Great campground on beautiful Degray Lake near Arkadelphia. 30 & 50 amp sites with electricity and water. Nice clean bath houses.
This site is up quite a bit higher than the river. If you see the main entrance sign it says day use only. We stayed the night and it was amazing. It was the last night of our 3 day paddle of the ouachita river. Great bathrooms. Nice camping sites.
Now a day use only site. The bathroom made it clear that late night partying happens here. We camped because we had just done 14 miles on the river and were exhausted. No one bothered us. Camp ozark is near by and was very loud, as was the bridge next to the camp.
We stopped at this site after several miles in the ouachita river. The nps map still has it listed as a campground, but there was a sign at the main entrance stating day use only. We camped anyways because we felt comfortable there was no flood risk, which is why it was closed. The view was nice, restrooms were nice, and there were even trashcans.
I was pleasantly suprised with our stay at crater of diamonds. We only stayed the weekend but definitely would have been happy with a longer stay. The first day we got there it was pretty late so the kids played at the park beside our campsite whilenwe setup. The bath house was also beside our site as well as a laundromat. The bathrooms and showers were very clean. The next day we went to the diamond mines and dug for diamonds, this was so much fun! We found some small quartz that were very pretty, then we ate at the kimberlite cafe which is right beside the mines. Then to cool off, we spent the rest of the day at the water park which was perfect for my young children. There were slides and waterfalls and the water only goes to 3 ft at the deepest points.
Stopped in while traveling with no reservation on my bike. The campground was full but they did find me a spot for tent camping for the night. The staff went out of their way to assist me with getting a spot, helping me with onsite facilities, and they even made phone calls to assist me with local road closings for my next days route. Very clean bathrooms and shower facilities. The laundry facility was nice and well kept. The park is set up more for RV use but once again they were very accommodating. Although I didn’t use the pool it did look nice a several kids made use of it while I was there. The only downside and only if you’re tent camping there is traffic noise due to being close to the interstate, however it is also convenient if just passing through.
We had a great staybat daisy state park, we swam right at out campsite. The only downfall was that the sites are rather close together and aside from the driveway there was no level spot in the site. We had to set up on the driveway because we are tent campers but it worked out ok. However they did have a very nice playground so that was a plus. The hiking trail was a nice short walk through the woods. My two year old was able to walk the whole trail without assistance.
The facilities here are top notch. There are lots of shady camping spots and several nice public restrooms. The paved walking trail down to the river was a nice surprise. Everything inside the parks is an additional cost so you have to pay to swim or dig for diamonds. Not a big deal, but we were expecting to be able to use the pool and it was a big factor for staying inside the state park. Pool admission is $10 a person which seems a little high.
The times I have been there hasn’t been very many other campers in the area. I went with my in-laws, about 20 of us all together, and we pretty much had the whole place to ourselves. There’s not a ton to do there. There is a good size lake for fishing and a short trail for day hiking. Other than that, it’s just sitting around the campfire. Nothing wrong with that, I kinda prefer it that way. Just don’t expect much activity to do other than being a good ole camper. Hope this helps.
A lot of RV and tent site camping sites. Nice scenery and the park host was very helpful. We stayed in area C (A, B, C are the different areas) on a super busy weekend and weren't to cramped. Spacious tent sites just off a creek with fire rings, picnic tables, and good proximity to clean toilet/shower facilities. Would visit again.
Gulpha Gorge is beautiful. It’s close to downtown and close to Magic Springs. The one downfall is they are FCFS only.
This weekend we camped at DeGray Lake Resort State Park in Bismarck, Arkansas. We had a blast! DeGray Lake has a lot to offer for groups large and small wanting to get away. It has several camping spaces with water and electric hook ups (about $22/night), yurts (about $55/night), a lodge (about $100/night), a marina to rent boats or buy bait, several daily activities for children or adults of all ages (some free and some about $5-15/person), horse riding stables (no experience required, about $30/ride 1 hour trail), a full golf course, playgrounds, pavilions, overall clean facilities, and a restaurant. Although our bank fishing experience wasn’t so great, I’m sure with a boat it would have been better. And for those that want to make the camping trip into the ultimate family vacation, this park is about a 30 minute drive from Hot Springs, AR where there is tons to do like restaurants, mini golf, shopping, and we even decided to get ice cream at Scoops (24 homemade flavors and delicious)! We will definitely be back for a visit!!
Stayed at this campsite after a long day on the Lake Ouachita Vista Trail. Wouldn't recommend Site #2 but I did arrive at camp around 6PM on a Friday and was able to get the site so that was a plus. Took a brief walk around the camp and it has some nice amenities including showers and a beach if you want to go swimming.
