Posted 2011-06-06 7:32 AM (#134593) Subject: KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
Regular
Posts: 84 Location: Crestwood, KY
We're heading to the KY side of BSF in a coupe weeks and are trying to decide which campground to stay at. Requirements are that the horses can stay on our site- pens, tie rails, or our own high line are all fine. Also shaded campsite is a must this time of year. Electric or primitive doesn't matter. We prefer rugged challenging terrain. We ride stock horses mostly at a walk, so 10-12 mile loops are ideal. Suggestions?
Posted 2011-06-06 7:48 PM (#134624 - in reply to #134593) Subject: RE: KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
Veteran
Posts: 178 Location: Richmond, Ky
Yep, Bear Creek is located in Whitley City Ky, both are run by the same manager. Never been to Stampede Run, but Barren Fork is primitive no electric but water near by and you can hi-line your horses, Bear Creek has pipe stalls to tie your horses in and let them stand on concrete but they have electric too!!!
Posted 2011-06-06 7:53 PM (#134625 - in reply to #134593) Subject: RE: KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
Member
Posts: 30 Location: Eminence KY
from our trip's to tenn. our best place has been station camp, but bear creek is as good
they have elec. water at each camp site, they have open stall.s at camp site and bath house at
camp site. station camp has more trail ride's we love it must see,
will have a great time . bear creek is in KY about 15 min. from KY/TENN line station camp is
in TENN. about 25 min. from KY / TENN. line
Posted 2011-06-07 5:41 AM (#134636 - in reply to #134593) Subject: RE: KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 342 Location: Ohio
Having just had some very bad experiences at station camp, I would not recommend staying anywhere with those ridiculous pipe stalls. Those things are downright dangerous and definitely not designed by anyone with horses. They also do not allow high lines (we tried).
Our group had: one horse hit his head trying to lay down, causing his eye to swell shut, another got hung up in the bars, another somehow slipped under the manger part overnight, another gashed his face all up trying to get up from laying down, and some other folks that were camped there had a horse get hung up so bad in the pipe stalls that it went into some kind of shock and was in very bad shape when we left.
All but the last happened in the group we traveled there with. The trails were good, well marked, electric and water was nice, and the bath house was clean, but if we go back to BSF, we will be staying somewhere else. If Bear Creek is the same, I would avoid it. We didn't get much sleep because we were up all the time checking on the horses, making sure they werent hung up.
Posted 2011-06-07 9:53 AM (#134644 - in reply to #134593) Subject: RE: KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
Regular
Posts: 99 Location: Pleasant Plain, Ohio 45162
We have stayed at True West, Saddle Valley and Bandy Creek all on the Tennesse side and all had nice facilies and nice stalls without standing them on concrete. Check out horseandmuletrails for all their reviews. Couldn't go wrong with any one of these. They are all on 297
Posted 2011-06-07 5:20 PM (#134670 - in reply to #134593) Subject: RE: KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
Regular
Posts: 84 Location: Crestwood, KY
Thanks for the info! I called Bear Creek, and they do have the same pipe stalls as Station Camp. She said it is concrete, but has rubber mats. I found a picture of those stalls online, they do look potentially dangerous, so I think we will skip going there. I think we're going to stay at Barren Fork so we can use our own high line.
Posted 2011-06-07 5:44 PM (#134671 - in reply to #134593) Subject: RE: KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
Member
Posts: 45
There are great trails at Bear Creek but we have never been thrilled with the metal horse stanchions. The campground and facilities are well maintained although when we have been there the water coming from the spigots was brown. Stampede Run is not too far up the road from Bear Creek. Stampede has stalls, nice shower houses, and a pleasant common area with stove, etc., which is a positive for us. The trails may not be as "good" so it depends what you prefer. Barren Fork, which is federally managed, is all primitive camping. If they ever put electric and water in Barren Fork that place would be filled up.
Posted 2011-06-08 6:18 AM (#134686 - in reply to #134670) Subject: RE: KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 342 Location: Ohio
Originally written by TheOtherHorse on 2011-06-07 5:20 PM
Thanks for the info! I called Bear Creek, and they do have the same pipe stalls as Station Camp. She said it is concrete, but has rubber mats. I found a picture of those stalls online, they do look potentially dangerous, so I think we will skip going there. I think we're going to stay at Barren Fork so we can use our own high line.
The mats are old conveyor belt. They really dont offer much padding from the concrete. It does make for easy clean up, but not worth it in the potential hazard those stalls present. We don't mind to camp primitive so we'll have to look into Barren Fork for our next trip..
Posted 2011-06-08 12:35 PM (#134691 - in reply to #134593) Subject: RE: KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
Location: KY
The tie slots are the norm in federal camps. Kinda like federal prison for horses. Big Creek, Catalouchi (sp?) and Round Bottom are all federal and require use of the tie slots. Yuck. Think the feds do not want horses in the Smokies or any other place.
Posted 2011-06-10 8:19 PM (#134753 - in reply to #134593) Subject: RE: KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
Veteran
Posts: 178 Location: Richmond, Ky
forgot to mention one more thing about the National camps...ie bear Creek and Station Camp, be very careful about your coolers/food they are writing tickets and confiscating coolers at these places. I won't ever go back to these places just for having to put up with the SMART ASS rangers.
Posted 2011-06-11 10:15 PM (#134770 - in reply to #134753) Subject: RE: KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 342 Location: Ohio
Originally written by yeehaw on 2011-06-10 9:19 PM
forgot to mention one more thing about the National camps...ie bear Creek and Station Camp, be very careful about your coolers/food they are writing tickets and confiscating coolers at these places. I won't ever go back to these places just for having to put up with the SMART ASS rangers.
Citing what offense? Station camp sold ice in the campground for the coolers...Rangers came through several times. Most of us had 2-3 coolers out and nothing was ever said. (They didn't even seem to care about the alcohol that was not in a cuzi (sp?) or in a can)
Posted 2011-06-12 8:42 PM (#134789 - in reply to #134593) Subject: RE: KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
Veteran
Posts: 178 Location: Richmond, Ky
Last time I was there they had a shed beside the restrooms that they put the coolers that they wrote tickets for and confiscated due to the Bear problem, we seen the shed and were for-warned to watch out for the rangers by Bernard, he said they were writing and confiscating any thing that had food left out.
Posted 2011-06-13 9:04 AM (#134804 - in reply to #134593) Subject: RE: KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
Extreme Veteran
Posts: 342 Location: Ohio
Thats interesting. Bernard didn't mention anything about coolers. We always keep ours in the back of the trailer (especially at night or during rides) because we've had raccoons break into them in the past. But most everyone we camped with left their coolers out under their awnings day and night and the rangers didn't even stop to say hi, much less tell us about our coolers.
KY BSF: Bear Creek, Barren Fork, or Stampede Run?
