Look Rock Campground
5Heads up4 park alerts · 1 fire 25 mi away
We don’t think it should be. Every campground should hold some sites for whoever drives up.Tell your representative →
- Right now
- Taking bookingsSites offered on 10 of the next 16 nights read 15:46 UTC
- A night
- $30–$36Across the site types the agency prices
- Sites
- 6968 on recreation.gov
The place
the agency’s own description · what’s there · 15 notices
In the agency’s own words
Look Rock Campground is located along the beautiful Foothills Parkway West. The campground offers 68 campsites in a high country wooded landscape. It offers a traditional outdoor camping experience with the added convenience of flush toilets, drinking water, and a dump station. There are 10 sites with electric hookups. There are no shower facilities at the campground. Avoid GPS directions leading you along Montavale Rd, Happy Valley Rd, or Flats Rd if you are towing a trailer or vehicle. Keep reading
Recreation
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a hikers paradise. Visitors to Look Rock Campground love the opportunity to enjoy day hiking and backpacking the parks 802 miles of trails. There are abundant opportunities for wildlife viewing as well as birding. The park is also a fisheman's paradise. While there are no fishing opportunities at the campground itself, it is just a short drive to several lakes and many streams where trout are abundant. Many visitors enjoy the scenic views that the Look Rock observation tower offers. There is a beautiful picnic area nearby for day use. Visitor looking for scenic roadways will not be disappointed. The Foothills Parkway West offers a relaxing drive through the high country, with many scenic pulloffs along the way. Nearby is the section of State Route 129 know as "The Tail of the Dragon". This unique section of roadway offers scenic views and features 318 curves in 11 miles.
Facilities
The campground offers 68 campsites in a high country wooded landscape. It offers a traditional outdoor camping experience with the added convenience of flush toilets, drinking water, and a dump station. Each campsite has a picnic table, tent pad, and fire ring. Some sites will accommodate tents only, while other sites will accommodate large camper trailers. There are 10 sites with electric hookups. Be sure to reserve a site that will accommodate the type of equipment you plan to bring. There are no shower facilities at the campground.
Natural Features
Look Rock sits at a higher elevation than most of the other campgrounds in Great Smoky Mountains. It features a wooded, high country landscape. There is a nearby picnic area for day use, and the Look Rock observation tower offering panoramic views of the park. The campground is just a short drive to Chilhowee, Cadlerwood, and Cheoah Lakes, providing ample fishing and boating recreation. There are many opportunites for unique and scenic drives in the area. Wildlife viewing opportunities abound. While hiking is limited from the campground itself, the nearby main section of the park offers over 802 miles of hiking trails. A hikers paradise. Contact Info For facility specific information, please call (865) 448-4103.
Nearby Attractions
Look Rock Observation Tower State Route 129 (Tail of the Dragon) Calderwood Lake Cheoah Lake Chilhowee Lake Look Rock Picnic Area Little River Abrams Creek Cades Cove Twenty Mile Appalachian Trail
What the agency tells you
Avoid GPS directions leading you along Montavale Rd, Happy Valley Rd, or Flats Rd if you are towing a trailer or vehicle.
A valid parking tag is required for any vehicle parking for more than 15 minutes in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Front country campers parked at their designated campsite will not be required to have a parking tag. If they park elsewhere in the park, a parking tag will be required. Please note that parking tags will be required for vehicles in excess of what is allowable for each campsite. Daily and weekly parking tags can be purchased at automated fee machines within the park and daily, weekly, and annual parking tags can be purchased at Visitor Centers. Please see go.nps.gov/GRSMfees for all purchase locations.
Over the last 10 years, an average of 339 negative human-bear encounters have been reported each year; many more go unreported. Visitors should be aware that high bear activity can occur in any area, and that your safety is not guaranteed. To increase your odds for a safe visit, please follow best practices for living and recreating in bear habitat. Stay alert and be prepared to react appropriately during possible encounters, and always report any unusual bear interactions as soon as possible.
Everything else this campground posts · 12
Stay Limits. A maximum of 6 people may occupy a campsite. The park stay limit is 14 consecutive days. Reservations which exceed the 14 consecutive day limit may be cancelled and refunded.
Caution: Bear Habitat! Bears and other wildlife frequent the area. All food and equipment used to prepare and store food (even when empty, and even if certified as bear resistant) must be kept in a sealed vehicle or camping unit of solid, non-pliable material AT ALL TIMES when not in use. All scented items, as well as all water containers MUST be stored. Dispose of garbage promptly in dumpsters provided. Unattended or improperly stored coolers, food and/or scented items may be impounded by campground staff. Violators are subject to fines.
