RV Rental Owensboro, KY

The county seat of Daviess County in Kentucky is Owensboro. This town sits on a bend in the Ohio River. The first settler in the area was William Smeathers. He built a cabin on the south bank of the river in 1797. Other settlers came to the site from the northeast in flatboats. These flatboats would naturally drift to the south bank in the bend due to the river currents. 

In 1815, the county was established with an act passed by the Kentucky General Assembly. The town was laid out in 1816 under the name Owensborough. The name came from Colonel Abraham Owen, a Kentucky war hero. The name was changed to Owensboro in 1893. 

The first manufacturing companies in the area came in 1884. The Owensboro Wagon Company became one of the largest in the nation. Kentucky Electrical Lamp Company came to Owensboro in 1899, and Modern Welding Company came in 1932. Over the years, coal mining and agriculture also had a hand in the county's development. The area along the rolling hills of Panther Creek was mined for years. Corn, soybeans, and tobacco were the primary agricultural products of the town. Kentucky bourbon also had a significant economic influence with 18 distilleries in Daviess County.

With a population of over 61,000, the heart of Owensboro's tourism industry is bluegrass music and barbecue. Burgoo and barbecued mutton make Daviess County’s barbecue stand out from others. The town is also home to Kentucky Wesleyan and Brescia colleges. Other notable points of interest you may want to include in your visit are the Museum of Science and History and the International Bluegrass Music Museum.

Campgrounds Near Owensboro, Kentucky

With five lakes and 157 acres of land to explore, Diamond Lake Resort is an excellent spot for RV camping. Fishing is a top priority at this campsite, with frequent fishing tournaments. The resort also has three Go-Kart Tracks for guests to enjoy. They have daily, weekly, and monthly rates with a pool and hot tub. The resort is only 11 miles from Owensboro, providing easy access to various restaurants, retail shops, and gas stations.

Livermore RV Park is conveniently located near Highway 431. This park provides easy access to the Green River and various fishing opportunities. If you are not into fishing, the river bank has abundant trees for a shady, relaxed afternoon. The park has a boat ramp for guests to explore the area by water. They also offer RV storage and full hookups.

Gregory Lake RV Park is one of the more unique campgrounds in Kentucky because they cater to all-terrain-vehicle buffs. The property has miles of muddy trails for guests to enjoy. The park also has stocked lakes so you can enjoy some fishing during your visit. You can take advantage of their daily, weekly, or monthly rates. With full hookups and 30- and 50-amp connections, you can choose a pull-through or back-in site.

National Parks Near Owensboro, Kentucky

Mammoth Cave National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and International Biosphere Reserve. The park has over 200 caves with 400 miles of explored territory. The National Park Service offers a variety of tours, including crawling caves tours, accessible tours, self-guided tours, and ranger-guided tours. The Visitor's Center is an excellent spot to orient yourself about what is above and below the surface at this park. This national park also has canoeing, kayaking, boating, bicycling, hiking, and fishing opportunities. Visitors enjoy the scenic overlooks in the park, such as Doyel Valley Overlook and Sunset Point.

The famous white arch in St. Louis, Missouri, is the Gateway Arch National Park. This arch represents St. Louis' role in the Westward Expansion. You can explore Thomas Jefferson's opening of the west, Dred Scott's court case, and the pioneers' shaping of the west in this national park. You can explore the free Museum at the Gateway Arch inside the arch or ride the tram to the top. Besides the arch, this national park includes the Old Courthouse, where the first two trials of the Dred Scott case took place. The grounds provide easy access to the Mississippi River and various hiking and biking trails.

Straddling the borders of North Carolina and Tennessee, the Great Smoky Mountain National Park contains streams, rivers, waterfalls, forests, and wildflowers. The highest peak in the park is Clingmans Dome. The observation tower at the top of this peak offers gorgeous views of the mountains. This park has ten front country campgrounds as well as various backcountry spots. Besides camping opportunities, this national park provides bicycling, fishing, wildlife viewing, picnicking, and horseback riding activities. You can explore the historic buildings and Cades Cove during your visit.

