Shoal Bay
- Right now
- Taking bookingsSites offered on 16 of the next 30 nights read 16:02 UTC
- A night
- $22–$26Across the site types the agency prices
- Sites
- 77All of them booked ahead
The place
the agency’s own description · what’s there · 3 notices
In the agency’s own words
Download a Shoal Bay park map HERE This shady campground sits on the scenic Shoal Bay arm of Lake Dardanelle, offering an excellent setting for boating, swimming and wildlife viewing. Keep reading
Recreation
The lake, a popular spot for anglers, is brimming with white bass, largemouth bass, bream, crappie and large catfish. The Bridge Rock Trail winds along a rugged slope overlooking the narrows of Shoal Creek, offering excellent hiking opportunities. Dardanelle's Visitor Center is noteworthy for its "Renaissance of a River" theme. Interpretive exhibits express the progression of river valley from the time of early Native Americans to its present day.
Facilities
Shoal Bay offers 45 reservable campsites, most of which have electric hookups. Two large picnic shelters are also available. Amenities include a boat ramp, playground and hot showers.
Natural Features
Dardanelle Lake, sourced by the Arkansas River, spans 40,000 acres and boasts 315 miles of shoreline. The lake sits in the river valley between the Ozark and Ouachita National Forests.
Nearby Attractions
Bona Dea Trails and Sanctuary, with nearly 86 acres of wetlands and low woods, provide an ideal habitat for native wildlife. Visitors can explore the area on the 6 mile trail system.
What the agency tells you
NOTICE: Group Shelters are open for reservations. Please follow all applicable CDC, State, and local guidelines regarding public health and safety. SPECIAL EVENT APPLICATION REQUIREMENT The Special Event Application can be found under the Facility Information tab, Additional Information sub-tab. A Special Event Application is required for any event that includes one or more of the following: - An entry, spectator, or participant fee is charged. - Anticipated attendance of 100 or more persons. - An extraordinary impact on project resources is expected. - Additional Corps personnel support is required, including patrols, surveillance, refuse collection, and/or crowd control. - The event involves concession tents and/or vendors. - The event involves bounce houses or inflatable amusement devices. - Fishing tournaments. - Music festivals. Once completed, the Special Event Application must be submitted via email to rv.ceswl-rv@usace.army.mil for review and approval. In addition to the Special Event Application, applicants may be required to provide the following before approval can be granted: - Proof of liability insurance - Event details and description - Schedule of events - Parking plans PROHIBITED ACTIVITIES Livestock, exotic animals, explosives, loaded projectile firing devices, piñatas, water balloons, and commercial activities are prohibited on project lands unless written permission has been received from the District Commander. If commercial tents are approved as part of a special event, driving tent stakes into concrete or asphalt surfaces on project lands is prohibited. For additional information regarding Special Event Applications and Permit Fees, please contact the Russellville Project Office at (501) 340-1762.
Don't Move Firewood: Protect your forests from tree-killing pests by buying your firewood locally and burning it on-site. Visit Dontmovefirewood.org for further information.
• For Aquatic Facilities (Lake, Reservoir, or River Recreation): CLEAN, DRAIN, DRY boats and any other recreational equipment that contacts water. Dispose of unwanted bait, worms, fish parts, or other organisms into the trash and not into the environment. For more information visit https://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/rec. • For Terrestrial Facilities (Trailheads or Campsites): STOP THE SPREAD OF INVASIVE SPECIES. Remove plants, seeds, animals, and mud from boots, gear, pets, and vehicles. Clean your gear before entering and leaving the recreation site. Stay on designated roads and trails, and follow local guidelines for firewood. For more information visit https://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/rec . • For Combined Aquatic and Terrestrial Facilities (Trailheads or Campsites with Lake, Reservoir, or River Recreation): STOP THE SPREAD OF INVASIVE SPECIES. Remove plants, seeds, animals, and mud from boots, gear, pets, and vehicles. Clean your gear before entering and leaving the recreation site. Stay on designated roads and trails, and follow local guidelines for firewood. CLEAN, DRAIN, DRY boats and any other recreational equipment that contacts water. Dispose of unwanted bait, worms, fish parts, or other organisms into the trash and not into the environment. For more information visit https://www.invasivespeciesinfo.gov/rec.
