Brantley Lake State Park Campground

Way off the beaten path. It happened to be extra windy the day I was there. Nice desert/lake view. Quiet. No working dump station right now. Ranger was very friendly and helpful.

We stayed here before going to Carlsbad Caverns. Pros: only $14 for electric and water site. Sites well spaced and private. Easy to make online reservations. Clean bathrooms with flush toilets and showers. Friendly staff. Cons: ran out of hot water when no one else was showering. Not much to do here if you are not using the lake (which seems low). Pretty far from anything. I’d stay again if needing a spot while passing through, but wouldn’t make a point of coming here just for the campground.

Well appointed. Easy to make the reservation online. Clearly marked sites with convenient stone-marked pathways to the restrooms/shower. Hot showers, clean bathrooms.

All states should be this good

Campsites all have covered eating area although early and late sun can get under it.

Arrived towards the end of July on a Sunday evening.  Campground was largely empty.  Some sites are marked "Reservation Only"  however there were plenty of walk up sites to choose from.  Sites were spaced out very well.  Each site has the usual grill, and picnic table.  Tables were shielded from the elements by a shade shelter roof.  Fire rings were absent. 

We especially liked the QR code on the campsite number post that allows you to link directly to the website and pay for your site. No need for exact cash or a visit to the park office.

All facilities were well maintained.  Trails were easy to follow. 

As with most desert like environments,  all the plants want to kill you.  Be careful going off trail and don't let your pets wander. 

RV dump station was convenient on our way out.

We stopped here for 2 nights to escape the heat after dry camping outside of Carlsbad. I booked this easily online, and the other campers that weekend were very friendly. Overall this place is accommodating and quiet at nights. The sunsets are incredible. We biked to the lake for a swim and cool down. Would stay here again!

Great T-Mobile service. Bathrooms clean. Showers okay. $18 a night, booked last minute

They have an entire first come first serve section that had a lot of availability.

Dump station under construction- can dump for free at Eagle Draw Park in Artesia.

You can reserve a few van/RV spots but most are first come first serve. Don't worry about the check in time - all hookups and bathrooms/shower are unlocked. If you get a reserved spot you can pay online, otherwise self pay AT the campground, not at the gate (just in case they're full). Showers are good. Ok playground for little kids (4-5 age). Every site has a covered picnic table with stationary grill.

Convenient to Carlsbad, 30- 40ish minutes? north of the caverns, little over an hour south of Roswell.

Dump station OOC until summer '24, but surprisingly pleasant campground otherwise.

Nice campground for an overnight. Probably wouldn't stay more than a day or so. Not much to do and see.

Pros - Clean bathrooms and showers, hot showers, wheelchair accessible showers and bathrooms, electrical and water at each site, each site has a nice pavilion with wind block, picnic table and grill. Nice playground for the kids, Dumpsters available. There are some pull through sites. Sites are asphalt. Both reserveable and first come sites 2 primitive camp areas. Nice lake.

Cons - Very windy, not much to do at the campground. Gave me time to read a good book.

Nice desert shaped park. When there is water I am sure it's wonderful. Without it's a good stop.

Great NM state park. No real complaints other than the heat was not working in the bathhouse, making showers a little on the cold side this time of year. Staff were helpful and friendly. Each site had a small shelter for shade, otherwise no shade available. It was extremely windy during my visit. Verizon and to mobile worked fine, even better with a cell booster. Beautiful views, especially during sunrise/sunset. Easy drive to both Carlsbad Caverns NP as well as Guadalupe Mountain NP. Would stay again.

I stayed with electric services but kind of wish I'd done the remote.camping down by the water which was pretty neat. Nothing exceptional as a lakeside campground but well cared for and clean.

We arrived after dark on Saturday 7/8/2023. Parked at one of the first come first serve sites. Site 45. Park is well maintained and very peaceful. Most sites are water and electric only, but there is a dump station just a short distance away within the park. There is a shower and restroom facility on site as well. You are not allowed to dump grey water and when we were here grilling and fires were not permitted. $14 per night for sites with electric and water. I'm not sure what the full hookup sites cost. Lots of lizards and tarantulas can be spotted. It is definitely hot, but with the reflective bubble wrap in your windows it is not bad. This is a great spot if you are visiting Carlsbad Caverns and Roswell.

Small quiet campground. Sites were close together. The dump station was not open. $84 for 3 nights for my class c with a toad. High winds for 2 out of 3 days.

