norris dam state park

If you are willing to make the 20 minute drive you cant beat the price for the rustic cabins at Norris Dam Park. The modern cabins offer 3 bedrooms for around $120 night. Trout fishing is great in the Clinch River below the dam. Several excellent hiking trails offer some challenging topography. The paved walking trail below the dam is a peaceful and easy hike along the river with lots of wildlife to photograph. The park is currently renovating the rustic cabins.

Norris Dam State Park is a nice park to visit any time of the year, but, if you get a chance, take one of their boat rides in the fall. It's reasonable at $7 a person and the Ranger-led tour in a pontoon boat is enjoyable and informative.

We saw the sign to the Norris Dam when we were driving in Tennessee and diverted down a pleasant country road and followed the signs. Before we reached it we came across a weir on the Clinch River which we stopped and wandered along a path to see it and then continued onto the dam. There was a small visitor centre there with friendly staff who suggested we watched a short film about the dam before we went to see it. This we did. The Norris dam was the first dam built by the Tennessee Valley Authority and was named after Senator Norris who was the author of the legislation which created the TVA. It was started in 1933, finished in 1936, has a height of 265 feet and a length of 1860 feet. The reservoir length is 129 miles.We wandered across the dam looking at the views and then drove across to a viewing point above it. We considered it a worthwhile deviation from our route. The area is part of the Norris Dam State Park and there are also walking trails, car parking, toilets, picnic areas and a launching area for boats.

I contemplating camping here, but the only sites available were under high voltage power lines, next to a tower. I ended up leaving and not camping. Who wants to enjoy the great outdoors under a high voltage power line. I wish the dingalings in the park ranger office had warned me my camping site was under high voltage power lines. Beware!

Rented the aqua bikes to cruise around the reservoir. http://www.norrispaddlingadventures.com/.John (owner) spent the time and asked the right questions to make sure we got the most out of our trip.Hydrobikes are super easy to use.I wore my gym shoes for the first half hour before switching to barefoot. (my shoes were dry the hole time)Was hesitant to rent since I don't enjoy paddle boats. These are NOTHING like paddle boats!Easy to peddle, steer and you won't get wet unless you want to!I am 5-9 weigh 235lb and the bikes were very stable. My wife and 16 year old son both thoroughly enjoyed our time on the water. It is just like peddling an exercise bike but you get to see the beautiful park. When boats pass, their wakes give a gentle rocking motion. I never felt like I was going to tip over; very stable!Pack sunscreen, a snack, water and clear your calendar!John said he hopes to keep the bikes in the water till after the fall colors.I can't think of a better way to enjoy the colors of fall than from a hydro bike.

It is a gorgeous day on the lake. Enjoyed great company with friends. The day was sunny, people jumping into the lake, and boat rides made for water fun.

We had always saw the Dam from a boat or jet ski but the view from the Dam state park road was nice too. We went to the mill and it was lovely and the sound of the water and creek was very tranquil. We had our dog with us and nice dog friendly.

When we were passing through the area, we stopped for two nights at Norris Dam. It is near Clinton where we visited the Museum of Appalachia. The bathhouse was clean but well used. Our son loved the trout fishing. We enjoyed the museum of local history in the park as well as the old mill. Camping was reasonable. Other attractions were free.

The cabin was cozy and clean on the inside. The dark stained wood inside makes it a little TOO dark, it would be nice if the ceilings were lighter in color. The oven in the kitchen is just too annoying to use, it opens up to the other side of the tiny kitchen and you have to get your food out sideways. I noticed in other TN state parks they have a table and chairs in the screened in rooms, not here unfortunately. The outside of the cabin could use some cleaning up like at least clear off the stairs and walkway area of leaves and branches and some of the spiderwebs!It was peaceful and quiet though. We walked (bush waked) down to the lake which was AMAZING! Clear water with a blue/green tint and warm! We had a great day! We will go back but wish there was more pet friendly cabins.

My husband and I needed a little time alone...popped up a tent at Norris dam, hiked a little, biked a little and spent a lot of time together. Was a great place,Lots of fun and was very quiet.

