Hales Bar Marina & Resort

Hales Bar Marina & Resort sits on Nickajack Lake in Guild, with the Tennessee River Gorge in front of it and the old Hales Bar Dam powerhouse on the property. Plenty of families come for the lake and never go inside the powerhouse.

On the water

• Rentals. Pontoon boats.
• Slips and launch. More than 220 covered slips and a boat ramp.
• Fishing. The lake holds bass and catfish. See Fishing for license rules.
• Ship store. On site.

Floating cabins and land cabins

Hales Bar’s famous floating cabins are the reason a lot of people come. Each one is moored at the marina, with a deck over the water and a kitchen inside. Land cabins are on the property too.

Book by phone at (423) 942-9000, or see the cabins on the marina’s website. Pets must be 25 lbs or under, and there is a per-pet fee.

RV sites

There are 53 paved RV sites with full hookups, meaning 20/30/50 amp power, water and septic. The marina has no tent sites. Compare it with the county’s other campgrounds on Camping & RVs.

Also on the property

• A saltwater pool, open seasonally
• Dam Whiskey Co. distillery
• A pickleball court

The dam and its tours

Hales Bar Dam was begun in 1905 and finished in 1913, one of the first major dams built across a navigable river in the United States. The limestone under it is full of channels, and the dam leaked from the day it opened. The Tennessee Valley Authority breached it in 1968 and replaced it with Nickajack Dam downstream.

The powerhouse, generator bays and tunnels remain. The resort runs three kinds of tours:

• Guided ghost tours of the powerhouse and tunnels
• Overnight paranormal investigations, which sell out first in October
• A history and distillery tour through the tunnels, with a tasting

Tour types, dates and prices change through the year. Confirm with the marina before you drive out. The Hales Bar Dam guide tells the full story.

Nearby

The Nickajack bat cave is on the same lake, and the bats fly at dusk from late April to early October. For a hike, the county’s trails include several in the Tennessee River Gorge.