Harmon Den Campground

632 Manor RD
Mars Hill, NC 28754

Overview

Harmon Den Campground is nestled on a mountainside beneath a forest of mixed hardwoods in the Pisgah National Forest. The camp is in a secluded area off of Cold Springs rd. in Haywood County, and the individual sites provide ample privacy.

The upper loop is reserved for horse campers while the lower loop is reserved for tent camping and small trailers. There are no hookups, no dump station, and no drinking water at this time. There is a vault toilet facility for each camping loop as well as bear-proof garbage cans. The area trails are horse and hiking use only, NO bikes.
The campground is an ideal base for exploring the miles of nearby trails and enjoying the beautiful mountain scenery, with nearby access to I-40, Max Patch, and Hot Springs, NC

Recreation

Local attractions include more than 14 miles of trails designated for hiking and horseback riding and about 40 miles for hiking. Equestrians may ride other open
roads unless signed closed to horses with caution due to traffic during busy recreational seasons.

Trails include the 5.4-mile Buckeye Ridge, 2.6-mile Cherry Ridge, 2.5 mile Robert Gap and 3.6-mile Cold Springs Trails. Hunting and fishing are other popular activities in the area.

Facilities

Harmon Den Campground has an upper loop for Horse campers and a lower loop for tent or dry trailer campers. Facilities provided include horse stalls and mangers that accommodate a maximum of 4 horses and 8 people at each site with a picnic table, tent pad, lantern post, fire ring and parking for a single vehicle with horse trailer. Also located within the campground are 2 vault toilets, a self-service livestock manure station and watering tank (non-potable) for livestock.

Natural Features

The Harmon Den Area is located on the Appalachian Ranger District, an area that stretches westward from the Great Smoky Mountain National Park's eastern boundary to Craggy Gardens on the Blue Ridge Parkway to Roan Mountain near Tennessee. Elevations range from 1,900 feet at Max Patch to 6,684 feet at Mount Mitchell. Visitors to the area will find waterfalls, lush forest undergrowth, forested peaks and miles of cold mountain streams. Wildlife in the area include bear, deer, grouse and wild turkey.

Nearby Attractions

Great Smoky Mountains National Park makes an ideal day trip from Harmon Den. Max Patch is an open bald area with panaramic views and other trials for hiking include the Appalachian Trail, Cherry Creek and Groundhog Creek.

Camp site features

Across 22 camp sites:

Pets allowed: 13 of 22 sites
Longest RV: 30 ft
Largest party: 9 people

Directions

From Hot Springs, North Carolina, take Highway 209 south for approximately 7 miles. Turn right onto Meadowfork Road NCSR# 1175. After 6 miles turn right onto Little Creek Road NCSR# 1181 for 3 miles. Take a left onto Max Patch Road NCSR# 1182, then travel approximately 0.75 miles and turn right onto Cold Springs Road NFSR# 148. Travel southwest for about 3 miles to the intersection of Fall Branch Road NFSR#3526, the continue a half-mile to entrance of the campground on the left. Also access from Interstate 40 Exit 7 Harmon Den, travel east 3.0 miles on Cold Springs road NFSR#148 to Falls Branch road NFSR#3526 and 0.5 mile to entrance.

Stay Limit

Check in from 2 PM, check out by 10 AM.

Reviews

25 reviews

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

2 stars

1 stars

Nicholas G

Loop:Lower

Site:

Reviewed 11 days ago

Someone was in my campsite that I reserved. Some campers were way too loud way too late into the night. My previous stay at harmond’s den was very pleasant this trip was not.

Danielle A

Loop:Upper

Site:

Reviewed 13 days ago

Great camp overall but a few changes that im not in love with. Did not realize the potable water hand pump had been removed. That would have been a real issue if i didn't have enough water with me thankfully. Trails are so incredibly rocky now after the logging. Makes for rough slower rides. Its still a great place, but I sure miss the old days. Lots of random cars driving in and all over the horse camp now that there is also a people camp attached which was weird.

Twitty A

Loop:Lower

Site:

Reviewed a month ago

I love this campground. I had an awesome experience from the campfire, my morning hike, beautiful landscape, and a sheriff presence. One of my favorite campgrounds ever…

Jessy L

Loop:Lower

Site:

Reviewed a month ago

I’ve been camping here several times before and never had any issues until this trip. A camper at the entrance to the campground had off leash un-neutered aggressive dogs, they played their music SO LOUD till 3am, and then the cops came thru and did a sweep around 8am. Half of our camping party left around 9pm bc they felt unsafe. I wish there could be a campground host out there to help enforce the campground rules.

Jenny M

Loop:Lower

Site:

Reviewed 4 months ago

We camped here Tuesday through Saturday the week after July 4th and had a great experience. The campground was quiet, clean, and well-maintained. Every site had a picnic table, fire pit, and grill grate, and the sites were nicely shaded. We tent camped in the lower loop at Site 17. The lower loop is laid out as a cul-de-sac, with bathrooms located at the bottom of the gravel road and bear-proof trash bins at both the top and bottom. Site 17 is toward the top of the road on the right side. It was plenty of space for two adults and a small dog. Site 19, which is the last site on the right at the bottom of the road, appeared larger and included two picnic tables. Because the road slopes downhill, it was a short walk down to the bathrooms and a slightly longer walk back up to our site, but it wasn't a problem for us. The lower and upper loops are fairly close together, but the campground was extremely quiet during our stay. We were the only campers there until Friday night, when another camper arrived in the upper loop. We're familiar with the area, so the campground didn't feel too remote or secluded. Wildlife was definitely a highlight of the trip. We spotted a bear from a safe distance one day, an elk walked through our campsite after we had gone to bed one night, and we also saw a family of six elk—including two large adults—moving through the campground during the day. We had enough cell service for phone calls, but not enough signal to use Wi-Fi or data consistently. Overall, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay and would happily camp here again.

Charlie H

Loop:Upper

Site:

Reviewed 4 months ago

Gods country love this place

Availability

See the Camp Sites section below to find detailed booking availability.

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