Fires. Fires are allowed in fire rings only!
Firewood Restriction: Only heat-treated firewood bundled in its original packing and bearing a certification seal from the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) or a state department of agriculture may be brought into the park. This rule is strictly enforced. Campers may also collect dead and down wood in the park for campfires. For additional information about these firewood regulations, please visit the park website at http://www.nps.gov/grsm/planyourvisit/frontcountry-camping.
Firewood Vendors. Heat-treated wood is available from a growing list of private businesses in communities around the park. Please visit firewoodscout.org for a list of available vendors near the park. Concessioners at Cades Cove, Elkmont, and Smokemont will provide heat-treated wood for sale during their operating season. Certified heat-treated firewood is packaged and clearly marked with a state or federal seal.
Quiet Hours. Quiet hours are in effect from 10 PM to 6 AM. Generator use is restricted to 8 AM to 8 PM. Some campgrounds have generator free sections.
Fishing in the Park. A Tennessee or North Carolina fishing license is required to fish in the park. Special regulations apply in the park.
Pets. Pets are permitted but cannot be left unattended. All pets must be kept on a leash at all times. Pets are not allowed on trails.
Additional Park Information. For additional park information call 865-436-1200 or visit www.nps.gov/grsm.
Reservation Required! A reservation is required to stay at Look Rock Campground. Please make your reservation before driving to the campground as cell phone coverage in Great Smoky Mountains National Park is very limited and there are no provisions to make a reservation once you are at the campground. Reservations are site specific therefore you are REQUIRED to occupy only the site(s) for which you have reserved. To make changes to your reservation you must contact Recreation.gov at 1-877-444-6777 or field staff where available.
Cancellation Policy for Individual Campsites: A customer who cancels a reservation the day before or on the day of arrival will pay a $10.00 service fee AND forfeit the first night's use fee (not to exceed the total paid for the original reservation). Cancellations for a one-night reservation will forfeit the entire amount paid and will not be subject to an additional service fee.
There are no showers in the campground.
Tents and rigs
- Sites
- 69 · 5 tent-only
- Hookups
- 10 electric, 10 water
- Longest rig
- 48 ft
- Paved pads
- 54 of 69
- Accessible sites
- 1
- Pets
- Allowed
- Campfires
- Allowed, barring fire bans
- Shade
- 42 of 43 sites
Facilities
- Toilets
- Flush Toilets - seasonal
- Showers
- None at this campground
- “There are no shower facilities at the campground.”
- Drinking water
- Yes
- Dump station
- Yes
- recreation.gov lists “Dump Station”
Around the campground
- On the water
- Lake, River, Creek
- Biking
- Birding
- Hiking
- Lookout Tower
- Picnicking
- Scenic drives
- Wildlife viewing
- Night sky · 78th darkest of 95 in TN
- Bortle 4
- Fall color · reported 9 days ago, 22 km away
- Minimal color
Full this Saturdayread 15:46 UTC
How full the weekend is nationally.
3 campgrounds have sites open within 30 miles, read 16:25 UTC. See them
OpenBookedClosed
Every one of the 65 sites on offer is taken this Friday and Saturday. 47 are free on Tue, Oct 20. read 15:46 UTC Why the weekend fills and the week doesn’t
Watch for a cancellation
Watch this campground
One email when a night opens, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We read recreation.gov once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time a site in your window is free for the nights you asked for.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
Tell me when the season opens
Watch for the season to open
One email when the season goes on sale, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We check once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time the agency has that season on sale.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
We make nothing when you book. The link goes straight to the government.
Every line of the receipt · 20
What you actually pay
Derived by CAMPANAC: the agency’s published rates for this season, $30–$36 a night, plus one $8 recreation.gov reservation fee for the booking. A weekend here means Friday and Saturday night, booked once. Optional charges (an extra vehicle, a second tent, a dump-station fee) are listed separately and aren’t in this total.
Who keeps the booking fee
The agency’s own policy text says the reservation fee and the cancellation processing fee are “retained by the reservation service contractor”, and that a campground concessionaire will decline to refund them because “they did not receive these fees”. Recreation.gov is run under contract by Booz Allen Hamilton. What share of your booking fee the contractor keeps isn’t published in any federal dataset we can read, so we print no number for it. Our reporting on the contract →
How we know this receipt · 5
Open within 30 miles this weekend · 3
Sites the agency is offering this Friday and Saturday that nobody has taken, nearest first. read 16:25 UTC
- Cades Cove CampgroundGreat Smoky Mountains National Park · 9.3 mi · 1 of 320 site-nights open
- Elkmont CampgroundGreat Smoky Mountains National Park · 20 mi · 1 of 422 site-nights open
- Appalachian ClubhouseGreat Smoky Mountains National Park · 20 mi · 1 of 2 site-nights open
recreation.gov availability, read 15:46 UTC · rules read Sep 9, 2026 · rates Sep 10, 2026 · How we know all this
The sites
69 sites · which ones have room · the site map
The sites, ranked
from 62 mapped sitesAll 69 sites
Toilet distances are OpenStreetMap’s, measured for 63 of the 69 sites listed. A site with no reading is unknown, never far.