Tents and rigs
- Sites
- 77
- Hookups
- 77 electric, 57 water
- Longest rig
- 82 ft
- Paved pads
- All
- Accessible sites
- 1
- Pets
- Allowed
- Campfires
- Allowed, barring fire bans
- Shade
- Every site
Facilities
- Showers
- Yes, the record doesn’t say what kind
- “Amenities include a boat ramp, playground and hot showers.”
- Dump station
- Yes
- recreation.gov lists “Dump Station”
- Boat ramp
- Yes
- Playground
- Yes
- Stay limit
- 14 nights
- recreation.gov facility rule maxStay
Around the campground
- On the water
- Lake, River, Creek, Beach, Coast
- Boating
- Fishing
- Swimming
- Wildlife viewing
- Night sky · 95th darkest of 158 in AR
- Bortle 4
36 of 156 site-nights open this Friday and Saturdayread 16:02 UTC
Every site here is reservable, and the record lists none held back for anyone who drives up.
OpenBookedClosed
Watch for a cancellation
Full? Watch it.
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 · 15
What you actually pay
Derived by CAMPANAC: the agency’s published rates for this season, $22–$26 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
recreation.gov availability, read 16:02 UTC · rules read Sep 9, 2026 · rates Sep 10, 2026 · How we know all this
The sites
79 records · which ones have room · the site map
The sites, ranked
from 79 mapped sites2 sites share one published coordinate and are left out of the rankings.
All 79 records
The price is derived by CAMPANAC, not published per site: the per-night rate this campground publishes for each site’s own site type. 77 of the 79 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.
| A | A1 | standard electric | 25 ft | 50 amp | yes | 283 ft | 426 ft | $22–$26 |
| A | A2 | standard electric | 30 ft | 50 amp | 321 ft | 150 ft | $22–$26 | |
| A | A3 | standard electric | 44 ft | 50 amp | 91 ft | 81 ft | $22–$26 | |
| A | A4 | standard electric | 35 ft | 50 amp | 91 ft | 69 ft | $22–$26 | |
| A | A5 | standard electric | 38 ft | 50 amp | 95 ft | 84 ft | $22–$26 | |
| A | GS1 | day use | 20 ft | 30 amp | yes | 206 ft | 871 ft | $75 |
| A | GS2 | day use | 20 ft | 30 amp | yes | 130 ft | 177 ft | $75 |
| B | B1 | standard electric | 46 ft | 30 amp | 66 ft | 636 ft | $22–$26 | |
| B | B10 | standard electric | 37 ft | 30 amp | 75 ft | 607 ft | $22–$26 | |
| B | B11 | standard electric | 27 ft | 30 amp | 68 ft | 684 ft | $22–$26 | |
| B | B12A | standard electric | 38 ft | 30 amp | 23 ft | 676 ft | $22–$26 | |
| B | B12B | standard electric | 32 ft | 30 amp | 23 ft | 695 ft | $22–$26 | |
| B | B12C | standard electric | 34 ft | 30 amp | 25 ft | 714 ft | $22–$26 | |
| B | B2 | standard electric | 52 ft | 30 amp | 66 ft | 636 ft | $22–$26 | |
| B | B3 | standard electric | 52 ft | 30 amp | 66 ft | 637 ft | $22–$26 | |
| B | B4 | standard electric | 33 ft | 30 amp | 55 ft | 619 ft | $22–$26 | |
| B | B5 | standard electric | 33 ft | 30 amp | 55 ft | 617 ft | $22–$26 | |
| B | B6 | standard electric | 52 ft | 30 amp | 56 ft | 618 ft | $22–$26 | |
