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Submission
Mammoth Cave Campground puts campers in a prime spot to explore the depths and overland treasures of Mammoth Cave National Park. Mammoth Cave is an underground passageway containing more than 400 miles of naturally sculpted limestone and sandstone. It is the longest recorded cave system in the world. The grand-scale chambers and long, winding passageways were the inspiration behind the park's name. The campground doubles as an entry point to 14 miles of hiking and biking trails. It's also a five minute walk to the visitor center, where cave tours begin.
A must-do activity in the park is exploring Mammoth Cave. Walking tours of the caverns leave from the visitor center daily. There are also miles of bike trails and hiking trails within the park.
The 109 primitive campsites are set around a paved parking area surrounded by aromatic trees. Water and restrooms are located on the insides of the loops, and the park Visitor Center is a five minute walk away. Coin operated showers are available adjacent to the campground at the Caver's Camp Store. Inquire at the Camp Store for current shower fees.
The campground is tucked inside Mammoth Cave National Park, which boasts scenic valleys along the Green River. The river is within walking distance of the camp, and the hilly Kentucky countryside expands beyond the valley.
Deer and turkeys commonly stroll around the campground, so visitors are likely to see them grazing in the early morning and at dusk.
Nearly 30 miles of the Green and Nolin rivers offer canoeing and boating through the park. Commercial outfitters outside the park rent canoes, kayaks and safety equipment.
Most trails north of the Green River are open for horseback riding. Commercial liveries outside the park rent horses and some may provide organized excursions.
**For rules and reservation policies please follow the link below:**
**https://www.recreation.gov/rules-reservation-policies**
* Note: Do not rely exclusively on your mobile GPS, Google Maps or similar automated navigation systems to get to the Mammoth Cave Campground. Routes can be misleading and incorrect.
* Directions from the North: Take Interstate 65 to Exit 53 (Cave City Exit). Turn right onto KY-70. Follow 70/255 as it becomes the Mammoth Cave Parkway in the park. Follow the Mammoth Cave Parkway towards the Visitor Center. Turn left into the campground by the Cavers Camp Store.
* Directions from the South: Take Interstate 65 to Exit 48 (Park City Exit). Turn left onto KY-255 and follow 255 as it becomes the Park City Road into the park. Follow Park City Road until it joins the Mammoth Cave Parkway; turn left. Follow the Mammoth Cave Parkway towards the Visitor Center. Turn left into the campground by the Cavers Camp Store.
This was a nice campsite with clean bathrooms. If you want a shower, it will cost you and must be had at the store. The showers are coin operated and will need multiple quarters. $1.50 for 4 minutes. You can also purchase sandwiches and compressed fire blocks for your campfire as well as other camping items. The park service delivered a load of cut wood in the campground the morning of our second day. You are allowed to scavenge for wood, however it was sparse and we needed to cross the main road to find anything substantial.
Mammoth Cave Campground offers a serene retreat surrounded by nature's beauty. The spacious campsites provide a comfortable setting for tents or RVs, and the amenities are well-maintained. The proximity to Mammoth Cave National Park's wonders makes it a prime choice for exploration. However, be prepared for limited connectivity, embracing a true escape from the hustle and bustle. Overall, a tranquil camping experience with the cave's marvels at your doorstep.
Perfect campground right next to Mammoth Cave visitor center, you can easily walk to to the cave and trails and most of the main paved trails have lights at night. Bathrooms are heated and there's tons to do. Make sure you do a cave tour, every ranger I meet was so friendly and helpful. Don't forget to keep and eye our for the stars at night and catch ranger Aaron for a star gazing event. I can't wait to come back here and camp in the summer months.
We loved our experience at Mammoth Caves! The staff was friendly and helpful.
We stayed in the campground with our 28' RV camper they had spots available that we could fit in but not many. It was easy to maneuver through all the loops and park the camper in our spot.
We stayed in the middle of October so the leaves were changing colors. All the hiking and biking trails were absolutely beautiful!
The campground itself was nice.
BUT, the bathrooms don't have showers.
You have to go to the main entry area and the showers are quarter operated. $1.50 for 4.5 minutes and it takes three first 30 seconds just to warm up.
This is really ridiculous.
Anyone that has an RV has their own shower and hooks up to water.... Use as much as you like, no charge.
So, this only impacts folks that are tenting, folks that are on a budget. Nice move parks department, have a charge that impacts people who have less income.
Now, I suppose they could argue water conservation. Two issues:
1. Water is neither created nor destroyed. Your very own Park Rangers just explained to me how water comes down as rain, recycles through your cave systems, it goes by rivers to larger bodies of water, evaporates, and then comes back down as rain.
2. You leave lights on all over the park, all night. If you were so concerned about something that can't be replaced, how about energy? Once used, it's gone forever.
Oh, BTW, your sink wouldn't turn off, the water was just running with it's timer faucet not timing out, so your very own system was wasting water. Picture included. Maybe I should have showered in the sink.... Of course it was the cold side
Just some things to consider.