Steele Creek Marina & Campground

Steele Creek Marina & Campground is one of the campground options around Kerr Lake. However, unlike all the other campgrounds, which are State Parks, Steele Creek is privately run. They have their own reservation system, the campground is smaller, and some rules are different, such as the cost to change or cancel a reservation, alcohol use, and the length of stay. The campground is rarely busy (mainly on weekends) and the marina staff are very accommodating. We were easily able to change our reservation to a different site when we arrived. If you’re looking for a last-minute reservation during the summer, Steele Creek can usually accommodate you. In addition, while Steele Creek does have water access via a small cove (a tiny inlet, really), the other state parks sit directly on the main body of the lake.
The campground itself is small, with a combination of 50, 30, and 20 amp sites, along with dry camping tent sites. The bathhouse and dump site are about ½ mile away, midway between the campground and marina. There is one porta-potty in the E/W area and there may be another one in the tent area (I didn’t check). The closer the site is to the cove, the more slope there is to the site. The three 50 amp sites, which are also the largest sites, are the most level and are several rows from the lake. The middle section, with 30 amp sites is fairly level. The smaller, 20 amp sites are along the lake and have the most slope. There are large trees throughout with deep shade in the summer months.
We have camped here on two occasions: in our 38’ fifth wheel for several weeks in 2017 while waiting for RV parts for a repair, and in 2023 for three nights in our truck camper. During this last visit, we rented kayaks and a pontoon boat from the marina. When we lived in the greater Raleigh area, before going full-time, we had a pontoon boat and were frequent visitors to Kerr Lake, although we usually slept on the pontoon boat under the stars. For old times sake, we took the pontoon boat to Clarksville VA for a catfish dinner at Bridgewater Grill. We paddled the kayaks back to the campground, took a break for lunch, and then paddled back to the marina. To my knowledge, Steele Creek is the only place on the lake to rent kayaks. While there are definitely tradeoffs between Steele Creek and the state parks, Steele Creek has a few unique features that, sometimes, makes it the best choice.