State Parks Near Owensboro, Kentucky

The 788-acre lake at Lake Malone State Park is a popular spot with visitors and locals alike. Many people come to the park every year to enjoy swimming, fishing, and boating on the lake. They also enjoy the various hiking trails, such as the Laurel Trail, Wildflower Trail, and Twisted Tree Trail. These trails allow you to enjoy the holly, hardwood trees, tall pines, and mountain laurel. The park has various back-in or pull-through sites that have standard electricity. This state park also offers a bathhouse, retail shop, water access, dump station, and laundry. 

Just south of the Ohio River, John James Audubon State Park is within a few minutes of Henderson, Kentucky. Within the park, the John James Audubon Museum and Nature Center invites visitors to explore the subjects of Audubon’s paintings. The on-site campground has around 30 sites that are either back-in or pull-through. These sites also offer standard electricity. This state park ensures guests have bird-watching, boating, picnicking, fishing, and hiking opportunities. You can also take advantage of the park’s bathhouse, cable service, dump station, boat ramp, playground, and recycling station.

Lincoln State Park has abundant old white pine trees within the campground area. This state park contains 150 sites with water and electric hookups. It also has a dump station, flush toilets, and bathhouses. The ten-mile hiking system has trails that range from easy to moderate. The John Carter Trail is particularly popular with visitors to the park. The park offers two scenic lakes for fishing, swimming, and boating. 

National Sites Near Owensboro, Kentucky

President Abraham Lincoln lived on a farm where the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial sits today. He lived here from the age of seven. Lincoln Living Historical Farm depicts a typical farm in the 1820s. Rangers dress in period clothing and perform various activities from the 1820s daily life. After watching the park film, you can explore the exhibits in the Visitor Center. The Memorial Visitor Center also contains a museum with twelve exhibits exploring Lincoln’s life. The site also has two easy hiking trails you can explore after checking out the exhibits. The Trail of Twelve Stones is a half-mile walk with twelve stones representing places and buildings associated with vital moments in Lincoln’s life.

George Rogers Clark National Historical Park features a magnificent bronze statue that depicts George Rogers Clark, a Revolutionary War commander. The memorial also contains seven murals that detail his story and aftermath. Various living history programs can be experienced at this site from time to time. The 30-minute orientation film at the visitor's center about Clark and Fort Sackville is a must-see during your visit. The visitor's center also contains various exhibits and expert staff members to answer questions. 

While the Lincoln Boyhood National Memorial allows you to experience the boyhood home of Abraham Lincoln, the Abraham Lincoln Birthplace National Historical Park in Hodgenville, Kentucky provides an opportunity to learn about his earlier life. The Symbolic Cabin where Lincoln was born can be found inside the Memorial Building near the Birthplace Unit. The Boyhood Home Unit contains the Knob Creek Tavern, a log home, and Lincoln’s earliest memories. The area offers three hiking trails: Overlook Trail, Big Sink Trail, and Oak Trail. This site also has the first Lincoln Memorial to honor the 16th president.

National Forests Near Owensboro, Kentucky

The Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area contains 171,280 acres. This forested peninsula offers over 300 miles of shoreline for various adventures. The area has over 500 miles of hiking trails. The campground offers a variety of choices, including full hookups, forested, and shoreline sites. It also has various educational attractions such as Golden Pond Planetarium, Homeplace 1850s Working Farm, and Woodlands Nature Station.

With 289,000 acres, Shawnee National Forest has a wide array of activity options. This forest sits between the Ohio and Mississippi rivers. This forest is an excellent spot for wildlife viewing, including bald eagles and bears. The Lake Glendale Recreation Area within this forest offers RV camping. Shawnee offers a wide array of hiking opportunities, such as One Horse Gap Lake, Millstone Bluff Archaeological Area, and Cedar Lake.

Hoosier National Forest covers over 200,000 acres in Indiana’s hills. You can find lakes, streams, and reservoirs filled with fish within this site. Visitors come to this forest for hiking trails. Birdseye Trail is an 11-mile trail for hiking, horseback riding, and bicycling. Some other courses include Sycamore Trail and Two Lakes Loop Trail. This site has camping for just about any type of RV, including areas with electric and water hookups, a dump station, and clean water.