Campgrounds and RV parks near Clarence, MO

Clarence sits in northeast Missouri along US 36, roughly a half-hour drive from the largest recreation draw in the area: Long Branch Lake and its surrounding state park land. The town itself is small, but it works well as a base for RV travelers heading to lakes, conservation areas, and county-managed campgrounds scattered across Macon, Shelby, and Knox counties. The closest full-service RV option in normal years is Long Branch State Park on the west side of the 2,430-acre Long Branch Lake, managed by Missouri State Parks on land leased from the US Army Corps of Engineers, which oversees the reservoir itself. Shoemaker RV Park in nearby Bevier offers a private, big-rig-friendly alternative with full hookups just off Highway 36. Farther north in Knox County, Hurdland South Sever Lake and Baring North Sever Lake provide small, quiet lakeside camping on land gifted to the county by publisher Henry Edwin Sever. The Fort rounds out the local options for travelers looking for something different from a standard state-park loop.

Missouri State Parks campsites, including Long Branch when open, are reserved through the state reservation system, which allows bookings up to twelve months in advance. Reservations can be made online at icampmo1.usedirect.com or by calling 877-ICampMO (877-422-6766) between 7 a.m. and 7 p.m. Central. Camping stays are capped at fifteen days within any thirty-consecutive-day period at a single park. Shoemaker RV Park takes reservations directly through its own website or by phone. Hurdland South Sever Lake and Baring North Sever Lake require a camping permit from the Knox County Commission, issued through Campspot.