Best Equestrian Camping near Chickasaw National Recreation Area

The park hosts and volunteers are very friendly, responsive, and work hard with the resources available to them. They deserve 5 stars This 2 star review is on the park only.

This campground is one part regular campground, one part equestrian campground. Having horses is not a requirement to camp in the equestrian area and that is hany when the "regular" area is filled. The sites are pretty close together and the entire park feels packed together when it comes to camping space.

The facilities are extremely outdated but there are new bath/shower combos coming online very shortly in the equestrian section. In the meantime there are 2 shower stalls available for men and 2 for women in the entire camp. There are pit toilets in the equestrian area and only 1 flush toilet for men located in the "regular" area until the new ones come up in the equestrian area. Possibly only 2 for women available.

The worst thing was the traffic. People would drive to swim, fish, use the restroom, visit others in adjacent campsites or just cruise around with no aim from 8 AM to 10PM Thursday thru Sunday afternoon. The outer gates close at 10 PM but some drove around inside the park after that anyway. The equestrian camp area has dirt/gravel road and all the traffic creates a dusty environment. The Main road to the entrance which runs along the south side of the equestrian area also leads to the Platter Flats Recreation area which has no gates nor closing time so there is activity on the road all day and night.

There is a long equestrian trail that goes over to Lakeside Park across the lake that can also be hiked pretty easily that has a couple secluded spots to swim along the way. The trail is well marked and easy to follow. There are large map signs on each end of the trail and markers along the way.

I would not recommend visiting this park on a weekend unless traffic doesn't bother you. It should be noted there is a rail freight line and siding not far from the camp and once the vehicle traffic slows down, the trains seem to start. The train horns at crossings may be a bother to some.

Lake Murray State Park located near Ardmore Oklahoma has something for everyone. Water activities on the centerpiece 5,278 surface acre Lake Murray, 18 hole golf, picnicking, fishing, camping, trail riding, hayrides, 30 miles of hiking, swimming, miniature golf, 100 acres of ATV trails, several marinas and more. Accommodations include Lake Murray Lodge, 56 cabins and six campgrounds. The campgrounds are dotted around the lake with tent and RV sites of varying hook-ups; 30& 50 amp electric, water and some full-hook-up with table, fire ring and grill. Each campground has a camp host, paved roads, modern bathhouses, dump stations, pull-through sites, lake front sites, concrete pads with both open and shaded sites. Research the sites to find one to accommodate your rig. Our choice was Elephant Rock Campground. The nearby town of Ardmore has all the amenities: shopping, dining, groceries, fuel and Walmart. WARNING: Oklahoma State Parks charge a daily parking fee per vehicle of$10 in addition to the camping fee and they enforce it...just saying from experience...read the information carefully! Park Office: 13528 Scenic Hwy 77 Ardmore, OK 73401 l Park Office GPS- 34.071612,-97.101490 Reservations: https://www.travelok.com/

Stopped here on the way south to San Antonio. There were only two RVs in the entire campground. Reservations easily made online. Chose a nice spot adjacent to the Lake where I was visited by a friendly goose for breakfast.

Took a run around the area on several miles of developed trails and roads. Campsites are relatively close together and I can see how the place may get crowded in the summer, but it was almost completely vacant in December so I was grateful for the seclusion. The area also offers a primitive boat dock/ramp and several group pavilions.

Campground Review

As soon as you get to the site you will notice the park is very crowded. the site was in my opinion very generous with their space and the site was really clean even though it was a popular spot. The spot was right next to the lake and was one of the most beautiful spots I have seen. We were missing a fire ring and ended up having to borrow the neighbors. In the summer the spot is definitely more people. Local told us that during and winter it was the best time because of the colorful leaves and the temperature. The temperature was no the worst coming in at about 85 when we were there with very high humidity. We were able to go on the Buck horn trail which wasn't that long and was filled with families hiking

Product Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I was able to review MH2 Headlamp from Ledlenser. I was able to test the headlamp night hiking on the Santa Anita Canyon Loop Trail.

