Best Tent Camping near Mansfield, AR

Stayed here on June 11, 2024. Small 5-site primitive campground. No water. No electric. Clean vault toilets with tp, and a trash barrel. Clean campground & campsites. Sites are small with reasonable separation, but no privacy. Sites have clean picnic tables, fire ring/grill. Some have lantern plies. Gravel drive. Sites nearly level. No tent pads, but tents can be set up. Sites may be able to accommodate a truck camper & smaller. Lots of highway noise from nearby Hwy 27, but not too bad overnight. There was logging activity elsewhere in the national forest, so log haulers were driving by during the day. Campground is located at eastbound turnoff onto Forest Road 83W - a well maintained gravel road. Pine & oak trees in the campground. Probably a beautiful view of distant mountains during the winter. This campground is good for an overnight stay when exploring the national forest or passing by on Highway 27. There is no recreation in this recreation area; no water access, no hiking trails. Good T-Mobile cell service. Despite some of the road noise from nearby Highway 27, I really liked this campground.

Amazing State Park with something for everyone

I have been to Devil's Den State Park twice now and this is my favorite state park in Arkansas. Devil's Den State park has something for every camper, no matter how you prefer to camp. Tent camping, hike in camping, RVs, cabins, they have it all. Want to bring your horse, you can do that as well. Devil's Den has some great hiking and mountain biking trails, from short to long. If you only do one trail be sure that is the Devil's Den Trail, you won't be disappointed on this 1.5 mile trail. If you want a longer trail there is the 15 mile Butterfield Hiking Trail. Devil's Den campground includes 135 campsites ranging from basic tent sites to full hookups for the RV crowed and horse sites. Campground are all paved with paved parking pads. Individual sites have tent pads, picnic tables, fire rings and a first for me, hooks for hanging your lantern. Flush toilets and showers are included. If you like to swim they even have a pool. Park has a store to provide your food needs. Sites all appeared to be well spaced. If you want complete privacy the word is get one of the walk in sites, you will have a bit of a walk but the reward is complete solitude. Lee Creek runs through the park and a 8-acre lake which allows fishing and boating with canoes and pedal boats. You need to reserve your site before hand or at the visitor center. One thing I do like is if you arrive to late to register at the visitor center, then you can just grab an empty site for the night, you just have to register the next day by 10am.

Ranger Review of Banner& Oaks Bull Tan Hat

Got the Bull Tan hat and have been wearing it for about a month now. Hat fits great, looks great. This is a very well made hat with quality materials and made in the U.S.A. It has held up amazing well in all weather conditions, sun, heat, rain and even snow and continues to hold its shape. I have a lot of hats and this one is one of my favorites.

We camped at Billy Creek in March 2019.  We were the only ones there which made it fabulous!  We set up camp right above the river and got to hear the river going over the rocks the whole time.  There was a easy and short little trail down to the river and lots of large rocks to hang out on.  The campsite has tons of big trees.  Each site has a fire ring, picnic table and grill.  Water is available, but not at each spot.  No electricity, no flushing potties, no showers, no sewer hookups, no wifi.  There are latrine bathrooms (2) in a small building near the entrance. There is an abundance of hiking trails, 4 wheeler/motorcycle trails and many trails that a full size SUV can do.  Lots of forest service roads to explore.  We stayed 3 nights and only saw people one day that came in to meet up and ride 4 wheelers.  We will definitely go back!

Camped here mid-week on May 28, 2024, just after Memorial Day weedend. The Spring Lake Receation Area is open from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend. The recreation area is gated between 10pm and 6am. It has a day use area, and a campground which is a long walk or short drive away from the day use area. The day use area has picnic tables, grills, beach and a central restroom/shower facility. Day use fee is $4. The small campgound is situated in the woods along Spring Lake across from the day use area. Camping fee is $15 ($7.50 for federal pass holders). Sounds from folks enjoying the day use area can be heard in the campground during the day, but it's very quiet during the night when the day use is closed. The campground has 13 sites. All of the sites can accomodate tent camping. Each site is unpaved and has a level tent pad, table, metal fire ring and lantern pole. Most of the sites are small with little privacy between sites. The sites are in the woods and have a view of the lake, with some actually on the lake shore. Our site, #8, has a short walking path to the shoreline - good for bank fishing. The campground has two single unit vault toilets which were reasonably clean. For showers and flush toilets, campers will have to use the central restroom/shower facilites in the day use area. The campgound has two water spigots, and trash reeceptacles. There is also a playground with swings and a group pavilion in the campground. There are no hookups at the campsites. I don't recommend this campground for RV camping; Cove Lake Recreation Area is a better choice. Because of the campsite sizes, levelness and ability to access, I believe sites 1, 5, 7 and 8 can accomodate van, RTT or SUV camping, and possibly small towables such as a pop-up or tear drop campers. In my opinion, all of the other sites are too small with tight access and not level enough for anything other than tent camping. Our site, #8, had a level pad which accomodated our camper van, plus a smaller seperate tent pad. The camp host was very friendly and provided good information. There is an iron ranger with payment envelopes at the campground entrance; cash and checks are accepted. There was no AT&T and T-Mobile reception, although cell reception may be possible at other locations around the lake. I came across three possible disperse camping spots around the lake (see separate listings). Overall, this is a beautiful campground. It was quiet and peaceful during the night. I would stay here again, especially in the Fall.

I stayed at this campground shelter while hiking the Ouachita Trail.

The campground and shelter were built by the Friends of the Ouachita Trail and is located at mile market 16.8 of the trail. While the campground is only a few hundred feet from the Talimena National Scenic Byway it is best reached by hiking the Ouachita Trail.

