Needed a break from the holiday festivals and relatives. The forecast for the weekend after New Year’s Day was looking promising. The temperatures were climbing back into the 70’s. Decided to head to Caddo Lake State Park before returning to the grindstone of work on Monday. Caddo Lake State Park is located just miles from the Louisiana border in the piney woods of East Texas. It is a three-hour drive from downtown Dallas. Or it should be, but it never fails there is always a wreck along the way. Friday morning started out with a dense fog bank that caused a pileup on Hwy 80 outside of Forney. Luckily I caught a traffic report and took Interstate 20 out of Dallas to by pass the stopped traffic. Traveling I-20 to East Texas, Exit 556 (Hwy 69, N of Tyler) is a good pull over for gas and stretching. Good selection of stations and fast foods. Exit 617 (Hwy 59 in Marshall) to head north to Caddo Lake. Did you leave something at home? Don’t worry, there is a Kroger in Marshall on the right side a couple of blocks before you need to turn on to FM 43 (Karnack HWY). Kroger had bundles of firewood for $2.99; 7-11 back in Dallas wanted $5.75 for a couple of sticks. Only fourteen more miles to the park’s entrance.
TPWD: Caddo Lake State Park
Since there was a 50% chance of rain on Saturday morning, I rented a screen shelter so I would have to deal with a damp tent after I got home. The shelters are your basic state park ones. Outside is a barbeque grill, fire ring, lantern pole, tent pad and a water spigot. Some state parks in the winter weatherize their screen shelters with tarps. Not Caddo Lake and nor can you. Don’t expect the walls to keep you warm in the winter. Except during the beautiful weather, I experienced. I had to sleep on top of my 15-degree sleeping bag because I was too warm. It is a bit humid in the piney woods, so the shelter’s concrete floor tends to sweat. You will want to consider that if your plans are to sleep inside.
Never even think about cooking the first night at Caddo Lake. After all that driving and unpacking, head to the Big Pines Lodge just a few miles to the east of the park. It is an East Texas institution. Be prepared for a good thirty-minute or longer wait. The catfish and jalapeño hushpuppies are worth the wait. After returning to the shelter, a campfire was built to roast banana boats. I changed the recipe a bit to sub the chocolate chips for Nutella, a hazelnut chocolate spread. UUMMMM.
Eight months ago,
TPWD found the money to fund an interpretive specialist at Caddo Lake. It was nice to have structured activities throughout the weekend. Friday evening it was an Owl Prowl. Charles Hubbard gave a Power Point presentation at the amphitheater. Then everyone walked to the parking lot of the boat launch to see if an owl could be called up by playing an mp3 player. No owls flew in to investigate but we could hear one respond in the distance. No problem. Just go to Plan B. There were bats flying in front of the flood light eating insects so Ranger Chuck (as he has been called) just started to lecture on these flying creatures. The next morning there was a 1.5 hour nature tour hike. Mr. Hubbard covered the wildlife and fauna of Caddo Lake State Park. The history of the Civilian Conservation Corps was also told as the tour inspected the rustic pavilion nestled in the woods. Saturday afternoon saw a fishing clinic held down by the boat ramp. The clinic is catered more to the younger anglers or city dwellers. I went down there to try my luck since I did not bring my own fishing gear, but I ended up helping Charles; replacing broken tackle or doing the squeamish job of hooking worms for the kids. No one had any luck but everyone had a good time since it was another beautiful day. There was a two-hour bird watching hike on Sunday morning. It was very informative for a novice like me. Experienced birders might not learn anything new, but any call for a walk in the woods is a good reason to go. Kudos go out to
TPWD for hiring Charles Hubbard. He did a marvelous job. Every state park should have staff in this capacity. Some families need help in knowing how to enjoy the great outdoors. None of these activities were listed on the park’s web calendar. If you are planning a trip, call the park in advance to see what it has to offer. Caddo Lake’s visitor center has some of the nicest interpretive exhibits that I have seen in a state park.
Since it was off-season, the concession at the fishing pier was closed. I was surprised that I was going to still be able to canoe on early Sunday. It was on the honor system, just deposit your money in the drop box. 1 hour - $10, 4 hours (half day) - $22.50, 8 hours (full day) - $30, Overnight (in park) - $75. Everyone in a canoe must have a life jacket. 13 years and under must wear it. There were also $2 bags of ice on the honor system. Supposedly firewood was available the same way. Did not see any. Better off not risking it and instead purchase the wood before arriving to the park. My canoe trip was very peaceful and serene drifting between the bald cypress trees with a thin bank of fog covering Big Cypress Bayou. The weather was still perfect. That all ended as I returned in time for the Sunday morning bird hike. That cold front finally arrived. I had gotten use to wearing shorts, sandals and a t-shirt. However, once I got back to the shelter and changed into more proper clothing, it was not that bad.
For those techno geeks like me, there was a very nice multi geo cache within the park. Plus some single caches around the area.
Other menu items: Saturday morn – migas all the way! and good pot of joe, Noon – Caribbean Pineapple Curry with a couple of glasses of vino. How can one go camping with roasting Hebrew Nation hotdogs? One of life’s little mystery; how a roasted dog, toasted bun, mustard, onions, relish and cheddar cheese can taste so dang good. Tried out my GSI Vortex hand cranked blender (a steal at a REI garage sale for $15, someone had bought it for $75 and it proved too heavy to backpack.) Cranked pretty good. Ice not as fine as I would have liked for my margaritas. Will bring Sonic ice next time. Roasted Fuji apple stuffed with Hot Tamale Candies. Sunday morn – boring oatmeal and bananas. Glad I held off for the last meal. After the cold front came through mid morn, nothing warmed the inside like homemade chili with Fritos, onions and cheddar cheese. Yum.
Caddo Lake State Park has nine CCC built log cabins (renovated in 2002), 20 campsites with water, 18 with water/electricity, 8 pull-throughs with water/electricity/sewer and 8 screen shelters. Ranger Chuck said future plans include turning some of the screen shelters into mini cabins similar to the ones in Inks Lake State Park. Nothing fancy, picnic table, fire ring and grill outdoors, no bathroom inside, just bunk beds and best of all - climate control. WooHoo!
Here are the downsides. I had never camped at the park during winter. Was there ever road noise from FM 43! Maybe this time it was just because of the bare trees. At no time would I suggest someone to camp in a tent in the Armadillo Run Campsite. It abuts up against FM 43. Don’t let me forget to mention the freight train that has to blow its horn at four crossings somewhere in the vicinity. The shower/restroom is smaller than it should be so it gets dirty quick. The park hosts tended to it dutifully throughout the day but it just needs a thorough power washing. The showers had severe soap scum build up. Several tiles were missing in the stalls. But hey, no place is perfect unless you are camping out at the Ritz-Carton.
Make plans to add Caddo Lake State Park in your travels. It is well worth the drive.
and its closer than Ink's.
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