Texas Camping

[runnersg]

I would love to know everyone's favorite campgrounds in Texas and why! We are planning adventures and would love some insight. We like hiking, kayaking, biking and fishing, and relaxing. We have an 11 year old (and 2 older kids who aren't always with us).
We live in Houston but gladly drive anywhere.
Thanks in advance for the insight. :-)

[Protagonist]

Originally Posted by scguidry

I would love to know everyone's favorite campgrounds in Texas and why!
We live in Houston but gladly drive anywhere.

You can't go wrong at any of the parks around Sam Rayburn Lake. I prefer Mill Creek Park, which is a CoE park.

Eisenhower State Park on the south shore of Lake Texoma is good for hiking. There is a great hiking trail that partly runs along the top of a cliff overlooking the lake. Chiggers can be bad, though, so bring permethrin for your clothes and DEET for your skin.

[Lumatic]

There is a campground in Presidio, I think the only one. It is very basic, but cheap and the friendliest people I can remember. West side of Big Bend State Park which is a interesting contrast to the NP big brother to the east I wouldn't camp in the State Park because the roads are all washboard. In between the 2 parks is Terlingua which has Lajitas Resort which has all the bells and whistles.

[55AS]

Many of the state parks have great camping.
Lake Livingston SP
Pedernales Falls SP
McKinney Falls SP

[clicknathan]

Big Bend Ranch State Park is GREAT for kayaking and hiking, all of the camping is boondocking / drycamping. Same in Big Bend National Park but it's more expensive there (though there is a campground with some hookups in the NP).

On the way to Big Bend, the towns of Marathon and Marfa both have really interesting RV parks. Marathon Motel & RV Park (while not close to any hiking or kayaking) is a very cool place to meet other travelers of all types around their firepit in this adobe courtyard. Marfa's El Cosmico is a bit more eclectic but a similarly sweet place to meet lots of cool travelers and on the way to Big Bend.

Up in Fort Davis, the state park there is beautiful and there's plenty of hiking and cycling.

I also second Pedernales and McKinney which are a little less out there.

[Lily&Me]

Padre island National Seashore.....right on the beach.


Maggie

[Rjpuckett]

Inks Lake is our favorite.

[mimiandrews]

From the North Fishing Bridge at sunset.

[Stfinabi]

+1 for Inks Lake State Park.

[runnersg]

Man these are great! We've been to several of these places but not for overnight trips. We have a couple lake Livingston trips planned. Next year after we get another TV we are going to big bend.
Love inks lake. My kids have great memories from Devils waterhole!

[Goal15]

For our money, this park is the best-kept secret in Texas. A little over an hour east of Dallas, nicely wooded, plenty of great shaded campsites. Swimming beach, fishing pier, cabins, screened shelters, equestrian campground. And now that the rains have come Jim Chapman Lake is full so life is good.

The only time we haven't been able to get a great campsite here is on a holiday weekend when we didn't make advance reservations. Most of the time plenty of great campsites, although the few water view rv sites can be hard to come by because locals are able to head out there on Friday afternoon to snap them up.

Probably the only weakness in the Texas State Parks system is the inability to reserve a particular campsite..... in 4 years camping over there, we have only had a water view site once.... but we still count this as our favorite Texas park.

Plus Sulphur Springs is an easy 13 miles away with enough retail, etc to provide supplies and diversion.

Dana

[kstewart23]

We like the State Parks in the Northeast of Texas. Living in South Texas, we are always looking for an escape of the heat too. Dangerfeild State Park is suppose to be very nice and we are headed there in a couple of weeks. If you go to the state park website, you can actually search the parks in multiple ways, we like to use the search that's listed by hookups. If your looking for a really cool park in a town, that is really shaded you should try Pecan Valley in Austin. It's on the lake (river) and has kayaking and it's a great area to walk around, also Zilker Park is near by. Lots to do in Austin. Lake Brownwood State Park also looks good. And the basin in Big Bend is cooler than the desert above. It has nice camping, hiking, horseback riding etc.

[Cannonball]

Martin Dies, Jr. State Park in Jasper. Really pretty in the winter.

[87MH]

Congratulations on choosing an Airstream product. Several years ago I joined the WBCCI as a Member at Large. It did not take long to discover that each unit has its own unique personality. I have discovered that the Texas Gulf Coast Unit (TGCU) headquartered at the Texas Airstream Harbor Inc (TAHI) is best suited for me - for many reasons.

You can read more about the Harbor on Lake Sam Rayburn (SE of Lufkin) at:

http://www.texasairstreamharbor.com/...r/welcome.html

Full hookups are only $15 per night. You need not be a WBCCI member to stay at the park - the only requirement is an Airstream product.

TAHI is a gated community - lots of road and park area to ride bikes on. Birding is second to none in Texas. We are right on the shore of Lake Sam Rayburn, so most any type of fishing is available.

TAHI (Texas Airstream Harbor) is only a couple of hours north of Houston.

PM if you have any questions.

Dennis Watermann
__________________

[extiger]

We recently camped at Mother Neff SP and found it to be great. Full hookups and new facilities. A little SW of Waco about 4 hours for you.

FT. Parker SP s very good, lot of history in the area. It is also good for kayaking.

Village Creek SP is also very good for kayaking.

Closer is Stephen F. Austin SP. Closer still is Double Lake or Wolf Creek both are close to Cold Springs . Both are less than an hour trip for you. Double Lake is federal and Wolf Creek is a state agency (not SP). Great for a last minute get away. If you go to Wolf Creek try to go during the week and get one of the lakeside sites, they are typically reserved on the weekends.

Are favorite is Perdenales Falls SP. Lots of good hikes.

[cwf]

We like the COE just West of Salado.
Facility Details - UNION GROVE, TX - Recreation.gov

[slowmover]

Any COE is nice.

Growing up it was Daingerfield, Meridian, Tyler and Bastrop.

Today I only think about getting out of here.

[GeGe]

Garner state park near Uvalde, TX. Gods country in the hill country. But this comes from a Garner family descentent


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[dcopps]

Another vote for village creek north of Beaumont. Very close to Houston and the creek is known for some of the best canoeing in the area. You can set in more than 20 miles upstream. It a very underutilized park. The only issue is no sewer hookups.

[Ampman]

Lost Maples SP in the fall for the leaves color change. Have to reserve early. Or camp at Garner SP just down the road a bit and day trip to Lost Maples. Garner is awesome too but very busy in the summer. Road bike between the two parks if that's for you. Davis Mountains SP in west Texas is very nice for hiking, biking, and a base camp for a driving tour of Marfa, Alpine, McDonald Observatory and Balmorhea Springs. Palo Duro Canyon SP is also great for hiking and scenic vistas. Great outdoor play "Story of Texas" during the summer. Nearby is Caprock Canyons SP with the Texas state buffalo herd in the park. Great hiking there as well but watch out for the huge horse/buffalo flies. So many parks and so little time.