I needed a two-night stop between Falls Lake, NC and Elizabethton, TN, so Fort Hamby fit the bill nicely. That it is also a USACE (Army Corps of Engineers) campground was a plus, since it gives seniors a serious discount on the daily rate. And it was only 15 minutes from Wilkesboro, where I could stock up and find some supplies at the hardware store that I needed.
After a bit of drama finding my campsite, which involved a couple of wrong turns and a serious amount of backing out of a campsite that I thought was the road, I finally found my site.
I made a quick trip into town for groceries but walked out of the Walmart after seeing at least half the people in there weren’t wearing masks or had them below their noses (what is up with the whole “below the nose” thing?). I knew I could also get groceries at my next stop because I’d been to Elizabethton a month before and the mask-wearing was close to 99% at that Walmart. The Lowe’s hardware store was better, mostly masked so I found the stuff I needed, did self-checkout (one less person to be in contact with) and scooted back home.

The fall colors were starting to show here, but mostly yellows and browns. Still, it was pretty and I enjoyed strolling the campground roads and checking out the north side of W. Scott Kerr Lake. (I stayed on the south side of that lake earlier this year, at Warrior Creek, also a USACE site).
The contrast between green trees and fallen leaves was accented by the late afternoon sun.
If I had to choose between Warrior Creek and Fort Hamby, I might choose this one, for two reasons: closer to town for shopping/stocking up and better cell signal. But if you really want to get away from it all, including no connectivity, Warrior Creek would be the smart call.
Fort Hamby Campground (USACE)
- Site 6 (water/electric) was a nice little pull-through with a view of the forest out my front door. The 34 sites here are in two loops, so pay close attention to the map or you’ll be circling the campground hunting for your spot like I did. Sites 21, 24, and 25 have the most privacy. Reserve at the recreation.gov site.
- Services: electric/water, dump station (unpaved), bath houses with showers and toilets. No recycling
- Decent ATT and Verizon signals.
- Groceries: 10 minutes to Wilkesboro and several, including Walmart. Closest as station is 5 minutes from campground. Wilkesboro also has Lowe’s Hardware, Goodwill, and a passel of fast food restaurants.
Y’all wear a mask!
Betsy Price, Mayor of Fort Worth, TX