Looking for Ideas: Texas

[RBotr01]

We were stationed in Kingsville, TX for three years, back in the Cold War. We found the nearby King Ranch, South Padre Island and Aransas Wildlife Refuge good sites to visit.



Joe Cotten's BBQ is great chow.



We would truck/tent camp at Canyon Lake in San Antonio. As previous poster said, San Antonio is good for at least a couple of days.


Also, in the Kingsville/Corpus Christi area is the USS Lexington museum ship. It is a fun tour, then lunch or dinner on South Padre Island Drive.



This year's winter trip itinerary in our Sunseeker included a stop at Alpine. The Lost Alaskan Campground is 4 stars. Nice folks. It was a great day trip in the TOAD to Big Bend. Saw numerous road runners; but no ACME

products. Seriously, we could have spent another day in Big Bend.


Enjoy Texas!

[Rkloud9]

Texas State Parks are fantastic! Most have really large RV sites with Electric and Water, and they are adding sewer connections in many parks. Be sure to get the Texas yearly pass... for $75 (in 2019) it covers those pesky vehicle day use fees, and you get 50% off on your second night on 4 Park visits. With all the hurricane action this year, it is best to check ahead for any of the parks along the gulf... some were still out of action last year from Harvey 3 years ago. Honestly, we have not been disappointed at any of the 20 or so State Parks where we have stayed (there are over 100!). One of our favs is Goliad SP, with a restored mission and a neat bike trail that takes you into the historic town and Presidio Bahia, site of an even larger massacre than the Alamo... this is sacred ground to Texans, with a nice museum. Dinosaur State Park in the hill country is pretty cool, with nice hikes and dinosaur tracks in the riverbed. You said you wanted to stay out of cities, but McKinney SP is right on the edge of Austin (definitely need reservations there)! Austin is full of neat things to see. And, if you head over to Fredericksburg, don’t miss the LBJ ranch, a National Monument, a beautiful place steeped in history! Then there is San Antonio and the river walk (nice KOA there, pretty close to the action. I could go on and on... we have relatives there, so we have been down there the last four years. As everyone has said, Texas is huge... I-10 is over 900 miles from East to West. Going to West Texas and Big Bend is a whole other trip. Focus on East or West for a 2 week trip, unless you really like driving 300 - 400 mile days and a lot of one night stops. Stay off the interstate, as Texas roads are pretty good, and there are a lot of neat little towns. The state has restored many of the county courthouses, and usually around the town square are some nice restaurants, bakeries, and shops. Hopefully some of that stuff will be open when you go.

Hope this helps!

[TX First Timer]

Brand new at RVing but check out New Braunfels and up and down River Road connecting New Braunfels to Canyon Lake. Lots of RV campsites and the Guadalupe river to fish in. Won't see near as many toobers and kayakers in winter months so fishing is little better with less people on the river.

[tps28ss]

Many nice suggestions in the thread. If you want to try serious boondocking take a peek at the website for Big Bend Ranch State Park. Amazing place, vast and beautiful and primitive. This is a Texas state park. For Big Bend National Park suggest you check the rv size, campground and road limits. Some rigs may not be manageable on several of the very narrow, twisty park roads. The NPS website gives clear details.

[EdJunior]

Originally Posted by JanFMiller

Right across from Garner is Parkview Riverside RV Park, I've stayed there from Feb through April the last 5 years, and will this year as well. Nice place, clean, great restrooms and showers, friendly staff. I love The Hill Country!!!

This is where we stayed for our very first trip in our first RV, way back on 2005. It was awesome, though the Frio River was still pretty cold. But it was awesome, and got us thoroughly hooked on camping/RVing.

[oldjim]

Ain't nothing to see, and even less to do in Texas! Keep moving down the road. Just kidding, we Texans love our state. Lot's of good suggestions on this thread. Hope you have a great trip.

[EdJunior]

Originally Posted by oldjim

Ain't nothing to see, and even less to do in Texas! Keep moving down the road. Just kidding, we Texans love our state. Lot's of good suggestions on this thread. Hope you have a great trip.

Whoa...you was fixin' to get my dander up there oldjim! Good thing you redeemed yerself in the next sentence. <gigglesnort>

[Mr. Dan]

Originally Posted by oldjim

Ain't nothing to see, and even less to do in Texas! Keep moving down the road. Just kidding, we Texans love our state. Lot's of good suggestions on this thread. Hope you have a great trip.

