Camping Near Shiloh

sockknitter · #1 03-28-2005, 05:49 PM

In the summer of 2004, my husband and I stayed three nights at a rural campground called "Battlefield Campground". The name is appropriate because it borders the actual Battlefield. It is QUIET, definitely not fancy, has all hookups, and is an economical choice.

We had the entire place to ourselves. This was good for us but maybe not so good for the owner. It had been used by a rather large group of Scouts of some sort weeks or months before our 5th wheel stay so I know it's appropriate for tent camping as well. The phone number is 731-689-3098.

I found this place in the Tennessee Official 2004 Vacation Guide which I highly recommend. You can order a 2005 edition here: http://www.state.tn.us/tourdev/

ole · #2 03-28-2005, 11:29 PM

Thank you, sockknitter, for that particularly valuable information. Had planned a camper jaunt to Shiloh but couldn't find a listing nearby except at the lake and Corinth. Had I known about the campground, we wouldn't have ended up staying in Selmer with the coon hunters and road crews.

Will add that number to the phone book.
Ole

sockknitter · #3 03-29-2005, 02:18 AM

Fate works oddly, Ole. We try to plan our trips in detail and I had wanted to get to Selmer to see the Buford Pusser ("Walking Tall") sites, but couldn't work it in.

larry_cockerham · #4 03-29-2005, 10:09 PM

What's wrong with coon hunters? (I already know about road crews.)

ole · #5 04-04-2005, 01:32 AM

Nothing, Larry, is wrong with coon hunters. They simply filled nearly all the motels within 40 miles of the battlefield and had a habit of returning from the hunt before dawn -- a decidedly barbarous hour. Had I been 20 years younger, I'd have toyed with the idea of going along one night and skipping the battlefield.

A particularly quiet bunch, except for the pre-dawn activities. Interestingly enough, in our motel, there were no Tennessee plates. Texas, Ohio, Alabama, Arkansas, Michigan , and Wisconsin were there on reliable $5000 trucks with cages in the back holding 2 or 3, $10,000 dogs. Perhaps they got together in mid-afternoon and bragged about their dogs over a couple of beers THEY BROUGHT WITH THEM. In contrast, the road crew tended to be gone all day and partied all night (with attendant police visits).

The motel we stayed in was inexpensive, reasonably clean, but tended to cater more to long-term guests than transients. The neat thing about it was the half-block walk to one of those home-town cafes where everybody knows everybody. (I found out what red-eye gravy really was.)

8thvacav · #6 04-04-2005, 02:05 AM

ole, I hope the red-eye gravy was better that Cracker Barrel's Saw Mill Gravy. That stuff taste like wall paper paste. The rest of the food is good though and that makes up for it.

ole · #7 04-04-2005, 11:59 PM

8thvacav:
It was disgusting. Mom used to make ham gravy that was excellent. I managed to duplicate it, and it was really good (I'm the official gravy maker at family reunions, now). So I added some red pepper and thought the result was red-eye. I like it. But, a southern-born food expert told me that red eye gravy is really just the leavings in the roasting pan. Yuck. Slightly salty grease.
Ole

30th_il · #8 04-05-2005, 12:17 AM

I will be at Shiloh/Corinth in two weeks. Anyone have any suggestions as to what to concentrate on? Though I have been there three times in the past I like to get others inputs....

sockknitter · #9 04-05-2005, 01:32 AM

Not sure if this is full fledged visitor season yet, but hope it is. When we were there last June, the Park Rangers were putting on talks and demonstrations approximately every hour or two hours. They publish each day's schedule in fliers available at the visitors' center. There were so many appealing presentations that we stayed multiple days. There is also a very old film showing in the visitors' center. It is kind of faded and the sound a little blurry but I found it a good explanation of events at Shiloh in April 1862.

Of course you plan to walk through the National Cemetery as well as to the various burying grounds throughout the park, right? They are quiet, well kept and solemn.

Shiloh National Military Park is heavily sprinkled with monuments and explanatory markers. As I am a slow learner, we bought an audiotaped driving tour and obeyed its directions carefully. If I remember correctly, we took that driving tour twice!

Also we crossed the river into the town of Savannah and stumbled upon the Cherry Mansion, Grant's headquarters and where General Smith died of his blood poisoning. The house is in private hands but the outside is impressive.

Enjoy your visit! I would go back there in a heartbeat.

EDIT: Sorry, 30th_il. I needed to read your message more carefully. I failed to remember that you said you've been to Shiloh 3 times already.