The price is derived by CAMPANAC, not published per site: the per-night rate this campground publishes for each site’s own site type. 68 of the 69 sites listed carry one, and a site whose type has no published rate sits out of the price rather than being called free.
Measured shade is NLCD Tree Canopy Cover 2024 (USDA Forest Service / MRLC) read at the site’s own coordinate, 27% canopy or more, and only for the sites the agency gave no Shade value. It never changes the agency’s own shaded count beside it.
| 1 | standard nonelectric | 120 ft | 514 ft | 651 ft | $30 | |||
| 10 | standard nonelectric | 57 ft | 355 ft | 289 ft | $30 | |||
| 11 | standard nonelectric | 52 ft | 297 ft | 219 ft | $30 | |||
| 12 | standard nonelectric | 52 ft | 348 ft | 236 ft | $30 | |||
| 13 | standard nonelectric | 33 ft | 76 ft | 252 ft | 128 ft | $30 | ||
| 14 | standard nonelectric | 65 ft | 345 ft | 178 ft | $30 | |||
| 15 | standard nonelectric | 63 ft | 286 ft | 70 ft | $30 | |||
| 16 | standard nonelectric | 63 ft | 349 ft | 113 ft | $30 | |||
| 17 | standard nonelectric | 90 ft | 296 ft | 53 ft | $30 | |||
| 18 | standard nonelectric | 68 ft | 388 ft | 137 ft | $30 | |||
| 19 | standard nonelectric | 12 ft | 64 ft | 386 ft | 166 ft | $30 | ||
| 2 | type not stated | 476 ft | 585 ft | |||||
| 20 | standard nonelectric | 17 ft | 64 ft | 376 ft | 198 ft | $30 | ||
| 21 | standard nonelectric | $30 | ||||||
| 22 | standard nonelectric | 22 ft | 184 ft | 327 ft | 227 ft | $30 | ||
| 23 | standard nonelectric | 111 ft | 346 ft | 140 ft | $30 | |||
| 24 | standard nonelectric | 20 ft | 90 ft | 311 ft | 160 ft | $30 | ||
| 25 | standard nonelectric | 28 ft | 67 ft | 282 ft | 210 ft | $30 | ||
| 26 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 67 ft | 246 ft | 239 ft | $30 | ||
| 27 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 67 ft | 230 ft | 285 ft | $30 | ||
| 28 | standard nonelectric | 31 ft | 67 ft | 164 ft | 254 ft | $30 | ||
| 29 | standard nonelectric | 59 ft | 238 ft | 244 ft | $30 | |||
| 3 | standard nonelectric | Flush Toilets listed | $30 | |||||
| 30 | standard nonelectric | 78 ft | 174 ft | 204 ft | $30 | |||
| 31 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 59 ft | 252 ft | 187 ft | $30 | ||
| 32 | standard nonelectric | 61 ft | 270 ft | 127 ft | $30 | |||
| 33 | standard nonelectric | $30 | ||||||
| 34 | standard nonelectric | yes | 86 ft | 212 ft | 56 ft | $30 | ||
| 35 | standard nonelectric | 15 ft | 78 ft | 294 ft | 77 ft | $30 | ||
| 36 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 78 ft | 306 ft | 111 ft | $30 | ||
| 37 | rv electric | 50 amp | 105 ft | 243 ft | 239 ft | $36 | ||
| 38 | rv electric | 50 amp | 105 ft | 145 ft | 170 ft | $36 | ||
| 39 | standard nonelectric | $30 | ||||||
| 4 | standard nonelectric | 55 ft | 388 ft | 505 ft | $30 | |||
| 40 | standard nonelectric | 36 ft | 90 ft | 32 ft | 200 ft | $30 | ||
| 41 | standard electric | 46 ft | 50 amp | 93 ft | 70 ft | 266 ft | $36 | |
| 42 | standard nonelectric | 30 ft | 83 ft | 30 ft | 256 ft | $30 | ||
| 43 | rv electric | 20 ft | 50 amp | 92 ft | 28 ft | 306 ft | $36 | |
| 44 | standard nonelectric | 48 ft | 49 ft | 59 ft | 309 ft | $30 | ||
| 45 | standard nonelectric | 40 ft | 49 ft | 152 ft | 390 ft | $30 | ||
