Bandits Roost Campground

We were in site 23B which is down on the point. Nice lake/waterfront view. There are only 2 sites with some shade on the point 23B and 24. We never had to put the awning out we had shade all day in our site. The sites slope some so you will need to use levelers. All the sites on the point are pull throughs. The swim beach is in front of the sites on the point. We had water & electric and there is a dump station onsite. There is no privacy on the point yet other sites offer some privacy. If you have the Senior lifetime National Park pass it's only $16.00 a night. The park was clean.

Only campers are in this part of the park the day use area is down the road. You can drive across the dam too at the day use area. There's a nice view of the campground from the Dam. That's nice you don't have people driving through or hanging out.

We had many shorebirds to watch and Ospreys catching fish. We sat in our chairs in the water & enjoyed the quiet beach. We floated on noodles and relaxed. You can boat, Kayak, Canoe and Paddleboard on the lake.

We went to town to Bushy Mountain Smokehouse for some barbecue. Our food was dry and not very good. We enjoy a beer with barbecue they don't serve any liquor there. The place was packed there is a creamery there too the line for ice cream was long.

We had a great stay here in August 2023. The weather was hot so we went swimming in their swimming area every evening. The lake was warm and there were life jackets for the kids to use. It was great. The lake is beautiful and the campground is peaceful. We stayed in site 45a and were just up the hill from the lake. The spot had shade for part of the day. Restrooms were clean. We would definitely stay at this campground again.

We really enjoy this Campground. The largest sites are the ones away from the water, we typically pick a campsite up on the hill with water views. The waterfront sites on the peninsula have no shade and not very wide, but they do get a breeze. When camping here make sure to visit Dixie Donuts on 268 (about 10 minutes away). We stay at this campground 2 or 3 times a year

This was our 4th stay here, and we've found our favorite site, which is mostly private and has a beautiful view. Had mechanical issues when getting ready to leave and notified the person at the gate. He tried to be very helpful. We were able to vacate our site, but had to carefully get into the extra parking on the point to await an RV Tech. It all turned out well though...such is life in an RV.

This was a fall weekday stay, so it was very quiet. The weather was beautiful as well. If you get the right site, this is a great place to go.

We camped here in late September, 2022. We enjoyed our stay at this park, it was a great jumping off location for visiting Mt. Airy, Banner Elk and Boone, as well as for hitting the excellent bike trails right off the park!
We stayed the first 3 nights on site 99, but after 3 nights of no sleep we asked if there was another site available. We moved to site 51 for our last night. This was due to the enormous amount of Hickory nuts (pignuts) falling from the trees and onto our camper all night long, it was loud enough to make you jump and you just couldn't get used to it. It would wake us up all night long, even with ear plugs and the air running. I'm sure this wouldn't be a problem in spring, summer or winter, but "Fall"... the nuts were falling for sure!
Other than that no problems, the campground is nicely laid out, beautiful trees throughout and some of the best sites are the pull through with water views all around. Some sites are a bit close together, choose carefully, as many others are nice and private.

First time camping at Bandits Roost, stayed 3 nights. Our site (#32) backed to the lake and had a great view, but was too close to neighbors on the front side due to the cul-de-sac layout of the sites in this part of the campground. Other sites were excellent, but were not available during our stay. Bathroom/shower facilities were a little dated but clean. Fair amount of noise from lake traffic and from a sawmill on the other side (and beyond) the reservoir during the day. Lots of kids, dogs and friendly campers. Nice swim beach for families. Also, easy day trip into West Jefferson, NC which is a nice small town that's nearby. We will return but will look to book a different campsite next time.

We booked bandits roost because the Fort Hamby and Warrior Creek were not in open season yet. I’d say it’s a decent campground if you get the right spot. We were in spot 94 because I booked pretty last minute but it had electric and water. It was too close to the neighbors for my liking but still wasn’t terrible; the door to our camper faced the more open area. If you can get a site that is not on the inner circle and that looks out over the lake, it’s worth it, the views are nice and more secluded. We were also there in April so there wasn’t a lot of foliage on the trees which didn’t help at all.

The facilities are alright, they could definitely use some updating. The dump station worked out well for us and there was no line when we left on a Sunday. The people that run the front were nice enough to call the morning we were supposed to get there and let us know that our campsite was ready early and we didn’t have to wait until check in which was convenient for us. Overall it’s not bad for the price and still much better, in my opinion, than staying in an RV park.

We booked the only spot available (#60) about a month before. The site is very long and was great for parking the tow vehicle but was just barely wide enough for our 38ft fifth wheel. The way the site was arranged for us to be able to put the awning out and 3 slides we had to go all the way to the back of the site. We barely fit between the trees and the electrical box in back and we were so close to the grill in front we couldn’t used it. Thank goodness my husband is patient! Just be aware if you reserve this spot it is a little tighter than others we have stayed in here.
Positives:
We brought our own grill.😊
Close to the bathhouse.
Plenty of space for second vehicle.
Shaded
Love this campground
Friendly staff