A gravel road curving into a high mountain valley at first light, the peaks catching the sun.

Army Corps of Engineers campground

Salt Lick Creek

Army Corps of Engineers campground in Cordell Hull Lake, Jackson County, Tennessee. 549 feet. 8.8 miles from Carthage.

Managed by
Army Corps of Engineers Cordell Hull Lake
Elevation
549 ft USGS elevation model, at the mapped point
Sites
145 142 standard electric, 3 group standard electric
Longest rig
80 ft The longest vehicle any site is listed for
Hookups
Electric, Water, Sewer
Reservations
Recreation.gov

Overview

Salt Lick Creek Campground is located on Cordell Hull Lake on the Cumberland River System, just 10 miles from Gainesboro, TN. The lake itself was named after one of America's outstanding statesmen and one of Tennessee's finest volunteers. Hull was born in a log cabin in the foothills of the Cumberland Mountains.

Families and friends enjoy coming to the lake for boating, fishing, swimming, hiking, hunting, and relaxing in the outdoors.Click here for a virtual tour of the Cordell Hull Lake facilities.

Recreation

The 12,000-acre lake stretches 72 miles upstream and has 381 miles of shoreline, offering recreational activities for just about any type of visitor.

Anglers enjoy fishing for white bass, rockfish, largemouth bass, catfish, shad and crappie. Boating, sailing, water skiing, and jet skiing are popular activities on the water.

Many miles of hiking, horseback riding, and mountain biking trails surround the lake. The 6-mile Bearwaller Gap Trail has a trailhead in nearby Defeated Creek Park. Other trails in the area include the Turkey Creek Nature Trail and Bear Wheels Trail.

Facilities

The campground offers 150 family sites and one large, group shelter, all with electric hookups. Amenities include flush toilets, showers, drinking water, laundry facilities, and a dump station. Also within the site is a boat ramp, playground and visitor center.

Natural Features

Cordell Hull Lake is situated among rolling hills wooded with a mixture of shady maple, hickory, oak, beech and chestnut trees. Summer temperatures range from the 60s to the 90s.

Wildlife is abundant around the lake. Whitetail deer, wild turkeys, quail, squirrels, rabbits, and a wide variety of waterfowl are commonly seen throughout the area.

Nearby Attractions

The historic town of Granville, TN is a 45-minute drive from the campground. Visitors enjoy celebrating the town's Heritage Day in May. Events include the Uncle Jimmy Thompson Bluegrass Festival, antique car and tractor shows, and Confederate Civil War living history presentations.

The description, directions and fees are the Army Corps of Engineers’s own words, from its record on Recreation.gov.

What people do here

  • birding
  • boating
  • camping
  • canoeing
  • evening programs
  • fishing
  • interpretive programs
  • kayaking
  • motor boat
  • non-motorized boating
  • paddle boating
  • paddling
  • photography
  • swimming
  • swimming site
  • water access
  • water activities
  • wilderness
  • wildlife viewing

The land around Salt Lick Creek

The ringed pin is this campground; the others are its nearest neighbours. Switch on forest roads or BLM routes to see the way in.

Interactive map. Drag to pan, scroll or pinch to zoom, and select any point to see which agency manages the land. Arrow keys pan and the plus and minus keys zoom when the map has focus. A list of every state with its share of federal land is on the Explore page.

Map layers

Layers
Base map
Legend

Federal land, by managing agency

  • Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
  • US Forest Service (USFS)
  • National Park Service (NPS)
  • US Fish and Wildlife (USFW)
  • Bureau of Reclamation (USBR)
  • Department Of Defense (DOD)
  • Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)
  • Other Federal
  • State
  • Local
  • Alaska Native Lands (Patented or Interim Conveyed)
  • Alaska Native Allotment

Federal campgrounds, by agency

  • Forest Service
  • Bureau of Land Management
  • National Park Service
  • Army Corps of Engineers
  • Reclamation, Fish and Wildlife and others

State and local land (USGS PAD-US)

  • State land
  • County and city land
  • Regional agency or district
  • Land trust or conservancy

Gaps with no tint inside public land are private parcels, often old mining claims and homesteads. They are not open to the public.

Dashed clay lines on the base map are unpaved tracks from OpenStreetMap. They show what exists on the ground, not what is legal to drive.

Select any point to see who manages the land.

Boundaries are approximate and land status changes. This map is a planning aid, not a survey or a statement of access. Confirm routes, closures and camping rules with the managing office.

Source: Recreation Information Database (Recreation.gov), record updated September 7, 2026. Elevation from the USGS 3D Elevation Program. Seasons, fees, water and fire rules change; the managing office has the final word.