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Old 10-12-2015, 08:49 PM   #1
usafabronco
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Default South East Campgrounds

We live in Bossier City, LA. We have had our TM under a year, but our family situation has prevented us from camping as much as we would like this year. In an effort to maximize all of our enjoyment of the outdoors, please add to this thread with your favorite campgrounds in the Southeast US. We can all learn from eachother's great experiences.

Here are some of our favorites:
1. Tyler State Park, TX: Sites overlook a good sized lake. Lots of trees and playground for the kids. "Loaner" fishing gear, canoes, kayaks, etc. were free. No need for a permit to fish in TX State Parks. Must try Stanley's BBQ in Tyler. The zoo is also nice with a very cool dining area overlooking the African savannah exhibits... eat your hot dog while watching giraffes, elephants, zebras, etc.

2. Beaver's Bend State Park, OK: Sites along the river. Blue-ribbon trout fishery with both catch-and-release and catch-and-keep areas. Good hikes nearby with beautiful scenery.

3. Galveston Island State Park, TX: I recommend the camping area that's closer to the back bay. Fewer people, quiet, and away from the main road. It's still easy to get to the fantastic beach and other hiking. NOTE: No shade anywhere on the island.

4. TX State Railroad Rusk Depot, Rusk, TX: Went for my son's birthday. They have passenger sightseeing trains to ride. Kind of expensive, but we loved it! We went for the train ride... the campground was only ok... Bathrooms, especially, could have used some TLC. They had a splash pad and playground for the kids.
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Old 10-12-2015, 09:22 PM   #2
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You might like some of the other state parks in East Texas; we certainly do.

Caddo Lake - interesting bayou-type lake, near to historic town of Jefferson

Village Creek - in the ecologically interesting Piney Woods. Canoeing can be done on the creek

Martin Dies Jr - east Texas hardwood forest ecosystem, on a nice lake

Sea Rim - haven't been since it was wrecked by Hurricane Ike, but I understand it's been rebuilt. When we went it was a nice beach park.

If you head more westerly into the Hill Country, there are a lot of great parks there too. I'd basically just be pickling off a long list of the state parks - so instead maybe take a look at http://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/nearby/all-parks
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Old 01-25-2016, 09:16 PM   #3
usafabronco
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Default Petit Jean St Park, AR

We spent MLK weekend at Petit Jean State Park in Arkansas. It's about an hour Nnorthwest of Lttle Rock in the Ouachita Mountains. It was a beautiful park with lots of very interesting hikes and gorgeous scenery! The campground was well cared for and clean, especially the bathrooms. We had a great time, definitely among the best places we've camped in this area. We'd love to go back more in season. It got down to about 19 degrees at night. The city water faucet froze, as well as out water hose and gray water tank. Definitely learned to pay more attention to the overnight temps!

Some quirks:
1. There is a small airport just across the lake from the campground. Be prepared for some low fly-by's. No noise at night, though. The airport may be day-only.
2. A surprising number of campers left their sites without cleaning up trash. Campground staff picked it up.
3. Had to buy Friday night even though we originally planned on arrivng Sarurday morning. We wound up driving in Friday night... Not a good idea due to the large number of deer along the roads in this area of Arkansas. Even hit one at low speed.
4. Firewood was $4 for a small bundle at the visitor center. Saw it for $2-3 dollars elsewhere.
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Old 01-26-2016, 07:39 AM   #4
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Default Ouachita Mountains

A lot of nice USFS CG's from dry to elec and water hook ups; also ACOE in this same area as you go west and north of Hot Springs. Not out style of camping but the NPS CG in Hot Springs is very nice with full hook ups. It's also convenient if you like the tourist trap type of place. Since it is a tourist area watch the local drivers very carefully. Other then that a nice area to explore with plenty of history.
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Old 01-27-2016, 07:54 PM   #5
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Ditto on Caddo State Park
Also recommend Dangerfield State Park
Also Bob Sandlin State Park near Pittsburg Tx.
All are East Texas Area
Might Want to look into Army Corp Parks there are some great ones!!
Good Luck and Good Camping!!
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Old 02-14-2016, 10:49 PM   #6
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Default Clear Springs Recreation Area, MS

Thank you for those who have posted good camping areas!

We found another nice one - Clear Springs Recreation Area in the Homochitto National Forest in Mississippi.

