My Review of General Butler State Park

General Butler State Park is a beautiful park in the north-central region of Kentucky. Nestled along the Kentucky River and very close to the Ohio River this is a fantastic park to visit for a day or a weekend. What are the best family hiking trails at General Butler State Park in Kentucky? Well, stay tuned to find out. First, let’s jump into some quick history.

Where is General Butler State Park?

General Butler State Park is located in Carroll County, Kentucky, and more specifically, in the county seat of Carrollton. Carrollton got its start as a river town thanks to river traffic down the Ohio River. I imagine it helped that the Kentucky River meets the Ohio River in Carrollton, causing somewhat of a navigational challenge for river traffic, at least in the 18th and 19th centuries.

War heroes from the American Revolution began setting out to stake their homestead claims. Land grants offered veterans a chance to make their mark on America.

During this timeframe, Carrollton was part of the western territories. The fertile soil for farming, easy river access, along with the beauty of the region no doubt caused many folks to stake their claim.

Carrollton and General Butler State Park are convenient drives from Louisville, KY 47 miles, Frankfort 50 miles, Lexington 57 miles, and Cincinnati, OH 66 miles. Visitors can arrive for a nice picnic lunch, a quick family-friendly hike, take in historic Carrollton or the Carrollton Floor Wall Murals, and arrive home in time for dinner!

What does General Butler State Park Offer?

A little bit of everything! Camping, hiking, dining (Two Rivers Restaurant), swimming, mountain biking, bird watching, Conference Rooms, Snow Skiing (not anymore), and more!

The Lodge

General Butler’s lodge sits atop the massive hill which offers guest wonderful views of the Ohio and Kentucky Rivers. The lodge has over 50 rooms, each with a private balcony and view of the pool or hillside. Meeting space is available in the lodge. General Butler’s meeting space can accommodate large crowds, so give this a thought if you have guest traveling between Louisville, KY and Cincinnati, OH. This is a great spot nearly in the middle!

Check the hours before you visit to make sure they are open during slower seasons (e.g., winter).

Two Rivers Restaurant

Next time we visit, we are grabbing dinner reservations and enjoying a meal someone else cooks! As RV campers, we typically enjoy dinner at our campsite. It’s a great way to unwind. But, when a restaurant is on site, well we need to give it a shot!

Camping and Cabins

We have camped here 3 times. All three times were in the “off” season. Once in November and twice in March. As an added perk, we had the campground nearly to ourselves! Two out of three times we had water at the campsite. One time we even had a geyser erupting from the water spicket. I wish I had a picture of that! It was cold and I was drenched! All I could do was laugh.

Campground Arrival

The arrival and approach at General Butler Campground is easy. Park roads are wide enough for two campers to pass comfortably. No major hills, dips or bumps. A quick check in at the gate with a park ranger and you are on your way.

Camp Sites

General Butler offers about 100 campsites. Most are set within a nice state park setting. What does that mean? Well usually you get some space, paved roads, decent hook-ups, paved site pads, etc. Some sites are so far off level it makes you wonder if they were ever level. Others the hose hookup requires a super long hose. Just study the map before you go. When in doubt call the campground. Or read online reviews.

General Butler State Park — Campground Map

Checkout Our Video Walkthrough of the Campground!

We had good luck in sites 45 and 47, I believe. These are easy to back into and short distance to the bathhouse and the Butler Lake Trail.

Cabins

We have walked by the cabins on several hikes. Some definitely look better than others. I would call and talk with park officials before booking a cabin.

Hiking

What are the best family hiking trails at General Butler State Park in Kentucky? Well there are only 6 hiking trails in the park. And a couple of these trails are up and down the giant hill the lodge sits on. Parts of these are easier than others. I’ve trail run these trails and I’ll say they can be tricky to navigate and footing is difficult on the backside of one of the hills. So, with younger kids, I would avoid the Butler Turpin House and General Butler Fossil Loop. These trails combine for about 4.5 to 5 miles. There wasn’t much to see on the trail either. I find my kids don’t love hiking when there is not some pay off at the end (waterfall, overlook, etc.).

So, what are the best family hiking trails at General Butler State Park?

Butler Lake Trail

Clocks in at 1.7 miles. This trail follows the lake shore. And meanders by canoe and kayak rental (spring, summer, early fall), mini-golf, fishing dock, and offers fantastic views of the lake. We have some fun pictures of the ducks swimming from our last hike.

Plus a small wooded section with a neat bridge!

Kentucky River Lock Trail

About 1.0 mile. This trail follows a wide trail through the forest and leads to a cool view of an old lock on the Kentucky River. If you’re new to river boating, a river lock is like an elevator for boats. This allows boats to navigate rivers which fluctuate in depth along their course. Anyway, walking right up to the edge was super cool!

As an added bonus, there is a scary, creepy house right by the lock. Gives me the chills! Ghost hunters may need to check this out!!