Hales Bar Marina Floating Cabins

If you're looking for an alternative to camping, Hales Bar Marina offers a unique experience with their Floating Cabins. The cabins are available in 1, 2 and 3 bedroom options, all with front and back decks that you can fish from on the Tenneessee River at the head of Nickajack Lake. Hales Bar Marina is currently undergoing a years-long renovation process, but we can see the vision the owners must have for the historic Hales Bar Dam (replaced by Nickajack Dam in 1967) which was one of the first multipurpose dams built in the United States. The marina is nestled in the valley of the mountain range and has a beautiful back drop of overlapping mountains. The property manager shared that the new owners have plans for the old dam to become a whiskey distillery and to build up the marina with more renovated floating cabins, renovations to the land cabins, a swimming pool and social activities. While we were there 70's & 80's music was playing in the background during the day and there was a tiki bar with party lights on one of the marina docks on Saturday night, so they get a check getting the party started.

If you're a history buff, there's a ton of history around Hales Bar Dam. See "The History of Hales Bar Dam" and the stories around the construciton of the dam.

Boat rentals are also avaiable at Hales Bar Marina or bring your own boat or your kayaks! There are cleats on the dock at the floating cabins and the Tennessee River meanders all the way to the Gulf of Mexico! So you could boat for days, weeks, months or years all around the world right from Hales Bar Marina. But the fun doesn't stop there! If you're a boater, you know how fun it is to travel through a lock and Nickajack Dam has one! So bring your boat and tie up outside your cabin and come ready to explore, just let the Hales Bar Marina management know ahead of time that you'll be tieing up at the docks.

For now, it's ambitious to call Hales Bar Marina a "resort", but the bones are there to one day be a bustling marina. In the meantime, if you think of it as a camping alternative, it's a great option. Our cabin was clean and had been recently renovated and the floating cabins come complete with a full kitchen (no dishwasher) and bath (think houseboat sized for both) as well as community grills on the docks available on a first come, first serve basis. We brought our camping grill and other camping supplies just in case, but the grills was really all we needed. The best part was being on the calming water and waking up to the serenity of the mountain range. The kids loved fishing off all the docks and our decks all morning and in the evenings. And the location is great! You can't beat the easy access to Chattanooga and all that this Southeastern area offers in outdoor exerpiences. Checkout our Destination: Chattanooga blog for ideas of how to explore in this area.

 

Rugged Nation Hales Bar Marina Tennessee Ridge and Valley Line Guild TN

Rugged Nation Hales Bar Marina Floating Cabins Guild TN

Rugged Nation Hales Bar Marina Dam Guild TN

Rugged Nation Hales Bar Marina Floating Cabins Guild TN

Hales Bar Marina Floating Cabins Guild TN

Rugged Nation Hales Bar Marina Floating Cabins Guild TN

Rugged Nation Hales Bar Marina Dam Floating Cabins bring your boat Tennessee Mountain Range

 

 

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