the campground at 2 or 3 am. Last year there was a different host, and we can tell that things have gone downhill with the new management. What a shame. It is a beautiful and special place.

This was our 2nd time at this campground. The site is lovely! We go with a group and it’s perfect for our needs, which is why we returned. We hiked the Laurel Falls Trail down the road and it was lovely!
However, the host has changed since last year (Dale was great last year!). I met the new guy once (Shane), but not when we checked in as he wasn’t around then - which should have been our first clue that things were “off”. This year, the bathrooms didn’t get cleaned nor trash in the bathrooms emptied while we were there (and according to the chart on the wall, hadn’t been since 6 days before our visit). There was no soap.
Additionally, the host and his kids (or maybe others?) were partying until the wee hours of the morning, with some of their cars pulling out loudly at 1 and 2 in the morning. Mid-night cursing could be heard by our friends nearest his site, and most of the rest of us could hear his video game/movie from our sites. That’s not what any of us are looking for during a camping trip. It’s hard to sleep and certainly doesn’t feel safe.
Mostly, his almost-complete absence is disturbing because with so many kids (and in general while camping), emergencies are always possible and there’s no cell service up there. With no known way to contact a responsible adult, it could be dangerous. Thankfully, we didn’t have any this year, but our group will have to think twice about returning next year even though we love the location and area.