Looking for a place to camp with...... - Wild Texas Forums: Parks, Travel & Recreation

10-07-2003, 02:49 PM

Hello all. I'm new to this forum and this will be my first post. Very nice place.
Anways I live just outside of Conroe (north of Houston) and I'm looking for a place to take my wife and 3 yr. old son for 2 to 3 days of camping next week. We have been to Brazos Bend State Park during the day on a few occasions and it is a great place... however, the mosquitos are very bad this time of year. I'd like to take my family camping to a good park within a 1 to 3 hour drive where we can see plenty of wildlife, mostly whitetailed deer and things to do to keep us semi busy. Do y'all have any ideas? Any advice would be great. Thanks.

Johnny

Shannon · 10-07-2003, 03:13 PM

Welcome to WildTexas.com, Johnny! Prepare for a bit of "information overload" here...

Mosquitoes are going to be a challenge everywhere, though especially present at places with a lot of surface moisture like Brazos Bend SP, as you mentioned.

Have you considered Bastrop State Park? The Texas Mileage Guide puts it at just 125.9 miles from Conroe, Texas. The park's notable for its dense pine forest -- a relict portion of forest separated from the East Texas forests. Great hiking trails, lots of shade, campsites and cabins, even a golf course! The plus is Buescher State Park is nearby, linked to Bastrop by a forested road. You could camp at Buescher if you prefer, it's less developed than Bastrop and has some great picnic areas. I'm not guaranteeing the mosquitoes haven't figured out that there are warm, juicy hikers beneath the dense pine tree canopy, mind you.

I'd avoid the area coastal parks and gorgeous Palmetto State Park near Gonzales for the same reason you're avoiding Brazos Bend -- skeeters. That said, there is something a little humbling about visiting parks where you're guranteed to donate blood to the local skeeter community... in parks like Aransas National Wildlife Refuge and Anahuac NWR, the skeeters literally attack your vehicle's windows, having learned there's LUNCH inside!

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It's a bit out of your 1-3 hour driving range, but there's also the two units (Calliham & South Shore -- Calliham's more developed) of Choke Canyon State Park. The Texas mileage guide puts it at 235.8 miles from Conroe, Texas. Heavily developed but large park with exceptional wildlife viewing (the deer there are quite tame, and it's not uncommon for traffic to stop on a park road while deer, wild turkey and javelina feed!)

10-08-2003, 12:03 PM

Wild Texas, I sure do appreciate the reply and the info. has been very helpful. One reason I want to travel somewhere close is because my 3 yr. old boy gets car sick very easily. Brazos Bend State Park is just about his limit.LOL I looked over Choke Canyon State Park and that is definately a place I would love to visit. I talked it over with my wife last night and we have decided just to stick a little closer to home and wait for it to cool off a bit and make a camping trip to BBSP. I have been going to BBSP since I was a little boy and I have yet to camp there overnight. I've been wanting to for years. We have a couple of weak cool fronts that will be coming through in the next few of days but they will not pack much of a punch so to speak. Hopefully in the next two weeks it will cool down a bit. Again, thanks a bunch for the information and I will report back after our trip.

Johnny

10-12-2003, 09:10 PM

Double Lake is a very nice place, off of 105, I grew up in Splendora and have taken my kids there. Just west of cleveland. check it out. mosquitos bad everywhere.

copuswalker · 10-28-2003, 07:31 AM

Huntsville State Park and Livingston State Park are both withing 1 hour of Conroe. Livingston has real nice Premium sites that may be booked? Huntsville is a smaller crowd and is very pretty. I imagine you are familiar with these parks?