A forested campground near fishing, hiking, and mountain biking. RV fit varies by site.
Blue Heron Campground sits on the Kentucky side of the Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, part of the rugged Cumberland Plateau that spreads across roughly 125,000 acres of gorges, forested plateaus and sandstone formations. The campground is deliberately low-key and roomy: 45 total sites, of which 44 are set up to accommodate both RVs and tents and one is RV-only.
Length limits vary by campsite.
Showers on site. Dump station on site.
Availability on Recreation.gov. Showing 40 of 44 sites.
| Site | Fr 13 | Sa 14 | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 001 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 002 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 016 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 026 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 003 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 006 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 005 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 007 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 011 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 012 standard electric |
Hookups (individual campsites): 44 electric individual sites.
4564 LEATHERWOOD ROAD
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Official facts link to their source; “Listing” facts come from the Recreation.gov listing. Anything we can't source says so.
Themes from recent written reviews on Recreation.gov. Quotes are verbatim.
“Lovely campground, peaceful and clean.”
Verbatim from guest reviews on Recreation.gov ↗ (326 reviews, ★ 5.0). Not written or edited by us.
“Close to Blue Heron Mining Camp. A lot of history to see and learn about. Quiet campground.”
“Lovely campground, peaceful and clean. No host on site, but it was fine. ”
“Nice small campground. I love that the dish washing sink for tent campers is well maintained. The bear boxes to store coolers and food stuff is a big convenience. ”
| ✓ |
| $30 |
| 013 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 014 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 015 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 018 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 023 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 024 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 027 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 036 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 037 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 038 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 044 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 045 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 004 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 008 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 017 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 028 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 029 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $30 |
| 031 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $35 |
| 033 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $35 |
| 043 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $35 |
| 032 standard electric | ✓ | ✓ | $35 |
| 019 standard electric | R | R | $30 |
| 020 standard electric | R | R | $30 |
| 022 standard electric | R | R | $30 |
| 042 - SHORT PAD standard electric | R | R | $30 |
| 009 standard electric | R | R | $30 |
| 010 standard electric | R | R | $30 |
| 021 standard electric | R | R | $30 |
| 025 standard electric | R | R | $30 |
| 030 standard electric | R | R | $35 |
✓ available · R reserved · X not available · C closed · W first come, first served · N not yet released
Available Nov 13–15 · 2 nights5 sites open for every night
Available Nov 13–15 · 2 nights13 sites open for every night
Available Nov 13–15 · 2 nights1 site open for every nightAn idea to start from, built from this campground's listing and real tours nearby. Times, openings and prices change, so check each before you go.
Rentals that may deliver here and whose listed length fits sites up to 61 ft. Delivery may be available — confirm fees and dates with the owner before you book.
Fifth wheel · 39 ft · sleeps 10 · 98 mi from campground
$150/night listed · RVshare · Delivery may be available
View rental
Travel trailer · 38 ft · sleeps 8 · 112 mi from campground
$125/night listed · RVshare · Delivery may be available
View rental
Travel trailer · 31 ft · sleeps 6 · 119 mi from campground
$129/night listed · RVshare · Delivery may be available
View rentalPaid experiences on Viator. Distances are from this campground when the tour lists its own start point.
Knoxville area · 1 hr · from $26/person
Knoxville area · 2 hr · from $35/person
Knoxville area · 2 hr · from $70/person
Knoxville area · 2 hr · from $80/person
stays up to 30 nights (Recreation.gov rules).
Share of site-nights open, booked and closed on Recreation.gov for the next months, checked Nov 7. Months further out may not be released for booking yet.
| Month | Open | Booked | Closed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nov 2026 | 88% | 12% | 0% |
| Dec 2026 | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Jan 2027 | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Feb 2027 | 100% | 0% | 0% |
| Mar 2027 | 99% | 1% | 0% |
| Apr 2027 | 93% | 1% | 6% |
| May 2027 | 85% | 1% | 14% |
For May weekends, book about 113 days ahead. Three in four May Friday and Saturday arrivals were booked later than that, and half were booked 40 days or less before arrival. Past timing is guidance, not a guarantee of what is open now.
| Arrival month | Fri/Sat arrivals: half booked at least | A quarter at least | Other days: half booked at least | A quarter at least |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| April | 20 days ahead | 85 days ahead | 13 days ahead | 42 days ahead |
| May | 40 days ahead | 113 days ahead | 16 days ahead | 60 days ahead |
| June | 12 days ahead | 45 days ahead | 19 days ahead | 65 days ahead |
| July | 9 days ahead | 25 days ahead | 10 days ahead | 35 days ahead |
| August | 10 days ahead | 31 days ahead | 6 days ahead | 29 days ahead |
| September | 14 days ahead | 36 days ahead | 10 days ahead | 46 days ahead |
| October | 19 days ahead | 53 days ahead | 14 days ahead | 42 days ahead |
| November | 11 days ahead | 38 days ahead | 4 days ahead | 26 days ahead |
Months with fewer than 30 reservations of that kind are left blank. Sites where nearly every booking was made the day of arrival (pay on arrival) are left out. Closed seasons, windows not yet released for booking, and currently unavailable nights are separate from this history.
Based on Recreation.gov reservations, FY2015–2025 (10,389 reservations in the years scored). Counts reservations made, not nights actually camped: cancellations aren't in the data, and nights a site was closed count as not booked. FY2020–21 (COVID) are left out of the scores.
44 individual reservable campsites from Recreation.gov, checked Nov 7. Rates are the listed nightly rates.
Tent or RV, with power
44 sites · $30, $35/night
31 open Nov 13–Nov 15
Knoxville area · 3 hr · from $70/person
Knoxville area · 1 hr · from $35/person
Knoxville area · 1.5 hr · from $25/person
Knoxville area · 2 hr · from $12/person
Knoxville area · 1 hr–2 hr · from $17/person