Right out of the box the first thing that caught my eye was the 7 year warranty on the light. The headlamp came with 4 settings, a high power, a low power for saving energy, and a red light. The red light was great for the middle of the night because it doesn't cause a big flash on your eyes after you get use to the dark. Th light also had a lockout button in case you accidentally pres the on and off button accidentally. This functions is great for hiking backpacking because sometimes other gear can move around and turn on the headlamp. I dropped the light many times on the trail and the IPX6 kept the dust out. The only down side of the headlamp was the weight. It came in at 102 grams on my scale. If you were a ultralight backpacker this wouldn't suit you because out on the trail every gram counts

this is one of my favorite parks! they have only a few spots available to reserve and those need to be booked well in advance. its VERY busy in the summer, but if you can arive thursday or early Friday, you shouldn‘t have a problem. the water is the star of the show but there are MANY trails to choose from and the views are spectacular!!

Roomy, well kept. Reasonable prices

Nice clean campground. Fills up fast. Great showers.

We stayed in elephant rock 2 site 44, we had a great view of the lake, however we didn’t realize we would need 50 feet of hose just to hook up to the water, and there were glass bottles all in the swim area. Still had a great weekend and will stay here again!

Hiking, biking, fishing and golf. Lake Murray has it all.;full hook ups

Our favorite place to camp. So much to do, hike fish,golf, geocaching and more

You can reserve online, but can’t change site at the office. We camped in February and there weren’t any other tent campers since it was off season. Great visitor center. Pretty lake drive.

Nice area, nice visitors center.  We enjoyed our time here. Lots of exploring and fun on the water. We will be returning along with friends in the future.

We really love coming to Elephant Rock. It has great options- some spots are secluded in the trees and some are open in the middle areas if you want to be around people. It has lake access, great playgrounds for kids, close to town with everything you need.

Beautiful park with lots of trees, nice place to swim, walking trails, and a playground for the littles.

Great campground for RVers. Full hook ups but along the shoreline just electric and water

Going out to the Lake you will find several sites and during the busy season this one is always the one that is booked solid! This site is where it all happens from big barbecues to family reunions.

Sites here are large and able to facilitate a lot of people. They include a picnic table and fire ring and often find themselves being the heart of the lake action. During the 4th of July these are some of the most coveted spaces due to the large fireworks display over the lake.

This campground is close to all the amenities the lake has to offer including the Lake Murray lodge area with mini golf, swimming pool, marina and restaurant.

There is a beach here that people drive to the lake just to enjoy so parking can get a little crazy along this area. I noticed mostly RVs here but there were a few tent campers as well staggered. For me to get a regular site at Lake Murray without any hook ups it was $15 while RVs or tents with hook ups are closer to $25.

This campground is close to a couple of hiking trails as well so I was able to check those out briefly, however the main focus of this place is the beach!!

**** UPDATE***** I revisited this campground on 10/20/18 after the recent rains and the beaches are completely submerged. The head of the elephant rock is almost entirely underwater as well and the overall level of the lake has closed some of the lower laying sites right on the shore. Because of this the already busy camp was filled with boaters camping on the shores and simply backing in straight from their campsites for fishing which is going crazy right now on the lake.

TIPS:

• Bring your own firewood, there are not a lot of resources to pick up out here because they do keep the grounds up so you will not find a lot of fallen branches to burn.
• Arrive early if you are wanting to stay on a weekend, it gets packed!!
• Check out the Lake Murray Lodge area for other activities if you have your family with you, you will not regret it!

We camp at Lake Murray State park, Elephant rock RV area... Full hookups as well as some water and electric only.  Of all the areas we camp.... this is the best.  Hiking, golf, fishing, great Lodge with a wonderful place to eat... Foggy Bottom

Lake Murray is a favorite camping area for us. Camp grounds are clean, have childrens play area, and cost is reasonable. Cabins are available if no tent or camper. Lots of hiking trails, bring your atv or utv for a ride at their riding park.

There’s a ton of great camp sites at Lake Murray. A lot to do as well- fish, golf, horseback riding, ATV trails, boating, nice pool with a splash area (only lodge and cabin guest have access), putt putt, activities on the lake (water trampoline, slide, etc), hiking. It’s a huge park so even when it’s crowded it doesn’t feel too crowded. There’s a lot of shaded sites and sites on the water. Highly recommend. We stayed in site 4 in the ATV campground.

Ashley here with The Dyrt, extending a wam welcome to your host Melinda. Many local trails to explore or hop in the river. This is a great, family friendly campground. Book your stay and leave your review here!