Backbone Rock Recreation Area
Near Shady Valley, Tennessee
36.59705, -81.81866
Campground Camping — Cherokee National Forest — BACKBONE ROCK CAMPGROUND AND PAVILIONS IS CURRENTLY CLOSED DUE TO EFFECTS FROM HELENE. Backbone Rock Recreation Area is located along Beaverdam Creek in northern Johnson County. Backbone Rock gets its name from a spur ridge on Holston Mountain that abrubtly ends at a bend in Beaverdam Creek. A tunnel was drilled through the rock in 1901 to allow railroad access between Shady Valley and Damascus, VA. Motorists pass through what is known as "The Shortest Tunnel in the World" as they travel along TN 133. In the 1930s The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) developed the recreation area for day use, constructing two picnic shelters and hiking trails that incorporated native stonework. The campground was added in the 1960s and rehabilitated in the m
This listing comes from imported public agency data or community submissions and is not field-checked. Confirm current access, road conditions, fees, stay limits, closures and fire restrictions with the responsible land manager before you travel.
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