After a couple of extra stressful weeks me and my wife decided to "hit the road" and take a little "mini-vacation". When I got to looking around at places to go, I ran across Norris Dam State Park, saw the incredibly cheap prices for the "rustic" cabins, looked at the pictures, and decided to book us a cabin for two nights. The check in process was a little different than I had expected in that the "check in" location is located at the park office which is a good ways away (and actually in another county) from the Rustic Cabins (although it is located pretty close to the "AAA Deluxe Cabins" if you decide to stay in one of those). This does not mean the check in process was bad. Far from it! It was actually a very easy check in experience. Rather, it was just a little confusing, at first, to understand how to get to the rustic cabins from the check in location. Once you know the way, however, it is very easy to find your way back. We stayed in Rustic Cabin # 16. At this point it is worth pointing out that the rustic cabins were built by the CCC back in the 1930s, so, needless to say, they are older and, as the name implies, rustic looking from the outside. However, on the inside they are very well maintained. The only issue with the cabin was the smell of wood fire smoke mixed with what smelled like an over use of Lysol (or some other cleaning product of this type). In fact, the smell was so strong at first that you almost felt as though you could reach out and touch it. In a way it was a bit nostalgic for me too, though, because growing up I spent a fair amount of time with my Great Grandparents who used a wood burning stove to heat the house during the winter. We did, on a trip to the store, purchase an "air neutralizer" spray which cut down the smell enough to make it less overpowering. The television in the cabin also got a surprising number of channels to be using an indoor "rabbit ears" type antenna. The television was blurry; however, this was not really a problem for us because we did not come on the trip simply to watch TV anyway. The bed, though a little shorter than I am used to (my feet hung off the end), was very comfortable. The bathroom area and kitchen were both very nice. The shower worked great and you could get hot water (and I mean really hot water if you weren't careful) consistently. The only possible addition that might be useful in the shower would be a light since the black shower curtain occluded most of the light from the bathroom. The "sights" located at this park were also amazing. The marina, and the rock wall behind it, were beautiful. The dam itself was breathtaking, and the over look area is not to be missed. There is a TVA Visitor Center (not operated by the Tennessee Parks System) located beside the Dam. Although it is small in size it contains a wealth of information, and interactive exhibits, about the history of the Dam, the TVA, and the area in general. The staff at this Visitor Center were also very helpful in terms of suggesting local restaurants, best routes, etc. In short, do not visit Norris Dam State Park without also visiting the TVA Visitor Center. It is amazing. The Lenoir Museum is wonderful and free! A word of warning, however, the museum is not opened on Mondays, so plan your trip accordingly. There are so many historical artifacts inside that it would be impossible to name them all here. In short, allow yourself plenty of time to browse the museums collection. The Grist Mill (which was relocated from an area that is now underwater) is a must see. This is the first time that I have ever been able to see the actual working gears of a real grist meal. Most of the exhibits of this type, at least in my experience, do not allow you access to this area. This, in itself, makes visiting the Grist Mill worth it. There is also a barn, with historical farm equipment, located near the Grist Mill. Be sure to check it out also. Also, as a word of advice, if the parking lot is "full" at the Grist Mill you can access this area via a trail behind the Lenoir Museum which is handy since the parking lot for the museum is bigger. All in all I have to say that Norris Dam State Park is a wonderful vacation destination. We did venture outside the State Park during our trip, but it made a wonderful "base of operations" for our "mini-vacation".

The dam was an amazing architectural masterpiece! Check out the river, the museum, and the dam info center! You won't be disappointed!

This is a nice place to stop if you are driving through TN and pass the Lake City exit. It is about 5 minutes from the interstate, they have a camping, a pool, hiking/walking trails, picnic areas, boat dock, lake, river, Norris Dam, Norris Dam overlook, Grist Mill, Museum, not a lot of driving to see everything. I highly recommend stopping here.

Great place, friendly people, great activities and a learning experience as well....who knew one could shoot an anvil that high in the air?!

It's a pretty amazing site seeing the dam. Driving over it is fun. The museum was pretty interesting. Knowing that Lake City has few to none attractions, this was a fun thing to experience.