Park Hours (Today)
All Day
Bandy Creek Visitor Center: 9:00AM - 5:00PM
Miza AI
Plan your Big South Fork trip
About the Park
Encompassing 125,000 acres of the Cumberland Plateau, Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area protects the free-flowing Big South Fork of the Cumberland River and its tributaries. The area boasts miles of scenic gorges and sandstone bluffs, is rich with natural and historic features and has been developed to provide visitors with a wide range of outdoor recreational activities.
Visitor Centers
Bandy Creek Visitor Center
Exhibits Focus on the recreational opportunities found within Big South Fork and throughout the seven surrounding counties. Facilities & Activities Ask a ranger what to do in the park; free public WiFi, bookstore, park permits, restrooms, and firewood and ice sales.
Blue Heron Interpretive Center
Exhibits The Blue Heron Mining Community can be visited at any time to view historic structures and listen to audio programs. Facilities & Activities Ask a ranger what to do in the park; free public WiFi, bookstore, park permits, restrooms, and a concession stand. Railroad Ride The Big South Fork Scenic Railway travels from the Stearns Depot to the Blue Heron Mining Community in a 45-minute trip. For more information or to purchase tickets, please visit https://bsfsry.com/
Crossville Visitor Center
Located in Crossville, just off Exit 320, on I-40, across from Stone Memorial High School.
Helenwood Visitor Center
Facilities & Activities Ask a ranger what to do in the park; free public WiFi; restrooms.
Rugby Visitor Contact Station
Facilities & Activities Ask a ranger what to do in the park; free public WiFi, restrooms; park permits.
Stearns Visitor Contact Station
Facilities Ask a ranger what to do in the park; restrooms; park permits.
Where to Stay
Alum Ford Campground
Alum Ford is a primitive campground and offers six campsites with a vault toilet facility. No drinking water is located at this area. Alum Ford also has a boat ramp. There are no fees to use the ramp.
Bandy Creek Campground
The campground offers a total of 181 campsites: 96 trailer sites which offer water and electric hook-ups, 49 sites for tent camping, and two group camping loops with 19 sites in one loop and 16 sites in the other. All campsites include picnic tables, fire rings, and access to restrooms and showers. A dump station is located near the registration kiosk. There are no sewer hook-ups at individual trailer sites. The group campsites also have their own cook shelters and campfire circles.
Bear Creek Campground
This campground contains 23 developed campsites. Each site offers water and electricity, tables, grills, tie-outs for 4 horses, access to modern restrooms with hot showers, a dump station and access miles of horse trails. Bear Creek Horse Camp is located on Bear Creek Road off Hwy. 742, west of Stearns, Kentucky. The fee rate per night is $28.00 (half price for holders of the Interagency Access/Senior Passes).
Blue Heron Campground
Blue Heron Campground is located in the Kentucky portion of Big South Fork, 9 miles west of Stearns off Highway 742. The campground offers a total of 45 sites all with water and electric hook-ups, picnic tables, fire-rings, access to restrooms and showers and a dump station.
Station Camp Campground
This campground contains 24 developed campsites. Each site offers water and electricity, tables, grills, tie-outs for 4 horses, access to modern restrooms with hot showers, a dump station and access miles of horse trails. Station Camp Campground is located on station Camp Road approximately 4.5 miles from the intersection of Coopertown Road and Leatherwood Road . The fee rate per night is $28.00 (half price for holders of the Interagency Access/Senior Passes).
Getting Here & Transit
How to Get Here
Please use the following link to learn more about how to get here from various locations.
Park Amenities
Operating Hours
Park Operating Hours
The park is always open.
- MondayAll Day
- TuesdayAll Day
- WednesdayAll Day
- ThursdayAll Day
- FridayAll Day
- SaturdayAll Day
- SundayAll Day
When to Go
Crowd CalendarPlan your trip around peak seasons to avoid crowds or embrace the energy of the busy months. Our crowd predictions are based on historical NPS Visitor Use Statistics.
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Build your Big South Fork itinerary
Tell Miza your dates, pace, and interests—get a day-by-day plan with hikes, drives, and must-see stops.
Best Time
Year-round
Trip Length
1 day
Planning Big South Fork National River & Recreation Area
These common questions go deeper into logistics and planning. For real-time updates on road closures and current conditions, always check the Alerts section above.