The best EQUESTRIAN camping near
Clayton , OKLAHOMA

There are several campgrounds to choose from. We chose the Deep Fork campground because it offered several spots along the Fourche Maline River. Great fall views and perfect autumn weather. There was only one other overnight guest, although there were a few fisherman during the day. 

We didn't use the restroom facilities, but they looked like they had seen better days. Fire rings and grills were okay. Concrete picnic tables.

Lots of hiking options throughout the state park. We saw some incredible views on the Robbers Cave trail. It was poorly marked, but even if you wander off the trail you will be okay. If you go too far you hit a dirt road the loops around the back of the trail and you'll know to circle back to the trail area. 

The main camping area near Whispering Pines had a park office and a small grocery store. Not a huge selection, but you will find the essentials.

Cell service was spotty throughout. One spot you wouldn't have service and 30 feet further you'd have decent LTE (Verizon).

I would definitely visit again. The lake appeared to have some summer activities available, including a pool. But the autumn views and weather will be my choice time to visit.

Whispering Pines Campground is where we stayed within the state park. It was a beautiful and peaceful setting within the trees. The roads were paved so easy to push wheelchair around. Nice trails but not wheelchair friendly. There is a nice lodge that people can rent rooms and a nice meeting place overlooking the valley. We camped in the summer but fall camping would be beautiful with all the changing colors.

There are actives going on around the area you. An participate in so kids would love it.

https://www.travelok.com for reservations

This place was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! So beautiful with all the pine trees and being so far out from everything. The closest store/town is about 45 minutes so be sure to bring everything you need with you. Super close to the Talimena Scenic Drive and Horse Thief Spring and plenty of ATV/UTV trails. The park hosts were amazing and came to check on us throughout our stay. The park was still under construction for upgrades and repairs to their septic systems and equipment but didn’t bother us. We will DEFINITELY be returning with friends because it’s just to pretty not too!!!!

If you're near the end (heading west) or got a late start heading east, detour north towards Potato Hill Vista for a flat area with a stone fire ring near Highway 88/1. You can throw down your tent here for the night. The side trail even leads to a parking lot off the highway if you're driving and want a place to camp or want someone to pick you up a few miles closer than Talimena State park.

We will BE back!! I’ve lived in OK for 30+ years and didn’t know of Cedar Lake in the Quachita mountains near Heavener, OK. It’s incredible!! Clean site, right in the national forest. At the time we went they had a camp host that met you, took you to your site, and checked in on us several times during our three night stay. She was really friendly, helpful, and our two boys thought she was the best when she gave them Smokey the Bear pins! While they do have bathroom and shower facilities our section of camps were down along with several others do to septic tank system issues that they were waiting on parts to arrive to fix. They provided portable toilets in the interim which worked fine. There is a really fun trail that runs right around the entire lake, and it’s a little over two miles. Nearly all natural terrain throughout the hike which makes it especially nice. Though we didn’t visit they have a section also for equestrian camping and riding as well as RV hookup sites. Can’t speak highly enough of this camping area!

I love this small park. It offers a lot of amenities, but overall it’s about the cave trails and lots of hiking opportunities. We went in the early fall so too cool to enjoy the small lakes but our campsite had great views of one of the lakes.

Tent camping. Beautiful view at our campsite. We were close to the lake, and enjoyed the nice breeze and awesome views of the sunset! The sites are very big with tons of space. We went to Lake Eufala state park and hiked around, but really there aren’t great hiking trails in the area. This camping experience would be one where if we came back we would bring friends and enjoy just being at our campsite. We had a great time!

I will say there is ALOT of trash. It didn’t deter us much, but I think it’s worth noting. Some sites we walked passed were filled with bottles and cans. Ours had a ton of cigarette butts all around, and also so weird trays/debris in the fire ring. The only other thing I didn’t love was that while on the map it’s all very well marked, none of the sites had markers and if they did they weren’t nec correct. The only number we could see was 253 in the grill and on the map it was our 255. Our site neighbors said there aren’t any real markers and to just settle there or find one that’s more suitable because the park wouldn’t fill up. It didn’t. But we enjoyed our sites views and space- even with neighbors. No lights around the roads or anything except at the bathroom, but it wasn’t difficult to navigate.

Bathrooms pretty close, and were clean and tidy. Great playground are for kids!

We stayed at the Blue Jay Drive Campground and it was beautiful! We had three sites 14,15 and 17 number 15 was beautiful right on the lake neighbors were coming by and asking if they can take pictures of the site 15. Make sure you take plenty of water there is no water not even one spigot. They have a vaulted restroom similar to a portapotty. We took our own portable potty and thank god we did so. I would definitely take some seven dust for the little critters at the campsites. It’s very quiet at night and there’s so much to do there.

I love Robbers Cave. It’s one of my most favorite places to camp. There are over 40 miles of hiking trails and the views are incredible! I prefer to camp away from people and toilets don’t matter, I tent camp around Lake Wayne Wallace or Eagles Nest. Watch the trails bc you could end up on the horse trails and be very sad lol.

Usually when my friend and I go tent camping we have some hiccup in our plans—rain, damp firewood, lack of wood and ice to be purchased on site, trouble getting good maps, freezing to death at night, etc, but this trip really went without a hitch! They have a good website through which you can pick your campsite. We ended up with a pretty one by the creek that was more secluded than the others. It didn’t have a bathroom, but it was easy enough to drive over to the next site.

What is fun about Robber’s Cave is the variety of things to do. On our first day we went directly to the Cave area and enjoyed climbing on the rocks! Many views were pretty and the cave was not too puny either. The next day we explored more trails—one that was good and challenging—and then rented a kayak for the lake. It was only $5 for an hour! They’ve got mini golf, horse shoes, and a show cone stand to boot. The little camp headquarters also had plentiful ice and dry firewood to buy.

I guess if I have any criticism it would be that the bathroom was a bit dingy, but, heck, it had toilet paper! They also could have had better maps of some of the trails—we got just a little lost on one of the offshoot trails near the cave—but that’s what made it an adventure, really.