Camping at Brown County State Park in Nashville Indiana makes for the perfect weekend. I would recommend staying at least 3 nights to get the most of your stay as there is so much to do. Indiana’s largest park is nicknamed ‘Lil Smokies’ for it’s 16,000 acres of rugged hills, deep ravines and scenic vistas overlooking miles of uninterrupted forestland. Large campgrounds, hiking and mountain biking trails, a saddle barn for guided horse rides and a separate horseman campground with 70 miles of horse trails are some of the things that make Brown County State Park popular year-round.
*Our favorite sites are highlighted in the map above*
Camping at Brown County State Park
The Site
This past weekend we took our pop-up camper and shared a site with friends who had a tent. Although I do suggest checking out the sites ahead of time, many of them are large enough for two families. Ours was perfect as it was flat, shaded, relatively close to the bathrooms (but not too close) and was far away from the main area which meant there weren’t many cars driving around our site. TIP: Sites near culdesacs mean less traffic so kids can ride bikes and scooters safely. Make sure you check ‘driveway grade’ when reserving your site. If it says ‘sloped’ or ‘slight angle’ that could mean you’re on a hill. Hills aren’t as big of a deal with a camper but pay attention if you’re tent camping.
The site had pit toilets near by but there were also showers and normal toilets near by. We were able to easily walk to the playground that is nicely tucked away in the trees in a nice shady spot. Bike trails surround the playground making it a fun hiking obstacle course for kids.
The Park
Brown County State Park is the kind of park you can go any time of year and it is absolutely stunning. I’ve heard it’s highest season is during the fall when all of their trees have turned beautiful shades of red, orange and yellow. I’ve been during the winter where everything is blanketed in soft white snow. The sledding hills at Brown County are awesome. During the spring and summer you can spot various types of wildflowers on the trails after learning about them at the Nature Center. There is a small wild flower garden marked with the flower names right by the Nature Center (keep going and you’ll see a beautiful vista view behind the center).
We’re putting together a binder of maps with all of our favorite sites. Where are your favorite parks to camp? What do you look for in a park?
Print out this free Family Camping Checklist for your summer trip!
Hey, thanks for that camping check list, great for people to follow!
I always look for great nature trails when camping, love being away from civilization for a bit and just enjoying the nature around us! An awesome lake nearby is always a huge plus!
It is fun to get ‘lost’ in the trails…especially those big parks like Brown County when you can go on your entire hike without seeing another hiker.
Absolutely Shelly! I haven’t been to Brown County, but your pictures look amazing from there 🙂 Going to put it on my list for next year!
It’s really quite stunning and there is lots to do. I would suggest going when the leaves are changing if that’s a possibility! The rolling hills with the changing leaves would be beautiful.
What was your site number? We are tent campers but like to have electric access. Just wondering what sites/areas may be good for tents. We dont want to be surrounded by rvs. THANKS
We were site 390 Angie which was near campers/RVs. They don’t have it divided as to where tents and RVs can be parked though. We had a tent on our site as well as the camper but the site was kind of rocky so I wouldn’t suggest ours for tents. 241 and 238 are the sites’s we’ll try next time as they are huge and look like you could fit multiple families on them. If you book a site and don’t like it you can always go back to the station and ask to see a map with free sites. The earlier you get there the better because they reserve sites for drive-ups.
Thanks for the campground information. I am always looking for new places to go and its great when someone takes the time to write about their experience.
I’m glad you enjoyed it! We’ve collected another map since this post but I didn’t have time to go around and check out all the sites. I’ll be back in the spring to follow up because I loved the park (McCormick’s Creek).