Best Tent Camping near Cameron, TX

Had a great night camping at Lake Somerville SP-Nails Creek. It was really quite with only 2 other sites occupied. Lots of coyotes and owls calling throughout the night. The site was not too far from the bathroom and had great privacy. Didn’t use the horse corral, but each site has 1-2.

Tested out our klymit static v2 sleeping pads and LOVED them. It was a bit cold as hadn’t thought to bring an extra blanket and slept without the rain fly—but not too bad.

Tried the Backpackers Pantry Pad Thai and Mountain Home Biscuits and Gravy and all were terrific.

PROS 

Saved $24.50 with Texas State Park Pass 

No fee charged for making on-line reservations 

Got a call the morning of arrival from park headquarters confirming my arrival 

Site 3 was immaculate upon arrival, even the crushed gravel raked. 

Site 3 level 

Site 3 has aluminum picnic table, metal firepit with cooking grate and 2 hook lantern pole all in good condition 

Site 3 afternoon shade 

Campground loop toilet/shower facility immaculate 

30 minute drive to Waco attractions

2 bar T MOBILE 

CONS 

20 total campsites but 2 are used for camp hosts 

Picnic table chained to ground so not moveable and it was 30 ft from camper 

Lots of road noise from TX236 

One toilet/shower facility for the entire park for both day users and 20 campsites 

Men’s toilet had urinal and toilets out of service during our 3 night stay 

Toilet/shower facility not climate controlled 

Lots of feral cats throughout campground 

No fire wood for sale in park 

No WIFI

Nice park and campground very near Georgetown, Texas. Berry Springs is a local county park and preserve. The Park is located just north of Georgetown Texas about 1 mile off Interstate 35 the main highway between Dallas and Austin. It’s a Great location with loads of open space. They have basic sites with covered picnic tables, fire rings, and hooks for hanging items. The former ranch has a lot of history dating back to the Texas Pioneer days. The park is located next to clear spring fed river for swimming and fishing. This may be a great option for those looking for a location close to Austin or a local family weekend. The camp was nearly empty in October this year which is the peak season for camping in Texas. The sites are best suited for tent camper, vans, and smaller trailers.

Type of Park: COE 

Check In: 3p Check Out: 2p 

Site#144- Back-In

💲28 per night

• Water

• 20/30/50 amp- pedestal looks pretty new

• Grill- good condition

• Fire Ring with flip over grate

• Metal mesh picnic table with cover, far enough away so awnings came out fully

• Site Pad: Level, crushed granite. Slopes up at the roadside.

👍🏻 Pros:

• On the shore of the lake facing west

• Trees for some shade• Covered picnic table

• Close to restrooms/showers

• Plenty of room between sites

• This site is aligned perfectly. Sit at the picnic table and watch the sun go down between the trees

• Extra parking area across from site(mostly unused and starting to grow up)

👎🏻 Cons:

• No sewer hookups

• Site slopes off steep on edge of site. Watch small children

• Some of the trees around the site have been cut down. They still show on Google maps though.

• Watch for ants

📝 Park Notes:

• Gates closed and locked from 10p to 6p- can get out, but not back in

• 2 Dump Stations- the one closest to the entry gate has you facing into the park

• Restrooms/ Showers

• Playground

• 3 miles of Nature Trails

• Boat ramp is closed- under reconstruction

• Group shelter for rent

• Lots of dumpsters throughout the park

• Sites on the east side of this loop are closer together

• 60s-90s loop was pretty full

• There are Munzees and a Geocache here

🐦 Wildlife:

• Birds: Cardinals, Mockingbirds, Great Blue Herons, Great Egrets

• Quite a few deer

Texas Parks & Wildlife (TPW) goes BIG with this sweet little park! In 2015, a new Visitors Center and 20-site campground were built among the remnants of the old CCC structures. Little reminders of CCC construction were visible just feet from my campsite (#17)… a portion of an old wall and BBQ pits. The campsite itself was wonderful! Plenty of spacing between neighboring sites. Freshly raked gravel, four large benches/chunks of quarried limestone, a picnic table, fire pit, pole with two hooks for hanging trash or gear, water, and electric. No specific tent site— since the whole area was level. Just a short walk along a path from my campsite to the restroom/shower facilities, which were very clean. Womens’ side had two sinks, three bathroom stalls- with one being ADA accessible, and two shower stalls, one of which was ADA accessible. The restroom had a large outdoor sink area, a little library, bike rack, and informational bulletin board. Only a few miles of hiking trails within the park, but beautifully maintained, with walking access to trail system from the campground. If you’re driving a taller/bigger vehicle, you’ll want to consider using those trail access points, rather than driving back to the small trailhead parking lots. The road leading back to the TH parking areas has an 8 ft height limit. Hiking highlights are an old CCC viewing tower, a CCC picnic table, a cave, and old washing pond. Camp hosts were cordial, and Park/Visitors Center staff were helpful and efficient with check in process. I received a call from the Park staff earlier in the morning on the day of my arrival, to let me know the entrance road from the south into the park was closed, so I’d have to access from the north, and also to let me know a county-wide burn ban was in effect, so no campfires during my stay in March 2022.