| B | B7 | standard electric | 57 ft | 30 amp | 56 ft | 634 ft | $22–$26 | |
| B | B8 | standard electric | 28 ft | 30 amp | 57 ft | 614 ft | $22–$26 | |
| B | B9 | standard electric | 46 ft | 30 amp | 57 ft | 602 ft | $22–$26 | |
| C | C01 | standard electric | 48 ft | 30 amp | 73 ft | 543 ft | $22–$26 | |
| C | C02 | standard electric | 48 ft | 30 amp | 73 ft | 529 ft | $22–$26 | |
| C | C03 | standard electric | 46 ft | 30 amp | 64 ft | 523 ft | $22–$26 | |
| C | C04 | standard electric | 46 ft | 30 amp | 64 ft | 530 ft | $22–$26 | |
| C | C05 | standard electric | 48 ft | 30 amp | 59 ft | 538 ft | $22–$26 | |
| C | C06 | standard electric | 47 ft | 30 amp | 48 ft | 522 ft | $22–$26 | |
| C | C07 | standard electric | 48 ft | 30 amp | 48 ft | 517 ft | $22–$26 | |
| C | C08 | standard electric | 49 ft | 30 amp | 63 ft | 521 ft | $22–$26 | |
| C | C09 | standard electric | 48 ft | 30 amp | 63 ft | 532 ft | $22–$26 | |
| D | D1 | standard electric | 45 ft | 30 amp | 56 ft | 435 ft | $22–$26 | |
| D | D2 | standard electric | 62 ft | 30 amp | 56 ft | 439 ft | $22–$26 | |
| D | D3 | standard electric | 49 ft | 30 amp | 72 ft | 427 ft | $22–$26 | |
| D | D4 | standard electric | 44 ft | 30 amp | 68 ft | 418 ft | $22–$26 | |
| D | D5 | standard electric | 47 ft | 30 amp | 68 ft | 428 ft | $22–$26 | |
| D | D6 | standard electric | 50 ft | 30 amp | 72 ft | 413 ft | $22–$26 | |
| D | D7 | standard electric | 55 ft | 30 amp | 78 ft | 407 ft | $22–$26 | |
| D | D8 | standard electric | 30 ft | 30 amp | 75 ft | 402 ft | $22–$26 | |
| D | D9 | standard electric | 33 ft | 30 amp | 80 ft | 369 ft | $22–$26 | |
| E | E1 | standard electric | 50 ft | 30 amp | 83 ft | 353 ft | $22–$26 | |
| E | E2 | standard electric | 53 ft | 30 amp | 77 ft | 354 ft | $22–$26 | |
| E | E3 | standard electric | 49 ft | 30 amp | 57 ft | 344 ft | $22–$26 | |
| E | E4 | standard electric | 51 ft | 30 amp | 57 ft | 347 ft | $22–$26 | |
| E | E5 | standard electric | 29 ft | 30 amp | 57 ft | 356 ft | $22–$26 | |
| E | E6 | standard electric | 26 ft | 30 amp | 74 ft | 329 ft | $22–$26 | |
| E | E7 | standard electric | 46 ft | 30 amp | 74 ft | 293 ft | $22–$26 | |
| E | E8 | standard electric | 51 ft | 30 amp | 91 ft | 242 ft | $22–$26 | |
| F | F1 | standard electric | 45 ft | 30 amp | 91 ft | 183 ft | $22–$26 | |
| F | F2 | standard electric | 60 ft | 30 amp | 99 ft | 219 ft | $22–$26 | |
| F | F3 | standard electric | 82 ft | 30 amp | 62 ft | 226 ft | $22–$26 | |
| F | F4 | standard electric | 64 ft | 30 amp | 62 ft | 217 ft | $22–$26 | |
| G | G1 | standard electric | 43 ft | 30 amp | 64 ft | 954 ft | $22–$26 | |
| G | G10 | standard electric | 44 ft | 30 amp | 64 ft | 910 ft | $22–$26 | |
| G | G11 | standard electric | 46 ft | 30 amp | 67 ft | 846 ft | $22–$26 | |
| G | G2 | standard electric | 33 ft | 30 amp | 79 ft | 948 ft | $22–$26 | |
| G | G3 | standard electric | 38 ft | 30 amp | 66 ft | 917 ft | $22–$26 | |
| G | G4 | standard electric | 45 ft | 30 amp | 65 ft | 865 ft | $22–$26 | |