Nice campground. Dump station closed for two weeks, but alternative at one of the camp host sites. Great place for bike riding, walking, water sports

Nice campground, pretty quiet unless you're next to the playground. Facilities are clean, showers were hot, so there is nothing to complain about there. Dump station was not open, must have had an issue.

Campground is not near the water, day use area is only a couple minutes away. Use the map to choose a site where you can see the water, otherwise its a pretty boring area.

A few minutes drive from Carlsbad, maybe 45 minutes to an hour from the caverns and a lot nicer than anything you'll find closer to the park.

Stopped here to get out of the wind. On our way to Carlsbad Caverns. Wind gusts were relentless. Looks like several other campers are here doing the same thing. Nice campground $14 FCFS electric/water. On a lake this is white capping today.

Gorgeous views, well maintained campground, not crowded.

This campground is in a state park. There is potable water, dump station, electric and water hookups, and clean showers! The sites are nice with a picnic table and covered patio area. Spaces are not too cramed together, so you have a bit of privacy. The site overlooks the lake and has walking trails around the area. There is a playground for kids near the bathrooms.

Bathrooms were clean! They have three showers each in the men's and women's restrooms, as well as two private showers with a toilet and sink.

There is a self pay station or pay online. Self-pay is cash or check only. $14-18 dollars depending on what hookups you need. Staff was helpful and friendly. Overall, it was a wonderful and quiet stay near Carlsbad.

For the methane and H2S games that waft through the camp. This morning the air was unbreathable. We read water quality reports and the lake fish should not be eaten due to ddt Nice camp if you only stay a couple of days to see the caves. We were at Sitting bull falls and experienced a 5.4 fracking quakes.

Park is very clean and very quite. Sites are spread out and bathrooms are very clean. Will be back for sure.

Nice campground on small lake. Each site has a covered patio with a picnic table and privacy wall on one side. No campfires allowed currently. Our site has water and electric and cost $18 for the night. Really easy to reserve online. Bathhouse with three showers and flush toilets. Service is great on Vz and Att able to stream, and work the whole day with video calls.

It was closed due to Covid. We visited January 2, 2020.

Just stayed at Brantley Lake state park and loved it. With my NM state park pass my stay was only $4 per night with 30amp and water. This site is about 4 miles off the highway which makes it super quite. Dump station available, two dumpsters in the loop. Great cell service (Verizon) also got like 30 over the air channels.

We just needed a place to stop for the night and this was a great camp ground. Very very nice and clean facilities.

We stayed here for 4 nights in late November/early December. It is a bit of a drive to get out to the campground from the highway, as you have to circle around the dam the get to the campground. The campground loops are situated up on a hill overlooking the countryside. There is a nice playground underneath a shade cover next to the central bathhouse, which is large and clean. There are trails that go down to the lake boat ramp and a trail that goes between the visitor center/entry booth. This campground was our basecamp to Carlsbad Caverns, which was about an hour drive, if I remember correctly. We enjoyed our stay here, but the wind made us a little worried. There were two days where during the day the wind blew consistently over 25 mph and gusted to 40. Shook the trailer enough that our stabilizer blocks blew away and flagpoles broke. I would stay here again during the winter but I would watch the wind forecast.

Good spot. Nice and flat and very spacious. Not much around. Not really any trees either. We went in November so it was veryyy cold.

Not much to do in the surrounding area, but the park has nice sites with covered picnic tables at every site. Electric and water hookups. Bathrooms are decent and it has hot showers.

This is an oasis in the middle of a, well, not an oasis. The sites are nice enough with shelters and fire rings. The main downside is the extreme sulfur smell coming off the fracking wells in the distance. They release Hydrogen Sulfide (which is pretty toxic) in the evenings and night and this smell permeates everything. Imagine living near these!

We stayed at Brantley Lake last summer driving back to Austin TX. We came in late and drove to our site well after dark. The park facilities are very nice with extensive shower and restroom facilities. The site has good hookups for water and electric. The low rating is based on the location. The site is desolate in a very remote area with few if any activities for guests. This area gets very hot in the summer with daytime temps over 100 degrees. If you need one night stay over or something close to the town this camp could be an option but keep your expectations grounded.

Sites are roomy, pets allowed, good wifi with booster. Walk down to the lake at sunset, so beautiful!