robbiesusie

This was my first stay at a COE campground and we were very impressed with this one. The rate I paid included a 50% reduction with my National Parks Senior Pass. Check in was smooth. There is a gatehouse and a friendly woman manning it who checked us in. We stayed in site 11 which is the first of three camping areas. All the sites in this section (sites 9-15) are FHU. The grounds are kept very neatly, the crushed granite around each campsite is raked and the site was fairly level. Backing in was not tough but the site is up on incline but the main part of site is generally level. Although the lake level was down, you had a nice view of the lake from this site. Some of the sites have picnic tables that are covered and some don't. Sites 10 and 11 had covers over the tables. It rained some while we were there and while our site was fine, water did pool in front of Site 10.
We heard a little noise from the airport but nothing that disturbed us.

This was my first stay at a COE campground and we were very impressed with this one. The rate I paid included a 50% reduction with my National Parks Senior Pass. Check in was smooth. There is a gatehouse and a friendly woman manning it who checked us in. We stayed in site 11 which is the first of three camping areas. All the sites in this section (sites 9-15) are FHU. All the utilities were mid site and easy to reach. The grounds are kept very neatly, the crushed granite around each campsite is raked and the site was fairly level. Backing in was not tough but the site is up on incline but the main part of site is generally level. Although the lake level was down, you had a nice view of the lake from this site. Some of the sites have picnic tables that are covered and some don't. Sites 10 and 11 had covers over the tables.
It rained some while we were there and while our site was fine, water did pool in front of Site 10.
We heard a little noise from the airport but nothing that disturbed us.

We stayed at this park for two nights and left at the start of the Memorial Day weekend. Our site was level side to side but sloped down towards the lake. There was a lot of space on the driver's side of the trailer between our site and any neighbor. Our campsite backed onto an inlet of the lake. I had 4 bars with ATT. The staff was great and we rented kayaks one morning. Kayaks were good and actually had seats with some rear cushioning and back support. We paddled to the Devil's Waterhole and watched people jump off the rocks. We had a nice time on the lake.
They don't have FHU but the dump station has two sewer holes so that helped because it was a busy time.

This was our first visit to this park since the forest fire several years ago. There did not appear to be much evidence of the fire, there is a lot of new growth pine trees, etc. I had reserved Site 20 but when I checked in the park employee told me that Site 20 has the sewer connection on the opposite side of the electric/water connection and asked if I wanted to change which I did and was able to get Site 22. Site 22 was fine and has a roof over the picnic table which other sites don't. The site was pretty level side to side but lower in the front. We were not there with kids but it is a great park for kids. They have good size playgrounds and during the summer a swimming pool. The park is just outside the town of Bastrop and is an quick drive to get to their downtown with restaurants and shops. The park is also close to TX 71 so there is a small amount of traffic noise but nothing bad at all. We were able to get OTA Austin channels on the television.
Note: I checked Site 20 and confirmed that the sewer connection is on the opposite side of the electric/water connections. It also looks like it would be very difficult to get out of with a trailer. The turns look tight especially if the other sites are occupied. I would avoid Site 20.

We camped here for three nights. The rate I posted includes the discount I receive with the Texas State Parks annual pass. This was our first visit to this park. We really loved this place. Our site was fairly level, we just had to make small adjustments side to side and front to back. The pad is asphalt and was pretty easy to back into. There is a covered picnic table. This site was 30amp only but there are a few sites that are 50/30 amp. This site was nice because there was no one on your passenger side or behind you and there was nice shrubs/trees blocking the driver's side next door site. Cell service was spotty for both ATT and Verizon. There is a park wifi which was weak.
There is a hiking trail (Canyon Rim Trail) along the canyon. It is level and very easy and has great views. Do Not take the Canyon Rim Spur Trail because you miss all the canyon views. If you have children, there are no guardrails anywhere. You can walk right up to the rim of the canyon and fall in if not careful.
Bison are free ranging and we saw a few walking along the road as we drove around. It is possible for them to walk through your campsite as evidenced by bison droppings all around. The prairie dog town is also neat to watch. The park is pretty isolated and groceries, propane, etc are not close. Gas is available in the nearby town.

We stayed three nights in the Acorn campground at Beavers Bend State Park. Our site was right on the river with electric and water but no sewer. The park does have areas with full hookups but not in the Acorn campground. It is a large state park with an area on the river and a separate area on the lake. Our site was level and I didn't have to use anything to level it side to side. This site had fewer trees than some giving us less shade but an unobstructed view of the river. Campsites starting around #6 had more trees and shade. We had 3-4 bars with ATT service. My only complaint is the wooden picnic table top was warped at one end and should be replaced. The bathhouse has individual rooms for showers and toilets with separate doors so there is a lot of privacy.
The dump station was in good shape and had two sewer holes.
The Nature Center in the park was pretty small and disappointing. The Heritage Center though was interesting. It had information on the timber industry in the area and the CCC building the park.
We went fly fishing for the first time and had a great time. We used On the Rivers Fly Fishing for a guide. My wife caught 14 trout and I landed 8.

We stopped at this park on the way home just because we hadn't been here. It was a nice park with FHU and a good number of pull through sites, which ours was. The site was relatively level, a little lower in the front and about an inch off side to side. The sewer connection was more towards the middle of our trailer rather than at the back. Our sewer was somewhat downhill from the trailer connection but some other sites seemed run uphill. We walked the Two Bridges Trail which was okay but nothing special. We drove into Hillsboro to walk around the downtown square which was nice and ate at the Overflow Coffee and Cafe which was quaint and had good sandwiches.

We stopped at this park on the way home just because we hadn't been here. It was a nice park with FHU and a good number of pull through sites, which ours was. The site was relatively level, a little lower in the front and about an inch off side to side. The sewer connection was more towards the middle of our trailer rather than at the back. Our sewer was somewhat downhill from the trailer connection but some other sites seemed run uphill. We walked the Two Bridges Trail which was okay but nothing special. We drove into Hillsboro to walk around the downtown square which was nice and ate at the Overflow Coffee and Cafe which was quaint and had good sandwiches.

This was our second stay at the park. We were in Piney Shores campground backing onto the lake. This site is fairly level. I still use 2x6s to level and I had to use one to level side to side. There is a gentle slope towards the lake. You have nice views of the sunset from these water sites.
The staff was friendly. We were able to get CBS station on antennae television. ATT had 2 bars, sometimes 3. Electric, water and sewer are all towards the middle of the site so sewer was a longer stretch and slightly uphill. Great park for fishing.

This is the second time we've stayed at Lake Mineral Wells. We have family in Mineral Wells and stay at the park. If you've never been here, once you check in the drive to the campgrounds is a little intimidating. You take a sharp left turn and go down and cross below the spill way of the lake. In fact, water is spilling over the top and across the road. This is normal. Our campsite was actually on the water but it was not very level. I had to raise the passenger side of the trailer about 4" it also sloped down in the back towards the lake. I had 1 bar on ATT and we got the PBS channel over our antennae television.