| G | G5 | standard electric | 53 ft | 30 amp | 59 ft | 826 ft | $22–$26 | |
| G | G6 | standard electric | 34 ft | 30 amp | 50 ft | 827 ft | $22–$26 | |
| G | G7 | standard electric | 50 ft | 30 amp | 81 ft | 867 ft | $22–$26 | |
| G | G8 | standard electric | 44 ft | 30 amp | 52 ft | 935 ft | $22–$26 | |
| G | G9 | standard electric | 30 ft | 30 amp | 52 ft | 951 ft | $22–$26 | |
| H | H1 | standard electric | 43 ft | 30 amp | 64 ft | 891 ft | $22–$26 | |
| H | H2 | standard electric | 33 ft | 30 amp | 66 ft | 879 ft | $22–$26 | |
| H | H3 | standard electric | 39 ft | 30 amp | 65 ft | 840 ft | $22–$26 | |
| H | H4 | standard electric | 33 ft | 30 amp | 64 ft | 795 ft | $22–$26 | |
| H | H5 | standard electric | 48 ft | 30 amp | 52 ft | 767 ft | $22–$26 | |
| H | H6 | standard electric | 46 ft | 30 amp | 52 ft | 770 ft | $22–$26 | |
| H | H7 | standard electric | 33 ft | 30 amp | 778 ft | $22–$26 | ||
| H | H8 | standard electric | 39 ft | 30 amp | 778 ft | $22–$26 | ||
| H | H9 | standard electric | 30 ft | 30 amp | 118 ft | 763 ft | $22–$26 | |
| P | P1 | standard electric | 44 ft | 50 amp | 84 ft | 486 ft | $22–$26 | |
| P | P2 | standard electric | 42 ft | 50 amp | 84 ft | 422 ft | $22–$26 | |
| P | P3A | standard electric | 25 ft | 50 amp | 34 ft | 334 ft | $22–$26 | |
| P | P3B | standard electric | 30 ft | 50 amp | 34 ft | 333 ft | $22–$26 | |
| P | P4A | standard electric | 30 ft | 50 amp | 30 ft | 331 ft | $22–$26 | |
| P | P4B | standard electric | 25 ft | 50 amp | 30 ft | 359 ft | $22–$26 | |
| P | P5A | standard electric | 30 ft | 50 amp | 19 ft | 387 ft | $22–$26 | |
| P | P5B | standard electric | 20 ft | 50 amp | 19 ft | 405 ft | $22–$26 |
The agency files 2 more records here that aren’t sites for the night. It files them as day use. They’re in the table above, marked for what they are, and none of them is counted as a site.
OpenStreetMap has no toilet mapped within 1 km of this campground, so no site here carries a toilet distance. That’s a gap in the map, not a finding about the campground.
25 of 79 listed
Getting there
the map and the coordinate · the agency’s directions · the phone number
Where it is
Sorghum HollowOzark National Forest · 4.1 mi
Spadra8.4 mi
Piney Bay9.0 mi
Spring Lake Recreation AreaOzark National Forest · 11 mi
Cove Lake Recreation AreaOzark National Forest · 12 mi
Old Post Road16 miFrom New Blaine, Arkansas, take State Route 197 north for 2 miles. Follow signs into campground.
The weather
the next four days · the thirty-year normal
Next four days, and the thirty-year normal
Forecast
NWS forecast for New Blaine, AR
Typical weather
Typical October night 50°F, day 74°F.
Coldest month of the year: typical January night 29°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
who answers for it
Who answers for this land

Shoal Bay is in Arkansas’s 4th congressional district. Its representative, Bruce Westerman (R), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: F. See every public-lands vote →