Absolutely one of the very best campgrounds we've ever stayed. Beautiful Hot Springs nearby
We had a great time camping at lake oauchita state park. The water water wad beautiful and clear, the bath house was clean and the campgrounds were well maintained. We've already reserved a site for this summer.
We had a great time at Degray, it wad our first family camping trip. The park was nice including the swimming area. The only downfall was that the site we stayed at (unfortunately I don't remember the number) was close to a busy highway. We would definitely go back but not stay in the same spot.
Stayed on #30. Located right across from the swim beach. While it rained several days, the site did have a paved pad, electricity and water. Normal cost is $22 a night but with National Parks Senior Pass the cost was only $11 per night! What a deal! Only negative was grass needed mowing!
Nice state park. Campsites are large and private. Bathhouse nice and clean. There is a water play area but we enjoyed searching for diamonds. They have a 40 acre area that is plowed every so often. Also they have water troughs for sifting for diamonds. They rent sifting boxes and other tools or you can bring your own.
My family and I love this little home away from home, once you find it you are great.
Shady areas, sandy beaches make you feel like your in paradise 💕💕
Only con I can think of is it is extremely busy, every time we go they are always so booked out and always a ton of people but other then that it’s great
This was our first trip here - brought our 23 Ft camper and stayed in Loop C. The well-Manicured and large sites under the tall trees and pines were Top-Notch! Many sites were on an incline, so there was a lot of terracing w great use of railroad timbers and crushed rock. Most sites were FULL HookUps. All had crushed rock pad for tent. Loop A which was NOT waterfront was heavily tree’d and huge sites as well. Restrooms were always clean and well stocked w TP and hand soap.
Kayak rental was cheap (and didn’t charge extra for staying out longer!)
We were BLOWN AWAY and can’t wait to make the long drive from Austin Tx again :-)
The Long Creek Primitive Campsite is located in the Ouachita National Forest along the Little Missouri Trail on the eastern section of the Eagle Rock Loop. The only way to access this site is by entering at a trailhead and hiking in to the site. The nearest trailhead is at Albert Pike Recreation Area. This is a primitive dispersed campsite, but the ground has been cleared. The site is located alongside a creek.
On your hike into this site you will be rewarded with beautiful scenery as you walk through majestic forests of oak. You'll also see a variety of plants and forest creatures. The campsite is along Long Creek so you will have access to water. Perhaps 100 feet up river from our campsite I found a nice fishing hole and caught and released 7 trout and 1 sunfish within about 1 hour.
There is adequate clear space to set up a tent or numerous trees to string up a hammock. There are no facilities nearby. You can collect and filter water from the river and dig a hole to poop in the woods. Please practice Leave No Trace in this area.
Trekking poles are recommended to aid in tackling the various inclines and declines of the trail.
If you need any supplies before entering the Ouachita National Forest stop off in the town of De Queen where there are various grocery stores, restaurants and gas stations.
During the spring and summer the insects can be intense. I advise treating clothing and gear with permethrin to prevent ticks and pacaridin for other insects.
This is a really nice campground!! The charge about $20 for tent camping, which is what I did. They have a pool and very clean bathhouse and laundry facility! Owners are super nice people that seem willing to work with us on anything. Even offered us popsicles after biking here! Not much around for shopping but there is Caddo Valley about 1.2 miles away that has fast food and gas stations. A little bit of road noise from interstate but that’s my only complaint!
Park Review
The Straight Creek Primitive Campsite is located in the Ouachita National Forest along the Athens Big Fork trail on the western section of the Eagle Rock Loop. The only way to access this site is by entering at a trailhead and hiking in to the site. This is a primitive dispersed campsite, but the ground has been cleared. The site is located in a valley between two mountains and is located alongside a creek.
On your hike into this site you will be rewarded with beautiful scenery as you walk through majestic forests of oak, pine and maple. You'll also see a variety of flowers and plants. The campsite is near Straight Creek so you will have access to water.
There is adequate clear space to set up a tent or numerous trees to string up a hammock. There are no facilities nearby. You can collect and filter water from the river and dig a hole to poop in the woods. Please practice Leave No Trace in this area.
Trekking poles are recommended to aid in tackling the various inclines and declines of the trail.
If you need any supplies before entering the Ouachita National Forest stop off in the town of De Queen where there are various grocery stores, restaurants and gas stations.
During the spring and summer the insects can be intense. I advise treating clothing and gear with permethrin to prevent ticks and pacaridin for other insects.
Product Review
As a Ranger for The Dyrt, from time to time I receive products to test. For this trip I was provided some electrolyte drink mix by Liquid IV.
