itOpened Guides · Cordell Hull Lake
How to actually get a site at Salt Lick Creek — the verified facts, the release reality, and the cancellation route in.
Watch it with itOpened
Proof, from our own scanners: 673 confirmed openings across 34 campgrounds since Oct 29, 2026 — each one re-verified before logging. See the live cancellation index.
Watch Salt Lick CreekFree to start. We never book, hold, or resell — you book it yourself, in your own account, at the normal price. Fees pay for monitoring; openings are first-come and cannot be guaranteed.
Overview Salt Lick Creek Campground is located on Cordell Hull Lake on the Cumberland River System, just 10 miles from Gainesboro, TN. The lake itself was named after one of America's outstanding statesmen and one of Tennessee's finest volunteers. Hull was born in a log cabin in the foothills of the Cumberland Mountains. Families and friends enjoy coming to the lake for boating, fishing, swimming, hiking, hunting, and relaxing in the outdoors. Click here for a virtual tour of the Cordell Hull Lake facilities. Recreation The 12,000-acre lake stretches 72 miles upstream and has 381 miles of shoreline, offering recreational activities for just about any type of visitor.
| Total sites | 151 |
|---|---|
| Site types | Standard, Group, Shelter |
| Site mix (directory count) | Standard 142 · Group 4 |
| Area | Cordell Hull Lake |
| Managed by | US Army Corps of Engineers |
| Nearest community | Gainesboro, TN |
| Activities | Birding, Boating, Camping, Canoeing, Evening Programs, Fishing, Interpretive Programs, Kayaking, Motor Boat, Non-Motorized Boating, Paddle Boating, Paddling, Photography, Swimming, Swimming Site, Water Access, Water Acti |
| Directory phone | 931-678-4718 |
| Official listing | Recreation.gov campground page |
| Book through | Recreation.gov |
Salt Lick Creek is reserved through Recreation.gov, on the release pattern stated in its official listing. In demand, reservable sites are claimed within minutes of each release — which is why the campground reads as sold out for most of the year, and why the realistic route in is rarely the release itself.
Sites booked months ahead get cancelled as trips fall through, and each cancellation returns its nights to the official calendar instantly — first-come, no waitlist, no announcement. itOpened scans the Recreation.gov calendar for Salt Lick Creek around the clock; when a site matching your dates and vehicle opens, you get a text with a direct link, and you book it yourself, in your own account, at the normal price. We never book, hold, or resell. The mechanics are the same ones documented in how campsite cancellations actually work.
Watch more than one calendar. These nearby or same-area campgrounds take the same trip — and their cancellations are independent chances:
| Defeated Creek Park | 158 sites · same area |
|---|---|
| Roaring River Park | 1 sites · same area |
| Tailwater Rec Area | 1 sites · same area |
| Wartrace Ck Rec Area | 1 sites · same area |
| Center Hill Lake Primitive Camping Areas | 21 sites · nearby alternative |
| Long Branch (Center Hill Lake) | 61 sites · nearby alternative |
Full directory facts and sibling campgrounds: Salt Lick Creek campground page · Cordell Hull Lake park page.
Watch it with itOpened
Proof, from our own scanners: 673 confirmed openings across 34 campgrounds since Oct 29, 2026 — each one re-verified before logging. See the live cancellation index.
Watch Salt Lick CreekFree to start. We never book, hold, or resell — you book it yourself, in your own account, at the normal price. Fees pay for monitoring; openings are first-come and cannot be guaranteed.
Every figure in this article traces to one of the sources above. If a number isn't sourced, we don't print it.
Last updated 2026-10-30.