| 46 | standard electric | 36 ft | 50 amp | 49 ft | 92 ft | 344 ft | $36 | |
| 47 | standard nonelectric | 26 ft | 38 ft | 166 ft | 413 ft | $30 | ||
| 48 | standard nonelectric | 41 ft | $30 | |||||
| 49 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 38 ft | 185 ft | 435 ft | $30 | ||
| 5 | standard nonelectric | 22 ft | 55 ft | 442 ft | 531 ft | $30 | ||
| 50 | standard nonelectric | 42 ft | 41 ft | 148 ft | 399 ft | $30 | ||
| 51 | standard nonelectric | 23 ft | 48 ft | 201 ft | 453 ft | $30 | ||
| 52 | standard nonelectric | 27 ft | 40 ft | 156 ft | 423 ft | $30 | ||
| 53 | standard nonelectric | 23 ft | 48 ft | 228 ft | 476 ft | $30 | ||
| 54 | standard nonelectric | 25 ft | 40 ft | 165 ft | 448 ft | $30 | ||
| 55 | standard nonelectric | 22 ft | 50 ft | 235 ft | 495 ft | $30 | ||
| 56 | standard electric | 48 ft | 50 amp | $36 | ||||
| 57 | standard nonelectric | 22 ft | 80 ft | 237 ft | 483 ft | $30 | ||
| 58 | standard electric | 35 ft | 50 amp | 82 ft | 89 ft | 349 ft | $36 | |
| 59 | standard nonelectric | 22 ft | 82 ft | 131 ft | 425 ft | $30 | ||
| 6 | standard nonelectric | 19 ft | 66 ft | 399 ft | 429 ft | $30 | ||
| 60 | standard electric | 40 ft | 50 amp | under 10 ft | 316 ft | $36 | ||
| 61 | standard nonelectric | 33 ft | under 10 ft | 316 ft | $30 | |||
| 62 | tent only nonelectric | 22 ft | 57 ft | 54 ft | 302 ft | $30 | ||
| 63 | tent only nonelectric | 76 ft | under 10 ft | 377 ft | $30 | |||
| 64 | tent only nonelectric | 57 ft | 87 ft | 302 ft | $30 | |||
| 65 | tent only nonelectric | 53 ft | 32 ft | 433 ft | $30 | |||
| 66 | tent only nonelectric | 42 ft | 438 ft | $30 | ||||
| 67 | standard electric | 45 ft | 50 amp | 42 ft | 438 ft | $36 | ||
| 68 | rv electric | 33 ft | 50 amp | 58 ft | 35 ft | 375 ft | $36 | |
| 69 | standard nonelectric | 58 ft | 43 ft | 370 ft | $30 | |||
| 7 | standard nonelectric | 38 ft | 79 ft | 321 ft | 396 ft | $30 | ||
| 8 | standard nonelectric | 66 ft | 386 ft | 365 ft | $30 | |||
| 9 | standard nonelectric | 79 ft | 294 ft | 318 ft | $30 |
25 of 69 listed
Getting there
the map and the coordinate · the agency’s directions · the phone number
Where it is
Abram's Creek CampgroundGreat Smoky Mountains National Park · 1.8 mi
Cades Cove CampgroundGreat Smoky Mountains National Park · 9.3 mi
Cades Cove GroupGreat Smoky Mountains National Park · 9.6 mi
Anthony Creek Horse CampGreat Smoky Mountains National Park · 9.8 miJake Best CampgroundCherokee National Forest · 16 mi
Metcalf Bottoms Picnic PavilionGreat Smoky Mountains National Park · 16 miFrom Maryville, TN: Take U.S. 321 North (you'll actually be driving south!) from Maryville to Walland, TN. Turn right onto Foothills Parkway Section 8G/Foothills Pkwy W (signs for Look Rock/US-129), about 9.5 miles to campground along Foothills Parkway. Avoid GPS directions leading you along Montavale Rd, Happy Valley Rd, or Flats Rd if you are towing a trailer or vehicle.
From Pigeon Forge, TN: Follow US-321 S to Foothills Parkway Section 8G/Foothills Pkwy W in Walland. Exit from US-321 S, about 24 miles. Turn left onto Foothills Parkway Section 8G/Foothills Pkwy W (signs for Look Rock/US-129/Fontana), about 9.5 miles to campground along Foothills Parkway.