I ordered the product directly from the company website https://liquid-iv.com. The product was delivered quickly and ahead of schedule. I ordered the variety pack which included three flavors - Lemon Lime, Acai Berry and Passion Fruit. There were 8 packets of each flavor. It is recommended that each packet be added to 16 ozs. or 0.5 liter of water. At first I found it a little difficult to open the packets cleanly. I then realized that I needed to completely tear the top of the packet across the top to expose the opening. After opening the packet, pour the powder into the water, then mix or shake the solution vigorously. The solution dissolved and mixed easily.
Liquid IV claims that their solution has 3x the electrolytes of traditional sport drinks. It is non-gmo, vegan, gluten free, dairy free, soy free and made in the USA.
I first tried the passion fruit flavor because I thought that it was the most unique. The flavor was rather light. I then tried the lemon lime flavor and found it to be stronger. The acai berry was somewhere in the middle. The flavors of Liquid IV are not as sweet as other mixes like Gatorade or PowerAid - which is a good thing. I've stopped drinking traditional sport drinks because of their high sugar content in overly sweet flavor. The Liquid IV solution was about right for me.
Things that I liked:
1. Variety of flavors
2. Flavor was not overly sweet
3. Instructions were clear
Things that could be improved:
1. Packaging could be simplified for easier opening
2. Packaging could be minimized
Park Review
The Viles Branch Creek Primitive Campsite is located in the Ouachita National Forest along the Athens Big Fork trail on the southern section of the Eagle Rock Loop. The only way to access this site is by entering at a trailhead and hiking in to the site. This is a primitive dispersed campsite, but the ground has been cleared and there are visible campfire locations. There is adequate clear space to set up a tent or numerous trees to string up a hammock. There are no facilities nearby. You can collect and filter water from the river and dig a hole to poop in the woods. Please practice Leave No Trace in this area.
On your hike into this site you will be rewarded with beautiful scenery as you walk through majestic forests of oak, pine, maple and pecan trees. You will hike along the Viles Branch Creek and need to cross the creek various times. It is possible to fish in the creek, but we only caught small sunfish. In the nearby Little Missouri River there are larger fish. You'll hear birds singing all day long. We did have critters visit us in the evening so be prepared to hang your food in a tree or carry a protective canister.
Bring hiking shoes and water shoes for the various river crossings. Trekking poles are also recommended to aid in the river crossings and for tackling the various inclines and declines of the trail.
If you need any supplies before entering the Ouachita National Forest stop off in the town of De Queen where there are various grocery stores, restaurants and gas stations.
During the spring and summer the insects can be intense. I advise treating clothing and gear beforehand with permethrin to prevent ticks and use pacaridin on the spot for other insects.
Product Review
As a Ranger for The Dyrt, from time to time I get products to test. For this trip I was provided some Morsel Long Handle Sporks.
Fork it, Spoon it, Scrape it… is what you can do with Morsel Long Handle Sporks.
Like many camping sporks the Morsel product has a fork end and a spoon end. The fork end also has a slightly serrated edge to slice pieces of your meal. The spoon end also has a uniquely shaped rubber edge that can be used as a spatula. The sporks come in regular and long handle forms. I chose the long handle sporks to make it easier to eat out of our backpacking food bags. The long handle allow one to access your food while keeping your hand and fingers clean. The long handle makes eating your meal a more enjoyable experience.
The sporks also come in a variety of colors. This is handy when you are camping with a group so that each person can choose and remember which spork belongs to them.
One of the truly unique features of the spork is the spoon/spatula end. The end of the spoon is shaped like a spatula and has a soft rubber or silicon edge. This edge makes it easy to scrape morsels of food from the corners of your pot, bag or plate. This ensures that you eat every last piece of food, but it also makes clean up of your pot, bag or plate easier.
I packed the sporks in my food bag inside my backpack for the entire trip. I was a little concerned that the sporks might break, but they held up well. Overall, I was very satisfied using the Morsel Sporks.
Things that I liked most about the Morsel Sporks:
1. Long handle
2. Spatula/Spoon edge
3. Variety of colors
The Albert Pike Recreation Area is now for Day Use Only. As a result of flooding and potential flooding the former campground is now a day use area with parking spaces, picnic tables, water faucets and restrooms with toilets, sinks and showers.
The main attraction of this area is the easy access to the Little Missouri River and the hiking trails along the Eagle Rock Loop. The river and the hiking trails are beautiful. If you need supplies, the town of De Queen has a number of stores, restaurants, gas stations and services available. The small town of Langley has a convenience store/gas station.
Depending on the time of year the mosquitos and black flies can be pervasive. The facilities are showing their age and some wear. On the weekend this area gets a high number of visitors, so it is best to arrive early in the day.
I love love this whole area, so sad you can't camp here any more. Tons of great spots nearby though, along the creeks. Alberta pike is overgrown but still beautiful, and quiet!
Enjoy every second. Amazing mountain views to see. And just gorgeous place to visit