Best Tent Camping near Waldron, AR

We took our first trip there Oct 4 & 5 2020 and really enjoyed it. The drive to the park is wonderful with great spots to take in the views as you drive to the top. We even spotted a bald eagle at one stop.  

The Lodge is very modern and the welcoming staff were very polite and helpful. We asked if a 15amp site for tent camping was available but they had to move us after determining that they didn't give us a site with a pad. There aren't many tent sites at all, especially with electric/water and only 5 primitive and 1 walk-in. 

Due to COVID many activities weren't available but we did enjoy one trail. The restaurant wasn't that great but it served the purpose for one of our meals. I would still go back and recommend to friends or family.

So I was super excited about this campground when I read about it online. It seemed perfect! The drive into the campground is very curvy and has lots of blind spots. When we arrived, there was no one on duty, so we just filled out a card and proceeded into the campground, following the map posted on the official website. That's where we ran into our first issue. The map was all wrong. We spent nearly an hour trying to find our spot. Finally, we asked the volunteer on duty. He showed us an updated map and we found out that our campsite wasn't even where we had picked it based off the old map. The tent sites are walk in only. They have electric but the closest water spigot is at the parking lot. The scenery is nice but the boats are loud, as to be expected of a lakeside campground. The bathrooms aren't very well maintained, the showers are gross, and the park goers tend to be obnoxious, revving their engines and hooping and hollering. We actually ended our trip the next day. Overall not a bad site IF you're here in a camper. Not suggested for tent camping.

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.

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.

Great state park. Checked out Arkansas high point of course. Hike some trails, enjoyed the views and rock formations. Tent camping area was very clean, with nice flat tent pad surface to set up tent on. Also ate a very nice meal on Easter Sunday at the lodge. Saw several deer while we were there. Definitely recommend this state park to others. Hope to go there again some day.

We have tent camped there many times. Definitely a favorite place for gorgeous views, good Ranger-led Activities and great hiking. The lodge is amazing.

Tent camped with a view of the lake. Facilities were well maintained. Hosts were very friendly. Easy to collect firewood. Definitely recommend even if you don’t have a boat.

It’s a smaller campground which is great. Tent sites are near the river. It was quiet at night. The staff was very helpful as well.

There are two section to this area. The northern one is labeled “below the dam tent sites”, the southern one is labeled “below dam”. The southern one is a just a cluster of pull in camping sites next to the fishing area. There’s a short walk to the bathrooms. You can get to the water by walking down the rocks. The northern side is a bit greener but 3-8 are very small sites jammed close together. There isn’t much room, if any, for a tent. Sites 1 & 2 are further back and much more spacious and pretty. There’s a water spigot here but no bathhouse. You would need to drive to the south lot.

Mount Magazine is a beautiful State Park with great hiking trails. We hiked Signal Hill (highest point in Arkansas) and the North Rim Trail. Both were beautiful. This is a great place for families to camp. There is a welcome center with a small gift shop. Our campsite was spacious with water and electric although we were tent camping. Shower and bathroom facilities were nice and clean. They also had a place to hang glide. We checked out some of the cabins for future options, and they looked amazing with beautiful views.

This is a fantastic state park on the top of Mt. Magazine. Some really cool hiking trails. Fall is an amazing time of year to go while the leaves are changing colors. The overflowing camping area probably has the best tent spot to camp overlooking the valley. There are black bears in the area so use caution. Sites provided bear boxes to lock up food and scented items if tent camping. Go! It's a beautiful place to visit!

The views of this campground are amazing, however, the campground left much to be desired. The bath house and spots are fine for RV's but when we tent camp it gets crowded at this site and lacks privacy. The campground for the most part is one single road with many camp spots on each side. The Ozark Highland Trail does pass close by and the Lover's Leap trail is pleasant with some amazing views.

This is a relatively large campground, appropriate for RV and tent camping. The campground is nicely situated near the end of the LOViT cross country MTB/hiking trail. There are sites ranging from primitive to water and electric. Each site has a table and a fire pit and is within reasonable distance from flushing toilets. There are showers available, a playground, and boat ramp. I didn't prefer how busy the campground was or how close the sites were to each other.

there aren’t many just tent sites. and they aren’t on the nice part of the water although they are a very short still to the nice part of the water. the lady at the front went above and beyond to make me feel comfortable and the showers and toilets were very clean. all the other campers were super nice as well. all in all I loved the experience

We came to Heavener Runestone Park with three families and nine young children and had the BEST time! Totally worth the drive from Tulsa. The park is beautiful and secluded, very clean and well kept. It has some really fun little themed touches in keeping with the Viking Runestone. The history around the Runestone is so interesting, the kids loved hearing about the Vikings. The hiking was beautiful and just challenging enough to be fun while accessible for little kids. Bathrooms were clean and easily accessed from our tent sites. The views were spectacular. Out of the three cliff tent sites I would say only 1 was safe for kids, 2 and 3 were too close to the cliff (beautiful views though). The playground was really fun and right by site 1. It’s a big site so we put four tents and 15 people on that site comfortably, it also has a covered pavilion which helped us in the rain and a brief storm. The park hosts were incredibly kind and welcoming. One last note, you do need to bring your own drinking water in. We had such a great time and would totally recommend the park for adults or families. My only complaint was the persistent barking dog on the private residence by the entrance to the park, including late at night.

This was my first visit to Mulberry River Outdoor Adventures, and it won't be my last. The property is more set-up for RV and ATV use but the tent site/s are surprisingly secluded. I need to talk about the property owner. He is incredibly friendly and accommodating. He greeted us with his precious dogs and hung out with us until we were settled in, telling us all about the property, trails, and nearby waterfalls. If you want a full and fast weekend, he can point you in the right directions, even take you there on his buggy. Or if you are in need of a quiet, relaxing escape by the water he will let you be. The RV'ers were friendly when we crossed paths.  This seems like the Cheer's of campsite. Everyone know everyone and strangers are welcome.  Very laid back.  My partner and I were the only tent campers that weekend (for a slow, quiet escape) so we chose the"island" tent site, which is maybe 100' from the water.  Wish I had brought hammocks to utilize the swing contraption on the shore (see pictures).

Bonuses: 

1. If the Labradoodle likes you she will swim with you.  

2. I am walking mosquito bait and was only bitten twice!

3. The nicest "outhouse" I've ever encountered. Cedar paneling, full shower, and hot water!!

A very well maintained and enjoyable campground! There are amny sites, ranging from tents to full hookups. Prices range from $15/night (tents) to $45/night (group sites). Despite being close to the main road, it was very quiet. There is no cell signal to speak of in the loop C tent sites, but closer to the front, near the swimming area & pavillion, I got three bars (Verizon). The swimming is great! There is a CCC platform to jump from into the pool. Hot Springs is 20 minutes, and this campground has access to trailheads nearby. Would Stay Again.

Stayed September 2021.