Berry Bend Campground. sits on a promontory reached via short causeway on the Osage River Arm of Harry S Truman Lake, 29 Miles from Clinton Missouri, 18 miles from the junction with Highway 13 and 11 miles from Warsaw Missouri. Here’s a link to our directions on How to get to Berry Bend Campground.
In common with most of the campgrounds on Truman Lake, one of the loops of Berry Bend is open almost all year round. Berry Bend does close for a couple of days for special hunting events – so always check.
As of 2014 the A loop is closed year-round except on major holidays. The Corps of Engineers’ website states that the A Loop sites are available for for walk-in camping – you’ll need to talk to the camp hosts to sort that one out. We need to go back and re-visit Berry Bend and find out exactly what is and isn’t possible.
We particularly like Berry Bend because this a great part of the lake to take the kayaks on, with lots of areas to explore. There are plenty of campsites at Berry Bend with lake access so we can launch straight off the beach, and there is also a 25 mile equestrian trail which is great for hiking.
Truman lake itself has around 950 miles of shoreline – that’s a lot to fish and explore.
Berry Bend Campground – Campground Summary
| Official site | US Corps of Engineers – Truman Lake |
| Reservations | Recreation.gov |
| No. Campsites | 191 |
| Loops | 2 |
| Our favorite sites | A20, A47, C92, C54, C14. |
| Electric hook-up | Yes |
| Toilets | Flush & Vault |
| Potable Water | Yes |
| Showers | Yes – prime season only |
| Payment | Direct at the Fee Booth, or after hours by cash or check in an envelope provided at the Fee Booth |
| Open year-round | Yes. The C loop is open year round, except for special hunting days. The A loop is only open on major holidays. The Corps of Engineers’ website states that the A Loop sites are available for for walk-in camping. |
| Camp host | Yes |
| Amenities | The sites are well shaded, and a large number of the sites have a path to access Harry S Truman Lake. All sites have a fire ring, picnic table and lantern post. There’s a near-by boat put-in at the day use area. and you can hike on the 25 mile equestrian trail. There is playground equipment for children and a swimming beach. |
Late evening at Berry Bend Campground with sunlight falling between the trees on our MSR Mutha Hubba Tent. Campsite A47 – April 2012
View from the tent: mist on the lake – Berry Bend, Harry S Truman Reservoir – April 2012
We sat on the shore of Truman Lake and watched the low clouds tumble by as the sun broke through. Fisherman would buzz by in their boats as they got onto the lake for a day of fun – April 2012
Evening Campfire, Berry Bend Campground, Harry S Truman Reservoir – April 2012
The bluffs at Berry Bend are very nice, well worth investigating and promise some good fishing too – April 2012
There are a few things you need to know about Truman Lake. The water is very silty, so visibility is limited – when I’m fishing I use noisy and brightly colored lures. Truman is also quite a new lake and there are a lot of dead trees in it. Great for the fish, but a nuisance to lures and motor boats. A great thing about kayaking is that you can get right in the trees without fear of breaking your prop. Unusually for the Ozarks lakes, Truman appears to have quite a current at times. Finally, we’ve noticed that the lake gets a lot of farmland run-off, rich in nutrients. The silty water stops sunlight reaching far down, but we have noticed a foot or so band of green algae around the shore.
Anytime you’re tired of paddling or want to check out something on the shore, it’s easy to “dock” your kayaks anywhere. This time it was a pit-stop for the humans. Afterwards we paddled over to that bluff you see in the background and found some wonderful formations in the rocks – April 2012
Ginger has a look at some of the bluffs on Harry S Truman Reservoir
Campsite A20, Berry Bend Campground, Harry S Truman Lake, Missouri – October 2010
Cooking breakfast at campsite A20, Berry Bend Campground – October 2010
Bluffs and dead trees on Truman Lake, Missouri
Our Coleman Sunlight Ridge Tent at Berry Bend Campground in the Fall – November 2010
View across Harry S Truman Lake from Berry Bend Campground – November 2010
Ginger kayaking on Harry S Truman Lake at Berry Bend – November 2010
Our MSR Mutha Hubba tent at Berry Bend Campground Campsite C92 – November 2010
Sunset on Harry S Truman Lake at Berry Bend – February 2012
Getting to Berry Bend Campground from Highway 13 and Highway 65
View Route to Berry Bend Campground, Truman Lake, Missouri in a larger map
View Larger Map
Google street view showing the junction of State Highway Z with the road to Berry Bend Campground. The Campground is about 2.5 miles down this road. Once you pass the Equestrian Campground and boat put-in (both on the left), Berry Bend is just a short distance after crossing the causeway.
Note: watch out for wildlife and horses on the road in this area.
Excellent work on the page! Thanks for all of the information.
Thanks for the feedback. We’re glad you found it useful.
our family camped here last yr during doe season. we had a wonderful time and the campsites are very nice and clean. we are expecting to be back this weekend. thanks for a pleasant experience that we are hoping to make tradition.
It’s a great place, and the camp hosts are very friendly too. Enjoy your stay, it is a great time of year for camping there. Berry Bend closes one weekend a year for a disabled hunting session. I checked online and couldn’t find any mention if it is closed this year (2012). Should you ever find Berry Bend Closed, Bucksaw Campground on the Grand River Arm of Truman (off Highway U) is only a few miles away and is quite nice too. The campsites that are open all year round aren’t as sheltered as those at Berry Bend, and there are no trails nearby. I found this map of Truman on Wikipedia: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9b/Ht-lakemap.jpg
I was wondering this being a gov campground is it going to be shut down on the 19th & 20th?
the gov shut down has shut down a lot of parks and we wanted to come to warsaw for Heritage days and camp at Berry Bend as we have for the past 5yrs.
Let me know if it is going to be open
Unfortunately I do not know the answer to that question. Some campgrounds run by concessionaires have remained open with limited facilities. Berry Bend does have independent hosts, but I have no way of knowing if they are keeping the campground open. Checking the Internet archives of the Corps of Engineer’s Website for Berry Bend, I did find one information phone number you could try: (660)438-3872 Hopefully someone will be there to answer it.
what about camping fee’s?? tent’s camper etc??
Fees change over time so we don’t post them. We do provide links to the official website, from where the information can be obtained. We don’t normally post links to specific information because the pages have a habit of being moved with no notice. Sorry. However, here’s a link direct to the current fees page: http://www.recreation.gov/camping/berry-bend/r/campgroundFees.do?contractCode=NRSO&parkId=73080 Hope that helps.
Are golf carts allowed at berry bend campground?
Sorry, I’ve no idea, you’d need to contact the campground manager or the Corps of Engineers to find out. From the recreation.gov website:
(Date: June 12, 2021)