Steve and Sandra Tolley of Katy return to the same Inks Lake State Park campsite year after year for their anniversary. It’s that special.
“This is the prime spot,” Steve says of the waterfront site. “We’ve been coming to this campsite for the past 10 years.”
Texas has lots of “prime spots” to camp. Campers who visit Texas state parks can catch the sunrise from atop a desert mountain, enjoy a campfire along a Hill Country river or relax in a hammock under the East Texas pines.
The state park system has 7,979 campsites to choose from. Some of those sites are pretty incredible. You know the ones we’re talking about — those sites that have great views, sit right next to the water, are shaded by a grand old tree or come with extra space or extra privacy to make them feel special.
We traveled the state as a father-and-son team to find those special sites, visiting dozens of state parks across Texas. (We also got invaluable help from many fine folks who work for state parks.)
Chris Beckcom, senior park planner at the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, says that when he visits parks during the week, he sees people camped in two kinds of places — in the really nice spot that everybody wants, and in the site right next to the bathroom. Both spots have their advantages, we suppose. Picking the best campsite is a pretty subjective process.
Our selections favor some of the more out-of-the-way sites — we’re tent campers and not RVers — but we tried to include something for everyone. We considered factors such as scenery, privacy, spaciousness, shade, access to bathrooms, proximity to park attractions and a totally subjective “wow” factor.
State parks are more popular than ever, and it’s important to make your reservations early to get a spot at your favorite park. With more than 2.3 million overnight visitors to state parks last year, you’ll want to plan ahead to have the best camping trip possible.
We hope you’ll explore our parks and discover more great campsites. Happy camping.