The shelter is an open air wooden structure with a raised platform, three walls, roof, open air patio, shelf, wall pegs, fire pit and picnic table. Most campers might pop up their tent or just cowboy camp on the raised platform. Our group hung hammocks from the rafters. There were wall pegs that were convenient for hanging and drying our gear or to keep it away from any little critters (mice) that might visit in the night. There are not many amenities at this campground, but it is a nice resting stop and provides some protection from the elements during inclement weather.

The shelter is located on a gradual sloping rocky hill and has a dramatic overview of the valley when the weather is clear and the foliage is not heavy. There are no waste facilities nearby so it is good to practice Leave No Trace and pack out whatever you pack in. We found and collected water earlier in the day and carried it into camp.

Camped in site #10 in mid-November 2024. Site 10 is non-electric; paid $7.50/night with senior pass. Overall clean campground, well maintained and managed, in pretty hardwood forest. Not busy during my stay. Sites have picnic tables, tent pads and clean metal fire rings. Site 10 was level. The campground includes a clean restroom/shower house, one clean vault toilet at the far end of the campground, trash dumpsters and drinking water; all of these facilities and services were available during my stay in November. Campground can accommodate tents, camper vans, car camping and RVs. Some sites are electric. There are no water and sewer hookups. Campground road is paved as well as Highway 215 from I-40 accessing the campground. Sites are mostly shaded, but there is no privacy between sites. Shores Lake trailhead is located in a parking area in the campground. Day use area nearby with good fishing in Shores Lake. Campground hosts Donna and Eddie were wonderful. I really liked this campground.

We stayed at RV site #3 on Quarry Island. The concrete pad was perfectly level and took no time to set up. There were 5 RV sites with full hook ups on isle, even though #4 and # 5 are so close to each other that slide outs could bump into each other, and 2 very nice RV sites with only water and electric on the isle. There was also a lot of tent camping, flush and vault toilets, dump station, pavilion, 5 cabins, picnic tables with grills, boat ramp and swimming anywhere you wanted except for 150’ of the boat ramp. The ranger station was on the isle, so traffic was high at check in. There were 2 hiking trails that looked very nice, but never hiked because we were kayaking. My parents stayed in cabin #4 on the isle and my brother tent camped at Wister Ridge. The view from both of their places was breathtaking and his tent site was well shaded with maple, oak and pine. Fishing was very good and wasn’t a whole lot of boat traffic. There is also primitive camping which looked very nice, except for a couple of sites where the campers didn’t clean up too well behind themselves.

Pros: Beautiful area and amazing views. Everyone was very helpful and friendly. Plenty of options for accommodations and outdoor activities. The Heavner Ruinstone and Spiral Mounds are close. Tons of wildlife areas and we even spotted a bald eagle. The campgrounds and cabins were very clean.

Cons: RV sites can be very crowded and not well spaced, especially at Victor Landing. The Wards would be the least crowded for RVs. The booking website is not very good and not very accurate. The cabins bed was not very comfortable, the shower was small and flooded the bathroom while using and the kitchen light and living room ceiling fan was on one switch, so there was no way to have the fan going without the light on. Not all RV sites have picnic tables.

This campground is one of my all time favorites!! It has everything you want in a campground and more. Hiking here is definitely the best, because the views are amazing!! The campground is always really well kept as well which I appreciate. The campsite spots themselves are pretty big in size and are separated by trees and bushes. Feels very private. They do have a quiet hour which is after 10pm. This is nice because there aren’t people partying all night long. There are tent spots and also RV. We camped, so I’m not sure if th RV spots are set up for electricity. The lake nearby is great. We brought our kayaks and had so much fun hitting the lake in the morning. It does get busy as the day goes on, especially in the summer on the weekends. Hiking is great, and there are multiple good spots nearby. Again, go early to beat the crowds! Dogs are welcome but must be on leash. Vaulted toilets on site and a place to fill up your water! Can’t wait to come back.

Driving through this part of Arkansas you can quickly get taken aback by the winding roads the ample beauty, but until you visit the campground and park you will only have a portion of the beauty of the region. High atop the mountain, with a near perfect view, you can see for miles and miles. 

I visited this park arriving late in the evening, in perfect timing for a sunset which painted the sky with colors that filtered down onto the mountainside below. A dense fog began to roll in and it seemed magical. 

Typically I am not as taken aback as I was by this park but its views and shaded campsites complimented each other so well it made for the perfect evening. 

Not needing for electricity I opted for one of the tent sites, which includes a large tent pad, large parking space and standard amenities such as picnic table, lantern hook, fire ring and grill. However unlike many primitive sites, this site did also include water. Site pricing was about $20. 

Bear warnings abound, but there are no bear boxes, and upon checking in the desk attendant mentioned that they don’t often see them but to proceed with caution in regards to food. She also noted that in her lifetime she had never encountered a bear on the trails and would instead be aware of snakes. 

The campground is only one of the many features with others including a lodge with a restaurant open each evening until 9 p.m. A narrow gauge train, large enough for the entire family to ride on the 2 mile track and mini golf are available seasonally. Plenty of hiking is available both in park, where there are 3 trails, and just outside where you can find the much larger trail system which runs for some 200 miles through Oklahoma and Arkansas. 

Cell Signal With AT&T- 1 Bar at campsites but 2 bars in lobby area if you are in need of making a call in case of an emergency. 

All in all I would put this campground on the top of my Arkansas list for the beauty of drive and sunset location, however the sites themselves despite being very nice were average for a state park in the region.