The good: The area has a nice lake and several great hiking trails, ranging from about a mile up to 10 miles. The camping spots were mostly level, if somewhat uneven. They had large flat areas for tents and nice fire rings. It was very quiet and dark - great star viewing between the tall pine trees. Should be nice and shady during the summer. Very clean campground, and the host was superbly friendly and helpful.

Not so good: Some sites were somewhat short, even for a TM 3023. We stayed in #3, and I had to park across the drive after unhitching to stay out of the road. This campground does not take reservations. We arrived at about 5:30 PM on Friday before MLK weekend and took one of the last two spots. The last spot was filled within 20 minutes of our arrival. Due to tree removal, one of the two campground loops was closed, so they were down to 11 of their normal 22 sites. The showers in the lower loop bathrooms got no warmer than tepid... The swimming area showers were much better. The facilities coud have used a little more maintenance - broken faucet in the bathroom, broken board on the playground, aforementioned lack of hot water.

Google Maps and our GPS directed us down Wagon Wheel Road to get to the campground. This road was a rough gravel road and NOT the right way. Stay on the paved road... the campground is straight ahead in a short distance. Also, this campground is not near anything. Bring what you need with you. Natchez, MS was about 25 minutes west of Clear Springs. It was a neat place to explore.
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Old 02-14-2016, 10:53 PM   #7
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Default TX blue bonnets?

My wife has her heart set on seeing the blue bonnets blooming this Spring. Anybody know of a particularly good area or campground in the TX Hill Country?
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Old 02-15-2016, 06:15 AM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by usafabronco View Post
Thank you for those who have posted good camping areas!

We found another nice one - Clear Springs Recreation Area in the Homochitto National Forest in Mississippi.

The good: The area has a nice lake and several great hiking trails, ranging from about a mile up to 10 miles. The camping spots were mostly level, if somewhat uneven. They had large flat areas for tents and nice fire rings. It was very quiet and dark - great star viewing between the tall pine trees. Should be nice and shady during the summer. Very clean campground, and the host was superbly friendly and helpful.

Not so good: Some sites were somewhat short, even for a TM 3023. We stayed in #3, and I had to park across the drive after unhitching to stay out of the road. This campground does not take reservations. We arrived at about 5:30 PM on Friday before MLK weekend and took one of the last two spots. The last spot was filled within 20 minutes of our arrival. Due to tree removal, one of the two campground loops was closed, so they were down to 11 of their normal 22 sites. The showers in the lower loop bathrooms got no warmer than tepid... The swimming area showers were much better. The facilities coud have used a little more maintenance - broken faucet in the bathroom, broken board on the playground, aforementioned lack of hot water.

Google Maps and our GPS directed us down Wagon Wheel Road to get to the campground. This road was a rough gravel road and NOT the right way. Stay on the paved road... the campground is straight ahead in a short distance. Also, this campground is not near anything. Bring what you need with you. Natchez, MS was about 25 minutes west of Clear Springs. It was a neat place to explore.
This is a favorite of ours, first time there we stayed in 3. Not the best one to get into. Of late we have been camping in the upper loop.

You might also like Choctaw Lk, site 5 or Davis Lk both on the Tom Bigbee NF. They take reservations.
For dry camping we like Gum Springs near Winnfield, La or with hook ups Kincaid. Both on the Kistichi NF.


What you ran into with google and the gps is why I always do my routing in Garmin Mapsource. Then view the route in Google Earth. If your GPS is a Garmiin 2XXX or above; you will have to import the route into Garmin's Base Camp to send it to the GPS. If you use a TomTom then I think RouteBuddy is the mapping software of choice. Which ever way you go look at the route in Google Earth, when you zoom in it's easy to tell if the road is paved or dirt. We've been on Wagon Wheel and it's a go around the barn to get there.
There are several nice TX SP's in the hill country.
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Old 02-17-2016, 07:20 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by usafabronco View Post
My wife has her heart set on seeing the blue bonnets blooming this Spring. Anybody know of a particularly good area or campground in the TX Hill Country?
You can stay in Lady Bird Johnson Municipal Park in Fredericksburg. It has great facilities and is in the heart of the bluebonnet zone. There is a large emporium which grows and sells wildflower seeds not too far away, Wildseed Farms, their fields can be spectacular. Fredericksburg is a great place to visit for many reasons.

Disclaimer: no idea if this will be a good bluebonnet year or not. I have a few coming up in my yard so I am hopeful.
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