I like this park because it's close to home. It's got a good space between sites and is broken into 3 or 4 areas so you're not just piled in like sardines. You can being 4-wheeled vehicles that have a steering wheel. No sewer hookups, but there is a dump station. Unfortunately, subsequent major floods have caused them to lose much of the tree cover. It's great when camping in groups though, which we do quite often. All sites have views of the lake. They have a really good fireworks display on 4th of July. 

Type of Park: Private-owned 

Check In: 4p Check Out: 3p 

Site#79- Back-In

$35 per night($105 total) 

Water 20/30/50 amp 

Picnic Table with concrete pad 

Grass site. No rock or concrete base

👍🏻 Pros: No trees to avoid 

On the end of the line so no one is on the"front" side of the camper 

Good area for camping in groups 

Close to good swimming areas and store 

Close to boat ramp

👎🏻 Cons: Split-level site- table is down a slight hill from parking area. No shade 

Across from the cabins on stilts, lake view is a little blocked 

Cabins are being refurbished and the equipment and materials are stacked near the site(and some construction noise) 

No grill or fire ring at this site

📝 Park Notes: Gates closed and locked from midnight to 6 am on weekends. 

Closed at 10 pm on week days. 

Can bring golf carts, ATV's(machines with steering wheels, not handle bars) 

Dump Station- a little hard to get to for big rigs. Also hard to leave the park from there. You may have to go back into the park to turn around. 

Park Store- has fishing bait and supplies, too 

Cabins are under re-construction There is a Places Munzee here

Boat Ramp

🐦 Wildlife: Birds: Cormorants(Water Turkeys), barn swallows, scissor-tail

For more info, see https://www.denisevajdak.com/2021/04/camping-on-easter-weekend.html

• Water

• 20/30/50 amp

• Grill on a swivel so you can turn it in high winds

• Fire Ring with flip-over grate

• Metal mesh Picnic Table. Table is in full sun in early-mid afternoon, but not for long. A canopy would help.

• Site Pad: Crushed Granite and level. Very long site with extra room after the pad site

👍🏻 Pros:

• Nice view of the water toward Welch Park and the dam

• You can get a good view of the sunset and sunrise

• Close to the restrooms/shower

• Wide view of the lake as it curves around the campground

• Shade, but open areas so breeze can come through

👎🏻 Cons:• No sewer hookups at site

📝 Park Notes:

• Gates closed and locked from 10p to 6a(can get out, but not back in)

• Dump Station

• Restrooms/ Bath House(but had LOTS of tiny dead bugs piled up)

• Most of this campground has a barrier wall, so only limited spots where you can access the water. One place in this loop and a bigger area(but busy) section on the other side of the main loop.

• There are Munzees and Geocaches here and in the area

• You can use your America the Beautiful Access Passes here. They sell them at the main entrance booth, but they were out of the Annual Passes.

🐦 Wildlife:

• Birds: Cardinals(not afraid to hang out on my site), Mockingbirds, Herons, Cranes, Shore birds, LBJ's(little brown jobbers), Chickadees

• Deer

More info on good/bad sites and a video  at https://www.denisevajdak.com/2021/08/camping-at-yegua-creek-park.html

• Water

• 20/30 amp(had 50 amp outlet, but only 20& 30 breakers)

• Grill

• Fire Ring with adjustable height grate

• Picnic Table

• Site Pad: asphalt. Site was just long enough for my 24' camper and my truck and not much room between.

👍🏻 Pros:

• Near the water with a trail to get there

• Green space between the site and neighbors

• Good kayaking area

👎🏻 Cons:

• The spot is tight getting in. My 10' high camper had low hanging branches on it(but they were soft, not stiff). Lots of vines/shrubs across from the site, so no extra room there. 

📝 Park Notes:

• Park does not have a gate, so it doesn't close

• Dump Station for each camping loop

• Restrooms/ Bath House

• Boat ramp

• Fishing jetty (pier is closed)

• This campground is better for winter camping. Great buffer from wind and neighbors. Only a handful of sites have direct access to the water.

• Lots of trails

• There are Munzees and Geocaches here

• Group pavilion/kitchen available

• 2 group shelters available

🐦 Wildlife:• Birds: Shore birds, egrets, herons, cardinals, mockingbirds

• Deer

• Raccoons(I saw their tracks, but not the critters)

More info an video at https://www.denisevajdak.com/2021/08/my-birthday-weekend-2021.html

Site 23 was better (stayed in this one twice). Wider, nice view of lake. Not very long, but easier to get into.