Campground Website: Seven Points COE

Getting Here:
No Special precautions needed. I-40 Exit 221 to Old Hickory Boulevard, then left on Bell Road, right on New Hope Road and left on Stewarts Ferry Pike. Follow the signs to the campground. The roads are a bit narrow but no low branches or other problems encountered.

Date(s) of Stay: April 5, 2016 arrival; April 8, 2016 departure; April 2012

General Information:

Seven Points is another Army Corps of Engineers Campground, located about 10 miles east of Nashville and offers 59 sites on the J. Percy Priest Lake created by the J. Percy Priest Dam.

Out of the 59 sites at this campground, only 2 sites are less than 30 feet, the rest range in length from 50 feet to 166 feet.  Each site has water and 50/30/20 electric hookups (no sewer), a huge concrete picnic table (and in some instances a totally concrete patio), a fire pit with a grill, several hooks on the trees for hanging lanterns or whatever and a large wooden table which could be used as a stand for a grill or for cleaning fish.

Rates:
Rates are $22-$26 a day and available here. Note that with the America the Beautiful Senior Pass, there is a 50% discount. Our site was $26/day but with the pass, we paid only $13/day. As with all COE campgrounds, “the same customer or family member (living in the same household) cannot stay in the same facility for more than 14 days. The customer must leave the facility for 16/17 days before returning.”

Overall Impression – 4/5
We really like this campground with its very natural, very peaceful setting right on the lake. Lots of room between most sites so even without a lot of low vegetation, there is plenty of privacy. On our first stay here in 2012, we had a very spacious woodsy back in site (#8, an interior site not on the water) which had a lot of vegetation providing privacy from the campground road. On our 2016 visit much of the vegetation on this site had been trimmed so it lost some privacy. Still a nice site though.

During our 2016 stay we had a back in site (#41) which was right on the water. Loooong asphalt driveway to a newer concrete pad addition. From the pad it was down about six concrete steps onto a sunken concrete patio which had a huge round cast concrete table with benches. Beyond that was a patch of grass and then the rocky beach area. No neighbors on the passenger side and ample space on the drivers side between us and our neighbors. Awesome site!

Sites

Size – 4/5
The majority of the sites have very long although somewhat narrow paved driveways with plenty of space between you and your neighbor. Be aware that there are several sites located right on the water that have one driveway which splits into 2 sites (#15 & #17, #19 & #21, and #27 & #29) which are relatively close together.  Fine if you are traveling with another coach but this type of layout is less desirable in our view.

Privacy – 4/5
Depends on the site, but the majority of the sites are well spaced with a lot of trees and some low vegetation offering adequate privacy.

Amenities – 3/5
In addition to the campsites, there is a dumpster, a bi-directional dump station, a restroom, a very clean shower and laundry house, a boat ramp with a large parking lot, a small sandy beach, two large group picnic shelters and a small playground.  There are signs stating that swimming was only allowed between the floats.

Location:

Convenience – 4/5
Fairly close to conveniences such as shopping (Walmart and Kroger are about 14 minutes away), restaurants and other services. The touristy area of Nashville, the Grand Ole Opry (didn’t visit but heard it is worthwhile), the Hermitage (highly recommend a visit here) as well as other attractions are about a 30 minute drive (providing there is no traffic),

Physical Surroundings – 4/5
Very natural and woodsy setting right on the lake. Very pleasant and peaceful.

Maneuverability and Roads – 4/5
Big rig accessible. There is just one fairly narrow paved one way loop around the campground, making for an easy drive. The turns into the dump station area are a bit tight. Some of the roads getting here are narrow and shoulderless but we had no maneuvering difficulties and did not encounter any low branches.

Peace & Quiet – 4/5
Very quiet, peaceful campground – we were here in the off season, perhaps it is noisier during the busier months. Lovely sunsets.

Utilities – 4/5

• Sewer – None at the sites. Single dump station at the campground entrance is bidirectional but is a bit tight maneuvering.
  
• Satellite – Most sites are treed and clear line of sight is unlikely. However, some sites will have a clear view and on others reception may be possible before the trees leaf out. On our site #41 with the dish pointed toward the lake and directly at a cluster of mostly leafless trees we still hit all three sats in the DISH network Western Arc (110/119/129). However, we had frequent periods of pixelated video and switching from HD to SD channels.
  
• WiFi – None.
• Cellular signal – Good 3 bar Verizon 4G inside and outside without a booster.
• Over-the-Air (OTA) TV – Good, should be no issue receiving the basic network channels.
• Power – Power itself was very good. Stable 121+ volts on both legs. However, in some cases the outlets and breakers are old and in need of replacement. On site #41 initially the 50A would not work until we cycled the breaker 10 or 15 times. During our stay in 2012 we had and “open neutral” error on one occasion reported by our Progressive EMS.
• Water Pressure/Quality – Good pressure at 40+ psi with no significant off odors and no noticeable turbidity.

 

What We Liked
– Lovely views of the lake from our site
– Woodsy lakeside setting
– Long paved driveways and pads
– Huge cement patio on our site #41
– Reasonably close to Nashville and other attractions

What We Didn’t Like
– Potentially poor satellite reception
– Some electrical service in need of new breakers and sockets

Would We Return
Most definitely!