If you’ve spent a full day hiking the state park, you’ll need a place to crash for the night after.
If you have a camper or tent, Cove Lake is that place. The perfect camping near Mount Magazine.

The Details

Name: Cove Lake Recreation Area
Location: 19 Cove Lake Loop, just south of Paris Arkansas
Cost: Campsites are $15/day. Cabins are $35.
Number of campsites: 36
Hookups: No hookups at sites.
Amenities: Firepits. Full bathrooms complete with showers if you go during the season when they are open. If not, the pit toilets are just fine. Picnic tables.
Privacy: It is an actual campground so you may have neighbors. Plenty of room between sites though.
Noise: It was quiet while I was there, but there were only 2 other campers in the entire area
Cell signal: No cell service with Verizon
Scenery: Gorgeous. Lake, trees.
Site: I highly recommend site #8 while camping near Mount Magazine.

Recommended Site:

Loop A.
Site 8.
Just trust me on this.

Site #8 sits directly against the lake.
It’s incredibly long, with multiple levels. Plenty of trees to put up a hammock. If you have a pup, there is plenty of space for a tie down or run where your dog can’t get into anyone else’s campsite. It’s completely ’empty’ on one side, meaning no neighbors on that side.

It can fit a 45ft camper, and there are multiple spots to pitch a tent.
Paved and very easy to back in.
Picnic table. Firepit. BBQ grill.

I did camp here in late October. The nights were chilly, and the camping season was over. There were only 2 other people in the entire campground the night that I was here. I’m sure it gets a lot busier during the summer months… but I really do recommend this place most of all in the fall.
The leaves were turning colors, and it was perfect weather for a firepit.
Just pretend that this is a soda in my hand in this hammock photo.

Things to do inside the campground

Between Memorial and Labor day are your best times to go if you’re looking for the fun extra ammentities, as a couple things close down once it gets cold.
There is a lake with boat rentals.
A miniature golf course on site.
A concession stand for food.

For the lake, it’s a 160 acres of activites.
Swimming.
Fishing.
Boating.

It’s perfect for both motorized and non motorized boat options (like a kayak or canoe).

There are plenty of places to fish along the edge of the lake. Cove Lake is home to catfish, bass, perch, and more. It gets stocked every other year.

Beach access for swimming is available as well.

Things to do in the area

The main reason I went to Cove Lake is because it was a fantastic camping near Mount Magazine State Park.
This means that Mount Magazine needs to be your first go-to location. You can do a very short hike to the highest point in Arkansas in the park! There is even a 10mile point to point trail that leads from Cove Lake all the way to Mount Magazine and meets up with the Signal Hill hike.
If you’re a hiker, there are a dozen other trails in the area as well.

You’re about two hours north here from Hot Springs National Park. If you haven’t been, it’s definitely worth checking out.

A couple minutes to the north of this campground is the town of Paris, where you can grab a morning cup of coffee if you didn’t bring your own… and drink it while wandering around a little park they have with a wee Eiffel Tower.
I wasn’t able to visit either of them, but it looks like there’s also two breweries in the area.