If you watched our YouTube episode a few weeks ago, you already know that we spent four nights at Oak Mountain State Park in Pelham, Alabama. You also know that we had quite the experience the day of our check out. If you haven’t seen it, both videos are below for you to watch. Even considering what happened, we had a great stay at the state park and would recommend it to any traveling to or through the area.
Location
Oak Mountain State Park is 30 minutes outside of Birmingham, Alabama and is close to I-459 and I- 65. I-459 connects to I-20 (our route south after I-59 ended) so this was pretty much on the way without staying in the city of Birmingham.
Despite being so close to a city the size of Birmingham, Oak Mountain State Park was one of the most tranquil places we visited on the way down to Texas. The state park is massive, with miles of trails for hiking and biking. There are multiple lakes, and a large 18-hole golf course. The size of the state park is what makes it seem so far away from “civilization.”
The Campground
Before I get into the recreation opportunities at the state park, let’s talk about the campground first. The campground is large as well. It has two loops, one offering full hookups at every site and the other is mostly full hookups with a few offering electric and water only (there is a dump station on site). There are also many tent sites with water and electric and primitive sites as well.
Even though it’s a large campground, it’s very quiet. We were there in mid-November during the week (checked- in Sunday and left Wednesday). There were no empty sites when we arrived and just a few empty sites by the time we checked out.
The RV sites are all packed gravel with brand new utility stations close to the rig but far enough for our slide to come out. The site was mostly level, but we did have to come up a little bit on our passenger side. The site was also long enough for our 35’ rig and our truck to be backed up to it in front.
The sites were spacious as well. We felt far enough away from our neighbors and because the campground roads are arched; they created even more space. We also chose a corner site so, we had no one on our driver’s side. Our site was a back in as are most of them. However, there are few pull through’s. The pull throughs don’t offer much privacy as they are on the shoulders of the internal campground roads. Some RV’s camp side opened to the camp road. The roads, by the way, are all paved throughout.
Cost
The nightly rate to stay at our full hookup site was an average of $40/night. I say average because the rates are slightly higher on the weekends than they are on the weekdays. Even some weekdays are less expensive than others. For full hookups, a spacious gravel site, with a picnic table and fire pit, I thought $40/ night was a steal.
Amenities
The campground looks almost brand new because it was recently renovated. It began renovations in October of 2023 and was reopened in May of 2024. I have no idea what it looked like before, but they did a fantastic job. In loop B (where we were with all full hookup sites) they have a large bath house that has showers, restrooms, and a laundry room. I had never seen a laundry house at a state park until then.
The playground is also brand new. It’s conveniently located at the front of the campground where both loops come together. Next to the playground is a large dog park as well. Both areas are lit, so even during the shorter days of winter you can still enjoy both amenities.
Both loops are separately gated with their own codes. The ranger station has a clear view of them as well, providing a very nice sense of security. You get your access code before you arrive, so if you’re running late, you can still check in after hours.
Recreation
Within loop B is a trailhead for the yellow trail. It’s a 7-mile trail that runs from the campground southwest through the state park. We decided to drive 5 minutes down to the main road of the state park where the north trailhead parking lot was. From there we followed the red road to the red/ blue connector to the blue trail up to the Kings Chair overlook. The Blue trail traverses the whole ridgeline of Oak Mountain State Park but it’s over 6.5 miles one way; a little too much for us for an afternoon hike. There are multiple vistas along the trail though. The one named Kings Chair was really good and worth the hike (4 miles round trip).
From the North trailhead there were multiple options for hikes. You could go back to the same starting point multiple times during your stay and hike a different trail. A lot of the trails are also mountain bike friendly. There are even more mountain bike trails near the ponds located more towards the entrance of the park.
The trails were all very well marked and very well maintained. We saw a handful of other hikers on our way to Kings Chair. I could imagine that on a beautiful weather day in the middle of the busy season it would be a pretty popular hike, and you would encounter a good number of hikers.
Conclusion
Besides what happened to us on check out day (you’ll have to watch the video) I really don’t have any negatives for this stay. With the renovations it has undergone, they have done a magnificent job bringing the campground into the modern world.
I guess if I had one negative it’s that it is far from just about everything. No matter what kind of store you’re looking for, it’s going to be 20 minutes away. It takes 10 minutes just to drive out of the state park. This can be looked as negative but because you’re so far from everything, it’s a quiet, tranquil experience. I’ll take a 20+ minute drive to things over a loud, noisy campground. Especially when you’re in a state park to get away from everything.
For full hookups, the price, and location, I would say this is a must stop for RVers and tenters a like. Oak Mountain State Park offers so many recreation opportunities, that it is a destination in itself. If/ when we return, I hope to stay within the state park and experience more of the trails and the golf course. It looked really nice!
I hope you all enjoyed this review. If you did, please consider liking it below. Also be sure to check out the two videos below.
Until next time, God bless and stay safe!
YouTube Video
The Touring Torres’s 
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