Best Tent Camping near Granger Lake

Various camping options including primitive tent sites, RV sites(with and without hookups), and group camping heardle areas.

Fantastic short stay in Pace Bend on Lake Travis. We paid for the improved tent camping site but ended up switching to a site North Gracy Cove which had way better views of the river and more privacy. We still went back to use the showers and running water at the improved site though.

Gracy Cove was a great spot for a swim to cool off on a hot day. No boats allowed.

Tent camped 21JUL 1 night.

Super clean park, good trails and great water features. The whole thing is kind of built around a couple swimming holes, which are the main attractions, and pretty amazing.

Sites were big and well treed. Super secluded and plenty of shade to be had.

Trails aren’t close to the sites, so you’ve got to drive once you are setup, which might not be an issue for most, but I like to dig in then hit the trails.

This was one night camp 6/10 for me in my campmaster project and it was fantastic.

Hot but no rain.

This camp ground was great. We tent camped by the water in section 3 and had the whole site to our self. The lake was nice to canoe on and had a beautiful view of the sunset.

The bathrooms were to far to walk so we had to drive to them ever time and there were no showers so this was a negative.

If you stay on the water just plan for the wind it was blowing the whole time and really hard at some points. Also there is no shade by the water so bring a shade tent.

Last thing this is a open camp ground and we had several people late at night ride by and shine there lights in our tent.

Camper Resort On Lake Travis is conveniently located on the Hudson Bend Peninsula on Lake Travis. It is one of the few campgrounds around the lake that has direct access to the lake. This is a huge bonus if your intention to to visit the area for lake recreational opportunities.

This is mostly a seasonal RV campground. They do offer tent campsites, but offer few other facilities.

During this visit the operator of the facility told me that they would be closing the campground for a number of months for renovations. The old campground had pretty dated and basic amenities. I hope that the renovated campground will have greatly improved facilities.

This review was written in Oct 2018 to check out the renovated campsite in 2019 and write a review.

We spent 2 nights here in the tent sites a couple weeks ago. We loved it.

There are 8 tent-only sites at the north end of the park - there is a short trail by the restrooms that lead to them. Upsides are that they are removed from most of the park's bustle, so it's easier to relax and enjoy your time "in the woods". The restrooms and shower facility are a ~200-300 ft walk, depending on which site you choose. Each site has a grill, picnic table and fire ring. The sites are not particularly level, but we were able to get two tents on the site with minimal issues. The tent area also has a community grill and fire pit that would make it a great candidate for a group camping event.

There is a small floating dock where you can fish or launch a kayak (remember, you can't park close so you'll have to carry the boat in...good for kayaks, bad for canoes). There is ample room at the park's main launch to put in larger canoes or kayaks without carrying them as far.

The park amenities are fine - swimming area, fishing pier, and fairly clean showers/restrooms. Also, there is a Bucee's 5-10 minutes away for those last-minute needs/forgotten supplies!

All in all, a good weekend, and a good spot to camp!

I came across this campground while searching on thedyrt. I had not previously heard about this park, so I decided to check it out. The park is operated by the City of Smithville. There is not a park office on the grounds to accept reservations or fees for camping. To reserve a campsite, call the City Recreation Center at 512-237-3282x7 Mon-Fri, 8:00am - 4:30pm.

There are a number or recreational facilities at the park such as a playground, baseball field and frisbee golf course. The Colorado River runs along one side of the park and offers opportunities for paddling and fishing. One of the most unique features is that there are rodeo facilities on the grounds. The rodeo events only occur during certain times of the year, so check the park's website and calendar.

The campground area is at the very back of the grounds down a gravel road. The park is primarily designed to host RVs, but they do allow tent camping. Each site has a parking pad, water and electric hookup, picnic table and grill. There are bathroom facilities in the center of the campground.

Compared to some of the other parks in the area such as Bastrop State Park, Buescher State Park and Lake Bastop South Shore Park, this city park is a little bit rough around the edges. The reservation system, or lack of an onsite office, is a bit baffling. But if you're looking to witness a rodeo, this might just be your only option.

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.

What a great park full of history! Mother Neff has a lot to offer and is just about 30 miles from Waco, TX that is known for all the Magnolia stuff! The park headquarters have a lot of information so you can figure out your trip and hit all the main attractions in one decent hike! The cave is an amazing part of history and is definitely a must-see!

Leon river runs through this park, although we are currently in a drought so it is as dry as a bone. The Tonkawa tribe lived along the river in the 1800's and many artifacts have been found along with the awesome cave they used. You can also see the wash pond and parts of the original park in the 1930's. There are lots of trees which make for some great trails and lots of shade. Plus the facilities are brand new and so nice.

The trails are quite short and you could go through the whole park in a day but it is well worth the drive to see and feel the history around you. The do have some really nice RV sites, but the tent camping is very limited and closed currently along with the cabins because of flooding. The park has been destroyed many times from the Leon River flooding and is still in the process of being cleaned up.