The weather
the next four days · the thirty-year normal
Next four days, and the thirty-year normal
Forecast
NWS forecast for Maryville, TN
Typical weather
Typical October night 44°F, day 68°F.
Coldest month of the year: typical January night 26°F, below freezing. Bring a bag rated colder than that, and expect ice in the water bottle.
Daily high and lowDays with 0.10 in or more
A normal is the 1991-2020 average for the month, not a forecast: about half of all Julys are colder than the July line. The seven-day forecast above answers the other question.
The land, and who answers for it
what threatens it · who answers for it · a letter you can send
What threatens this place
You’re camping on ground somebody wants. We track the threats and the comment deadlines.
Who answers for this land
Look Rock Campground is in Tennessee’s 2nd congressional district. Its representative, Tim Burchett (R), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: F. See every public-lands vote →
Who can change it · 4
Two offices, two different asks. The draft to the agency asks it to set aside a published share of the sites here for whoever drives up. The draft to Congress asks why that share is zero and presses for a published minimum at the campgrounds it funds.
- The office that runs itGreat Smoky Mountains National ParkNational Park Service unit
- The member who votes the moneyTim BurchettU.S. Representative · Tennessee’s 2nd district
- Your senator, on the same appropriationBill HagertyU.S. Senator · Tennessee
- Your senator, on the same appropriationMarsha BlackburnU.S. Senator · Tennessee
Read the draft, or change the wording
For the camper who turned up, or tried to book, and couldn’t get in. Every draft is written from this campground’s own record (its agency, its unit, its site count and its own weekend) and the buttons above copy whichever wording is selected here.
Asks the National Park Service to set aside a published share of the sites here for whoever drives up, and to post what that share is.
Subject Hold back a share of sites at Look Rock Campground for campers who drive up
To the National Park Service, Great Smoky Mountains National Park: I tried to camp at Look Rock Campground in Tennessee and couldn’t. recreation.gov lists 68 of the 69 campsites the agency files at Look Rock Campground, and every one of them is booked ahead, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 65 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,639 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Look Rock Campground keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m asking for one specific thing: set aside a published share of the sites at Look Rock Campground as first-come, first-served, and post what that share is so it can be checked. Somebody who drives up has no way in, and no way to find out whether they might have had one. Sent about Look Rock Campground (Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Look Rock Campground, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee
Dear Tim Burchett, I’m a constituent in Tennessee’s 2nd district. I tried to camp at Look Rock Campground, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee, and couldn’t. recreation.gov lists 68 of the 69 campsites the agency files at Look Rock Campground, and every one of them is booked ahead, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 65 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,639 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Look Rock Campground keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Look Rock Campground. I’m asking you to put it to the National Park Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Look Rock Campground (Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Look Rock Campground, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee
Dear Bill Hagerty, I’m a constituent in Tennessee. I tried to camp at Look Rock Campground, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee, and couldn’t. recreation.gov lists 68 of the 69 campsites the agency files at Look Rock Campground, and every one of them is booked ahead, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 65 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,639 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Look Rock Campground keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Look Rock Campground. I’m asking you to put it to the National Park Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Look Rock Campground (Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee) via campanac.com
Asks them to put the question to the agency in writing, and to press for a published minimum share of walk-up sites across the campgrounds they fund.
Subject Walk-up camping at Look Rock Campground, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee
Dear Marsha Blackburn, I’m a constituent in Tennessee. I tried to camp at Look Rock Campground, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee, and couldn’t. recreation.gov lists 68 of the 69 campsites the agency files at Look Rock Campground, and every one of them is booked ahead, and the agency's own record lists none held back for somebody who drives up. On Saturday, October 17, all 65 sites recreation.gov was offering there were already booked. 1,623 of the 7,639 federal campgrounds in this country still keep at least some sites for whoever arrives first. Look Rock Campground keeps none, and that’s a choice somebody made rather than a rule. I’m not asking you to run Look Rock Campground. I’m asking you to put it to the National Park Service in writing: why is the share of first-come sites there zero, and what would a published minimum share cost? Please press for that minimum at the federal campgrounds you fund. The people who open these campgrounds, collect the fees and keep the water running are seasonal positions. At GS-5, base pay plus the government's own 36.25% benefit factor, one costs about $47,414 a year. One percent of the $13.3 billion the USS Gerald R. Ford cost to procure would pay for about 2,800 of them for a year. Both figures are the government's own (a Congressional Research Service report and an OPM pay table), and I’m glad to send them. Sent about Look Rock Campground (Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Tennessee) via campanac.com