Best Dog-Friendly Camping near El Dorado, KS

You'd think the Big Oak Campground in El Dorado State Park would be amazing. It's shaded with huge trees, nice sized sites some of which are very spread out, a quick walk to the swim beach and a quick drive to put your boat in the water. Unfortunately these pluses are far outweighed by the negatives. First the bathrooms were horrible. I realize they are older restrooms but they smelled awful, they were never obviously cleaned, the showers were not even a tiny bit private, the door to the restroom was broken and had to be propped open with a tree branch. Just over the bridge at the swim beach they were worse and some of the doors in the women’s room were missing. Yuck! Secondly basic campground rules were not enforced at all. The site across from us easily had 30 people camping and were up until 4am with loud music and a bright light on. I’m not kidding, my daughter was up around 3 to use the restroom and we walked by twice. The family in the site next to us had at least 4 cars and 2 tents set up outside the site on the walking path in addition to their two tents in their own site. The dog free swim beach had dogs on it. We camp with our dogs, one of which loves to swim and even I don’t want dogs on a public beach. Our camping weekend was negatively affected by poor camping etiquette and a sever lack of basic rule enforcement. We won’t be back to El Dorado State Park Big Oak campsite any time soon, at least not during the busy summer camping season. Cross Timbers and Fall River are much better!

You'd think the Big Oak Campground in El Dorado State Park would be amazing. It's shaded with huge trees, nice sized sites some of which are very spread out, a quick walk to the swim beach and a quick drive to put your boat in the water. Unfortunately these pluses are far outweighed by the negatives. First the bathrooms were horrible. I realize they are older restrooms but they smelled awful, they were never obviously cleaned, the showers were not even a tiny bit private, the door to the restroom was broken and had to be propped open with a tree branch. Just over the bridge at the swim beach they were worse and some of the doors in the women’s room were missing. Yuck! Secondly basic campground rules were not enforced at all. The site across from us easily had 30 people camping and were up until 4am with loud music and a bright light on. I’m not kidding, my daughter was up around 3 to use the restroom and we walked by twice. The family in the site next to us had at least 4 cars and 2 tents set up outside the site on the walking path in addition to their two tents in their own site. The dog free swim beach had dogs on it. We camp with our dogs, one of which loves to swim and even I don’t want dogs on a public beach. Our camping weekend was negatively affected by poor camping etiquette and a sever lack of basic rule enforcement. We won’t be back to El Dorado State Park Big Oak campsite any time soon. Cross Timbers and Fall River are much better!

We stayed in the equestrian loop. All but a couple primitive sites are back-in. The layout of the fire rings, grills and picnic tables are all weird... Not consistent and usually on the wrong side of your trailer. The parking pad was nowhere near level, so you'll want to plan for that. The trees are lovely. You're very near the water and the breeze was beautiful. The toilet at the loop are pit. The bath house was not clean and many of the showers didn't work.. Water is lukewarm but water pressure was great. No stall doors on toilets or showers. We used the city of El Dorado dump station. The park is massive. Lots of amenities in El Dorado. And a quick jump to Wichita. We will be back.

Campground Review: I stayed at El Dorado State Park - Bluestem Point camping area. It was a lot better than I expected. The lake was large and you could tell that the banks of the lake had flooded the campsites on the shoreline. I expected a lot of bugs but it wasn't bad.

The showers and bathrooms were like a swimming pool shower built in the 70's. There was no roof but everything is enclosed. The lake is really peaceful, and even though the state park boasts over 1200 campsites, I was all by myself with no one in sight.

It is a very peaceful place.

Gear Review: As a top reviewer on TheDyrt, I have an opportunity to review outdoor gear and products. While at El Dorado I gave the Mountain House Macaroni and Cheese a try and was very satisfied.

It's easy to prepare, boil two cups of water, pour it into the pouch and let it sit for about ten minutes after you have stirred the contents of the pouch.

I would give it 4 out of 5 stars, it was really good. Honestly, it tasted a lot like Stouffer's Macaroni and Cheese. The only real problem, no matter how much you stir you cannot get every noodle to rehydrate, so about ten percent of the noodles are a little crunchy. That is why it gets 4 instead of 5 stars. The flavor is excellent and the texture is 90% there. This is a winner if you are backpacking and want a hot meal that is easy to prepare.

Park is nice & clean! Ross at the main entrance is a great guy with lots of information about the parks & lake. Camp host at Sunflower Meadows was nice & helpful. I would give the park 5 stars but the man at the Bluestem Bait & General Store was very rude! So rude that we made the 12 mile drive back to El Dorado to buy all our supplies & bait at Walmart & Angler's Bait & Tackle. The man at Angler's Bait & Tackle was very helpful & went out of his way to help make our camping & fishing trip enjoyable! Just goes to show that customer service can make you or break you. Will definately be going back to Bluestem Point but not to Bluestem Bait & General Store!

On our road-trip to Utah, we dreaded having to camp in Kansas, until a friend recommended this spot. This stunning little lake is a free site with plenty of fire rings right next to a road. PERFECT car camping. And even has a clean little bathroom. Stunning views of rolling hills and cattle. Places to fish. A little trail that leads up a small hill. Stunning stunning stunning views of wildflowers and rolling hills. Great sunrise and sunset views! Phenomenal place to stop if you’re driving through Kansas. A bit of a detour from I-70, but totally worth it.