Raccoon Branch Campground

This was our first time at Raccoon Branch; we're long-time visitors to Grindstone, which is closed for the next few years. Raccoon Branch is small, with only 20 sites. They have bathrooms with flush toilets, but no showers. The water in the bathrooms (sink, toilet) is brownish, which is a little off-putting. We used bottled water in our camper for cooking and coffee. Water pressure was rather low at Raccoon, but not a deal breaker. Couple of nice, short trails around the campground without having to drive off. Also several good hikes within driving distance, including the AT and Grayson Highlands park. It's a nice campground, but we very much miss Grindstone.

A relatively quiet little campground with a few electric hookups. Very close to county road but not too much traffic. Excellent nearby hiking. Lots of nearby outdoor activities in the area. Campground hosts were not overly friendly but no real problems either.

Planned for 5 days but rained all the time. The camp host does not give out the internet password anymore and stated that to many people complained and so they don't let anyone use it. Sitting in the camper for a couple of days got boring. You can not get ANY TV signals as well. I ended up leaving 3 days early as it it was calling for more rain.

Great little cg.

First night 30 amp hookup failed. We had to move onto another site. When electrician came, he said my sensitive was extremely sensitive. We've never had that problem anywhere else.

Electricity fluctuated causing lights to flicker all week.

Nice campground, rest rooms very clean. The only problem was a big one, however. The campsites had not been mowed. Grass around our trailer and the firepit was knee high in places. We got 3 ticks off of us while there. No excuse for not having the open campgrounds ready for camping. A maintenance worker with the park service came by and I complained. he said he couldn't mow without another person present, safety or some such thing. Later the lady in charge of the park service came by later and I mentioned it again. She was very rude but said they would get it mowed. I told her I would move all my stuff out of the way and she said, "well it wont be this afternoon". When the finally mowed 2 days later they got a little around the campsite number post and around where you park your car but did nothing around the firepit or around my trailer. Very poor management in my opinion.

It's a smaller campground located (a little too) close to a road, but it's beautiful. The electric/water sites are closer to the road, while the primitive sites are more near a stream that surrounds the rest of the campground. Included are two sets of restrooms and a dump station, water fill station and dumpster. There is plenty of firewood to be scavenged with much of it being pine, though. Dogs are allowed.

In April 2022 the cost for a site was $20 ($10 with a special pass) plus $7 extra for an electric/water site. Cash only at the self pay station.

We stayed at a site that put us near the stream and the road. While the road noise was there it didn't disturb our stay. The stream was pleasant to hear as we fell asleep, and it endlessly entertained the children during our stay. Next to the campground are a couple of trails that we found: 1. The horse trail that connects several locations throughout the area and 2. The Dickies Knob trail, which is a 5.5 mile out and back hike to the top of Dickies Knob. This moderate trail is gently sloped all the way to the top where you'll find what appears to be the foundation of a tower and a few markers. Views are great up there without leaves on the trees, but will become obscured as we move into May. Nice hike, would recommend highly.

Finally, our camp host was amazing. He checked up on folks at the campground to make sure everyone was good. He was friendly and courteous; we enjoyed several conversations together.

I got reservations online and then when we got there our campsite with hookups had been taken, so we had to park our 32 ft camper in a spot not big enough with no hookups. Online it said half of the campsites were first come first serve so a few other friends pulled in and set up, but then had to move when the camp host said that the spots were no longer first come first serve even though it said that on recreation.gov. It's a nice campground, but was not happy with the way things were run. I also paid full price and didn't get any hookups.

Enjoyed our stay at Raccoon Branch in June 2020. We stayed at site 8 right beside the creek and the trail head to mountain trail. Bathrooms were clean and campsite was quiet. Remote with no mobile service. Firewood on-site was wet from recent rains but general store in small town only about ten minute drive from campground. Good experience and we would definitely return to camp here again. Great escape from heat of Piedmont during the summer months.

I stayed at Raccoon Branch campground for a week in my fifth wheel RV. The park was very clean, I had a nice site, enough for my RV and to park my truck. The park host was very helpful as there was an issue with the breaker that kept tripping and needing to be upgraded. There were things to do not too far away from the park to enjoy and a store if needed fairly close also. I will stay at this park again if ever in the area.