Info on primitive campiong Smokey Mountains

Tennessee...

Looking to go Mid-October...it'll be a group of us with some kiddos Friday, Sat, Sunday. Looking online but I'm just seeing campgrounds. Surely there are primitive sites...We all have roof top tents and a couple trailers. Any info?? We're coming from Virginia.

Thx!!

 

Lots of primitive camping opportunities in the National Forests - Pisgah and Nantahala in NC and Cherokee just over the border in TN. I'm most familiar with Nantahala and can specifically recommend sites along FS81 near Joyce Kilmer National Forest. This road roughly parallels the Cherohala Skyway starting outside Robbinsville and runs alongside Santeetlah Creek into TN. If you end up here, be sure to follow it into Cherokee NF stopping by Bald River Falls. Nantahala Outdoor Center is nearby and offers several rafting trips with varying levels of difficulty. The Great Smoky Mountain Railroad in Bryson City is another worthwhile stop. Good maps with offroad trails and camping options are available at District USFS offices within the NFs and on-line.

Horse Cove is a nice little USFS campground with flush johns (no showers) if you need a bit more 'civilization' for the wives/gfs and kids. Its a quarter mile from the entrance to Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest and has several sites right on the water.

Link to dispersed camping in NC National Forests https://www.fs.usda.gov/activity/nfsnc/recreation/camping-cabins/?recid=48112&actid=34

Have fun

 

I was there not long ago and FS81 was closed for logging. Gated on both ends. Real bummer as I love that road. Not sure of the current status.

 

Sorry to hear that. Was FS217 in Cherokee NF off the Cherohala open? We've found some nice spots along it in the past. Guess I'd better give the FS a call before our trip there at the end of this month.

 

There is a trail from North river road that comes out behind a guardrail on the skyway. It's a nice trail. Some spots you could camp, but it can be driven end to end in under an hour.
Lots of camping on north river road. Nice drives on gravel roads around Tellico.

 

I've been to this area of NC alot but never really ventured onto the forest service roads (stayed on paved roads). Is there a good map of the forest service roads somewhere online?