I’ve been known to post “Don’t come. Texas is full!”

[DavidBo]

Originally Posted by EdJunior

It was awesome, though the Frio River was still pretty cold.

I imagine it would be! [emoji16]

[Tundra 2014]

I would recommend Port Aransas county park I. B. Magee RV Park. The price is very reasonable, sites are long and level, very good location. From this park you are about 300 yards from the beach and 500 yards to the fishing pier. There are many very good restaurants 1/2 mile away. There are also several deep sea fishing boats that go out from this area less the mile away from the RV park. We have rented kayaks and paddled the Lighthouse Paddling Trail, about $60 w/ guide.
I also recommend Bob Sandlin State Park. Very nice and close to several other areas like Lake Caddo, Go Devil boat ride at Johnson Station and about 40 minutes from Jefferson w/ the old style drug store w/ great root beer floats and old style candy and treats. Jefferson has a lot of small shops, it was where the timber and building materials where brought in for building in the 1800's. A lot of history and a great haunted tour. Be sure to hit some of the good beef BBQ spots in central TX.

[DrBear]

Fishing in Texas State Parks does not require a fishing license which is costly for non residents.

[cantxsailor]

Is very nice in the colder months. No flies which can be very bad in the summer. The bison wander freely so you do have to watch for them. Mostly they ignore you. The hiking is very nice down through the canyons. Good trails and well marked. Lots of wildlife besides the bison.

[popshumphrey]

Since you are going padre area make sure you go to Bahia state park and even palmetto state park. Both are north of the coast. We travel about 15k a year and I find the Texas state parks the best. Reservations are a good idea as others have posted. All can be done on line

[shovelrider]

Seminole Canyon and Davis Mountains State Parks in west Texas are wonderful places for hiking and ancient historical sites. Very remote.

[joegib1980]

Dinosaur Valley State Park in Glen Rose is nice. Also, if you like to fish, Sam Rayburn has 3 or 4 Corps of Engineer Parks that are beautiful. Twin Dikes, Mill Creek, and San Augustine.

[Joe B]

45 miles south of Dalllas hwy 45 Army Core of Engineers parks check on line

[flosmith]

Originally Posted by DrBear

Fishing in Texas State Parks does not require a fishing license which is costly for non residents.

This is exactly what I was going to post. Definitely plan for fishing in Texas STATE Parks, not COE areas.

The State Parks Pass is $75-$80 IIRC, and is good for a year. It might seem like you wouldn’t want to buy an annual pass for 2-3 weeks’ visit, but it would be wise to do the math. The State Parks Pass allows you entry without paying the daily rate (applicable to every person, per day, in addition to camp fees), PLUS saves 50% off 2nd nite camp fees.
So let’s say there are 4 people in your vehicle, and you make reservations for 2 nights. If daily fees are $5, and camp fees are $28, you’d pay $96 for a 2-nite stay WITHOUT the Pass.
WITH the pass, you’d pay $42 for the same number of people and same number of nights. If you plan to stay in Texas State Parks, it *might* be worth the initial investment.

Oh. And yes, 2020 has been a very active hurricane season, but Texas has not had damage, except some flooding near Corpus Christi fairly early in the season, and not at any of the State Parks. Louisiana has not been nearly so lucky: 2 major storms within 6 weeks.

Welcome to Texas!

[EdJunior]

Originally Posted by DrBear

Fishing in Texas State Parks does not require a fishing license which is costly for non residents.

You have to be careful with this. The lake has to be entirely within the bounds of the park in order for this to true. Rivers typically don't count as they usually flow through the park. It is best to check with the specific park.

[Idcruiserman]

LBJ ranch and state park, Kerrville Schreiner park, WW2 pacific theater museum, Austin capitol, Alamo, Toyota plant tour in San Antonio (KY one is better), San Antonio missions, Dallas pioneer plaza among many other places.

The missions were probably my favorite.

[Paumacamper]

We are camping at a COE park on Lake Waco called Airport Park. It is beautiful! It’s out of town but close enough for supplies. However, as it’s name implies, it’s by the airport, not a lot of traffic though. Spaces are far enough away from each other and there is 30 and 59 amp hookups. I highly recommend the YouTube channel RVTexasYall for very nice videos about Texas State Parks and RV parks.