Jake Best Campground
Sites are first-come, first-served. Recreation.gov lists this campground for paying on site, and you may be able to pay with the Scan and Pay feature of its app.
More like this: first-come in Tennessee
Season & status
| Status | Closed for the season. Forest Service sites close for the season; check the official page for the reopening date. |
| Forest | Cherokee National Forest |
| Fees | Campsites are $6 per site. |
| Rules | Food storage restrictions apply at all areas on the Cherokee National Forest. All food and beverages must be stored in an approved bear-proof container, your locked vehicle or hard-sided camper at all times unless being eaten, prepared, or transported. Maximum of 5 people and 2 vehicles at each site. |
Weather by month
Getting there
| Coordinates | 35.4458° N, 84.1094° W · Directions ↗ |
Supplies & services
| Dump station | North River Checking Station ↗ | 9.2 mi |
| Outdoor gear | Lovin Equipment & Sales, Inc - Outdoor Equipment & Sportsman ↗ | 19.9 mi |
| RV sales & service | Rick's RV Center ↗ | 26.4 mi |
Locations © OpenStreetMap contributors. Call ahead; hours change seasonally.
No site-by-site records, no amenities, no fee schedule, no directions or photos in the Recreation.gov record. What is here comes from the agency's own listing. The rest lives there.
Checked nightly. Modules appear as soon as the record fills in.
Explore
Worth a stop
- 8.7 miWalnut Grove Picnic Area ↗Day use
- 9 miBaby Falls Day Use Site ↗Day use
- 14.5 miCheoah Point Beach ↗Swimming
- 14.5 miCheoah Point Beach ↗Swimming
Trails nearby
- 1.3 miLittle Citico Horse 43 mi trail
- 2.2 miLittle Citico Horse 3 ↗5.6 mi trail
- 2.9 miFlats Mountain Trail ↗6.2 mi trail
- 3 miRocky Flats Trail ↗4.5 mi trail
- 3 miMill Branch Trail2.5 mi trail
- 3.3 miIbra Lake Loop Trail3.6 mi trail
Trail and trailhead records are the Forest Service's. Distances are straight-line to the nearer trail end. Trail conditions are not tracked here.
Public land it sits in
Citico Creek Wilderness begins about 2 miles away, and it is the closest of these.
- 2 miCitico Creek Wilderness ↗Wilderness · Forest Service · 16,213 acres
- 3.8 miNational Forests in North Carolina ↗National Forest · Forest Service · 3,026,237 acres
- 4.7 miJoyce Kilmer-Slickrock Wilderness ↗Wilderness · Forest Service · 19,246 acres
Each unit is published as a centre point and an acreage rather than a boundary, so this section stands it in for a circle of the same area. Whether a campground is inside, and how far it is from one it is outside, are both approximate.
Other campgrounds nearby
Cabin and lookout rentals nearby
On the National Register nearby
- L. D. Giddens and Son Jewelry StoreBuilding · Goldsboro · 7.6 mi
- Chilhowee Hydroelectric DevelopmentHistoric district · Tallassee · 7.7 mi
- Calderwood DamStructure · Calderwood · 7.8 mi
Guidebooks for Cherokee National Forest and Tennessee
We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.
- Cherokee National Forest hiking guideWilliam H. Skelton and Lamar Alexander, 2024Find at Bookshop.org
- Campgrounds in and Around the Great Smoky Mountains National ParkGrueen Huffman, 2010Find at Bookshop.org
Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.
Reference
Questions people ask
Do I need a reservation at Jake Best Campground?
No. Jake Best Campground is first-come, first-served. Sites are taken on arrival and paid at the fee station.
Source: Forest Service
How much does it cost to camp at Jake Best Campground?
Campsites are $6 per site.
Source: Forest Service
Is Jake Best Campground open right now?
Closed for the season as of Oct 16, 2026.
Source: Forest Service status
What if Jake Best Campground is full?
The nearest public campgrounds are Indian Boundary (3 mi), Mcnabb Creek Group (8.2 mi), and Swan Cabin Group Camp (8.4 mi).
Source: Campgrounds nearby