Frozen Head State Park — Attraction in Oliver Springs

We love going to this park. It is well shaded and most of the spots are big enough for our little two wheel camp trailer that houses the fold out tent. There is a water source. Showers and toilets. And it is VERY clean. Staff drove around frequently to check on things and the trash cans from filling up. There are tons of trials to explore. Overall, it really is lovely and worth a trip. Just beware that there are a few sites that are in the middle next to a very large, popular rock. We did not know this going in, so my hope here is to warn you about the particular site we stayed in, and to also hopefully bring mindfulness to other campers. We stayed in site #8. I do not recommend this site if you are trying to camp in peace. There is a gigantic rock only yards away from this camping pad that attracts EVERY SINGLE CHILD in the park to come and play on it. It isn't IN this campsite, but it's sooo close that it might as well be. It didn't help that parents seemed to be ok with allowing 15+ kids run amok on this rock that might as well be in this particular camp site. There was absolutely no sense of respect for our space while trying to relax. Despite the fact that there is a playground at this camp ground that is huge and not too far from all the sites, along with a creek by this play area for children, this rock was just where they all stayed. Now we always expect children when we are camping in parks, we grew up camping in parks. But we were also taught to respect others' space while camping. Camp etiquette means you do not walk through other's campsites to get to the bathroom (don't worry they did that too)... but you also do not bombard someone's space just because there is a really cool rock. Again, we know children are just being children. Honestly, it was just too much. They were there at all hours of the day and would stay for hours. 6am is when quiet time ends in the campground, and there would be children climbing all over this rock at 6am. I know it seems I am a bit jaded right now- and I am sure some will read this and think I am being ridiculous and grouchy and it was just kids being kids. But idc. I am here to warn the next people about this site so this doesn't happen to you. We camp with dogs and our dogs aren't allowed to play at someone else's site and hang around there all day just because there is something neat near the site. I do not blame those kiddos. Their parents need to learn camp etiquette and be responsible for their children's actions. Anyway, lovely campground, just make sure you do some digging on the location before you go. We didn't know when we booked it, we just booked three in a row to be with friends and this was our experience. We just want to make others aware so hopefully everyone can...

my husband and I use to live in Crossville TN off route 298 way out in the boonies and had two neighbors and we loved it. anyways we lived about 20 minutes from this park and went quite a few times walking our dogs. they have a beautiful waterfall and lots of hiking trails and a campground with hookups as well as backcountry camping. the visitors center is just beautiful. this is the place they have the barkley ultra marathon. if you do not know anything about the marathon search on you tube and you will find videos about it. its a insane 100 mile course that is not on a trail, you cannot bring a GPS, there is a lot of elevation and at certain points you have to find a book and rip out the page that corresponds to your race number and you have only 60 hours to complete it. I guess every year or every other year they change the course. there had been many years where no one has finished it. i watched a documentary (I think it was on Amazon and its not anymore but you can buy the video or rent it). its just amazing what some people will put themselves through to try to win this race. Oh and they have to go through a huge bier field and most of them come back with their skin all torn up and bleeding, also a lot of them have huge blisters on there feet. some look punch drunk from lack of sleep. if you get a chance to watch the full documentary I highly recommend it. besides the race Frozen Head State Park is a great park to visit and hike. Oh and there is a road you can walk and its quite the hike but well worth it because when you finally get to the end, there is a tower and you can go up to the top the the views are beautiful. they have a picnic table there but no bathrooms. and it is a long long hike with a lot...

Trip: Frozen Head State Park and Natural Area (North Bird Mountain Trail to Tubb Springs Campsite)

Mileage: Approximately 16 miles roundtrip (10 on Saturday and 6 on Sunday)

Rating: Moderate to Difficult Trip Details

Frozen Head State Park and Natural Area is situated in the Cumberland Mountains of eastern Tennessee. The mountainous terrain in this area varies in elevation from 1,300 feet to over 3,000 feet on 16 different mountain peaks. This is one of the highest peaks in Tennessee west of the Smoky Mountains. Starting at the Bird Mountain Trailhead, we will connect to the North Bird Mountain Trailhead and proceed up a challenging climb to the summit. Then we will take the Tower Trail along the ridge top to the spacious Tubb Springs campsite. The next morning we can take the Tower Trail to the lookout tower on the summit of Frozen Head Mountain with 360 degree views of the surrounding areas including the Cumberland Plateau, Tennessee Ridge and Valley, and the Great Smoky Mountains. Once we enjoy the summit, we will begin our descent to meet up with the North Old Mac Trail. After a mile we will take the Panther Branch Trail back to the parking lot with a ½ mile side trip to...