Three Rivers State Park: Camping on beautiful lake at the Florida-Georgia line

Last updated on October 5th, 2025 at 03:38 pm

Bring your camera, a book, your kayak and a fishing pole. You won’t need much more than that.

Three Rivers State Park is a relaxing lakeside campground on Lake Seminole, a remote outpost where Chattahoochee and Flynt rivers converge to form Lake Seminole.

These are the headwaters of Florida’s Apalachicola River, which flows another 160 miles below the dam.

It gets cooler here faster in autumn, cooler still during winter. When we visited in a recent October, the weather was mild and humidity-free. There was even some leaf color.

If you left your fishing pole home, you can borrow one at the ranger station. If you leave your kayak behind, the rangers will rent you a canoe.

Sleep late. Three Rivers sits on the line separating Central and Eastern time zones. No internet, no TV and a weak cellphone signal tells you everything you need to know. Relax, you are in the middle of nowhere.

Campground at Three Rivers State Park

We loved this campground as much as any we’ve visited in Florida.

There’s not a bad site among the 30 available, including three ADA accessible sites with concrete pads. The rest of the sites are on a hard-pack red clay surface, comfortable for tents and level for RV’s.

All sites have a view of Lake Seminole. Lakefront sites enjoy access for kayaks and canoes.

There is little vegetation separating sites, but the generous size and distance between sites affords a level of privacy.

Each site has water and electric (20/30/50 amp) hookups with a picnic table, clothes line and in-ground fire ring with a grill. Maximum RV length is 50 feet, and most sites have room for slide-outs and awnings. Pets are welcome.

Some sites are marginally better than others, so if you are picky, try to book sites directly on the lakeshore if you can get them. Just 45 miles from Tallahassee, this park makes a fine weekend getaway, so book early if you want weekends.

We reserved an inland site, #26, for our arrival on the weekend and lucked out for two additional weeknights on the lakefront on Site #15.

There is one cabin, a cedar-sided one-bedroom with A/C, heat, a wood-burning fireplace and rocking chairs on a shaded screened porch overlooking the lake.

Reservations are best, especially on weekends, but if you arrive unannounced and sites are available (there will be a sign at the main gate), just pick one out and register when the campground office opens for limited hours during the day. (Reserved sites are marked.)

Because this campground is in such a remote area, it’s more likely to have available sites than other state park campgrounds farther south.

Recreation at Three Rivers State Park

Fishing and boating are why most people come here. The fishing pier is popular with campers both day and night, and your catch may include largemouth and smallmouth bass, catfish, bluegill, speckled perch and bream, typical of freshwater fishing in the south.

If you bring your own kayak, canoe or standup paddle-board, you can launch behind your site or from the boat ramp.

Larger bass boats need to be aware of frequent shallow areas. There are a few channel markers, and on a clear day you can see the shallow water and shoals.

Enjoy five miles of nature trails for hiking, and 10 miles of off-road multi-use trails and paved roads for bicycle riding. Off-road terrain can be a bit rough with moderate elevation changes and helmets are recommended.

Hiking through forested hills of pine and mixed hardwoods, loblolly pine, southern magnolia, sweet gum, shagbark hickory, hackberry and switch cane (North American bamboo).

The forest is populated with fox squirrels, white-tailed deer, gray fox and many species of native and migratory birds. We saw plenty.

A bird blind along the Lakeview Trail allows you to pause, quietly of course, to seek out an American Bald Eagle, ospry, great blue heron and other common waterfowl.

In the woods, keep an eye out for eagles, the pileated woodpecker, American bittern, Kentucky warbler, Louisiana waterthrush, red-breasted nuthatch and golden-crowned kinglet, among other migratory birds.

Loaner guides and optics are available at the main ranger station.

Be alert to your surroundings. You may encounter poison ivy while hiking in these woods.

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Three Rivers State Park Day Use Area

The day-use area of the park is a mile or so from the campground and features a picnic area with pavilions overlooking the lake and another ramp for small boats, kayaks and canoes. Ramps for larger boats are located outside the park.

There is a small playground and public restrooms in the picnic area. Pets are permitted in all areas of the park except the cabin area.

The pavilions seat 30-60 people and are available for $30 for the day, but you don’t need to rent a pavilion to enjoy a picnic here. Each pavilion has electric and water service.

Day-use admission is $3 per vehicle for 2-8 people.

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What’s nearby? Not much

There’s a Piggly Wiggly Supermarket on the other side of Sneads at 8166 Highway 90 with a deli recommended by locals. We tried it and liked it.

There’s a coin laundry next door to the Piggly Wiggly. Several machines were out of order, but the prices were reasonable.

There are a few scattered restaurants in Sneads and Chattachoochee (12 miles away), and a couple of convenience stores with gasoline three miles from the campground, but not much beyond that.

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More camping options (U.S. Army Corps of Engineers)

Lake Seminole is the creation of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to support an inland waterway that reaches deep into Georgia on both the Chattachoochee and Flint Rivers from the Apalachicola River and the Gulf of Mexico, also known as the Gulf of America.

A navigational lock at the dam facilitates boat traffic, and the dam generates hydroelectric power.

The 37,500-acre lake has a 376-mile shoreline in three states — Georgia, Florida and Alabama — with more than 22,000 acres of surrounding land set aside for boating, camping, hunting and world-class fishing.

Eastbank Campground

The largest of the Corps’ three campgrounds on Lake Seminole, Eastbank has 63 campsites with 50-amp electric and water hookups for $24 a night, $12 with the applicable federal discount pass.

Some sites are paved, some gravel, and only 19 sites are waterfront in the B and C loops. (A loop is inland.) Two sites are set aside without electric for tents ($14), but tenters are welcome to reserve any RV site.

All sites have a fire ring and a picnic table with access to hiking and biking trails, a dump station, restrooms with showers and a laundry, boat ramp, fish cleaning station and swimming. Pets are OK.

Hales Landing Campground

The 24 campsites at Hales Landing have water and 20/30/50-amp electric hookups for $20/night, but they cannot be reserved, available only to walkups.

Seven of the sites are waterfront, and fishing is the main recreation activity. Facilities include a dump station, restroom with showers, boat ramp with dock, and each site has a picnic table with a grill.

For a personalized visit, check out this blog post at wxtoad.com

Hales Landing, Hales Landing Road, Bainbridge, GA. Phone: (229) 662-2001. GPS: 30.8477, -84.6599

River Junction Campground

The 11 campsites at River Junction Landing have 50-amp electric and water hookups, but they are not reservable. First come, first served only.

The campground is shady, but open, allowing a lot of filtered light. Facilities include a dump station, restrooms with showers, a group camping area, a boat ramp with dock. Fishing is the main recreation activity.

Volunteer park hosts are on duty, and the nightly fee is $20, payable through an honor box.

River Junction. 256 River Junction Landing Road, off Booster Club Road, Bainbridge, GA. Sites are non-reservable. Phone: 229-662-2001

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