Also if you take a 7 mile drive down the road to The Grove, TX, you will find another beautiful piece of history. The Grove a tiny, tiny little ghost town that was established in the 1860's! If you love seeing old buildings it is definitely worth the quick drive and take some awesome pics! Some of the original buildings are still there.

I took a trip here with my son and my grandmother and it was such a fun experience. All of the main attractions were able to be seen from the main trail so my grandma was able to keep up and see the park she has memories of as a kid. She said it is much more fancy now than it was in the 60's!

This is a county park in Travis County, Texas. We stayed one week in the middle of March 2019. We decided to stay outside the campground in the dispersed area. Technically, you can camp anywhere in the park; however, we believe there are only a few decent spots for RVs. Camping is limited to 7 days in a 30-day period. We stayed at Mudd Cove Mesquite Point and found a great spot right by the lake. We were able to get level without leveling blocks after some trial and error. There were several spots in that area that would be great for a RV of any size. As of April 1, 2019, they are closing the Tournament Point area to camping, so Mudd Cove Mesquite Point will have some of the only RV spots (IMO). Those spots are off Grisham Trail. The areas down Pace Bend Road were not RV friendly. Most were a tight squeeze, and many did not have turnaround spots. Great areas in there for tent camping, but not RVs. On Grisham Trail, you will find potable water. It is easy to miss and in a horrible spot on a curve and hill. It will be on left if you are coming from the park entrance. The dump station is outside of the park, right before the entrance on the right.  Easy in and out when leaving. Since we were in the dispersed area, we relied on our solar for electricity. The area we found was perfect for that. We were able to find a nice open spot with no trees and the weather cooperated, so we had no trouble with electricity. The park was quiet and empty for most of the week. Things did pick up Thursday and over the weekend, but most people were respectful and quieted down after 11pm. We walked the trails a few times, but overall there is not a ton to do here unless you are swimming. The cost for us was $20/night. $15 for the truck and $5 for the travel trailer. Day use fees are $7 a person which is included in the camping costs. The employee working when we arrived was not friendly or helpful at all, but the other employees we encountered were very helpful and nice. Overall, we will likely not be back. The price seemed steep for no hookups and the park just didn’t offer enough for us to want to stay again.

Campground Review

This Texas State Park is just a short 15 minute drive from downtown Austin. It is only a 5 minute drive from the Austin airport. The close vicinity to the city does mean that this park has a constant flow of visitors. In the summer it is extremely busy with day visitors, weekend campers and long-term campers. In the winter it is moderately busy. The park has lots of forest trails to hike as well as some interesting rock formations around the creek and water holes. The most noted feature of the park is definitely the Upper and Lower Falls.

This park has a variety of facilities including cabins, RV sites, tent sites and group sites.

There are water, electricity and restrooms with flush toilets and sinks near all the campsites. At the premium campsites there are all of these amenities plus showers. This park is great for swimming, fishing, hiking and bicycling.

You might see deer, raccoons, armadillos and occasionally snakes. All of the wildlife should be left undisturbed. Except for the fish. Fishing is allowed in the park and one will not need a state fishing license when fishing within the park.

This is a very family friendly and well-managed park with the only downside being that the park is often very busy with visitors.

Product Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, I get products to test from time to time - today I am testing the RoM Outdoors Backpack.

The RoM Pack (pronounced "Roam") is a backpack, blanket and poncho all in one piece of gear. It is made of heavy duty 600D fabric which is water-resistant and appears to be very durable. The total volume of the pack is about 3000 cu. in. Their slogan is, "Let Adventure Unfold". The unique feature of this pack is that the backpack unfolds into a blanket. In addition, it can be unfolded into a poncho.

While I tend to use ultralight gear when I'm hiking or backpacking, I found this pack useful for fly fishing. I was able to carry my boots, waders, hammock, rod, reel, net and fishing tackle nicely. Once I reached my destination, I unfolded it to use as blanket. See the demonstration video. While I had good sunny weather, I could foresee using this piece of gear as a poncho if a thunderstorm were to roll in and I wanted to wait out the storm.

The Pros:

Unique multiuse design

Heavy duty water-resistant material

The blanket material is soft

When used as a poncho, it is also insulating.

Multiple pockets (2 removable pockets) with Molly straps

Designed and Made in the USA

The Cons:

Heavy in comparison to other backpacks

Straps and pockets somewhat obstruct use while using it as a poncho

Water bottle pockets could be larger to accommodate various sizes

For more info:

https://romoutdoors.com/product/rom-pack/

This state park is a little outside of Austin near the airport. The park stays busy and it’s easy to see why– it’s really nice with waterfalls you can check out in the park and it isn’t far from the airport. We had a great stay here and will definitely check it out again if in the area. Although– watch the branches if you are in a bigger rig– we watched a guy hit one and mess up his roof. Also, if you will be camping in Texas State Parks a bit be sure to get the annual Texas State Parks pass– it will end up saving you a lot of money! Also, we went to a nearby market to buy what we thought was salsa(see pictures)– it definitely wasn’t and it was sooo spicy!!

Pace Bend is one of my most favorite places to camp in Texas.

Not far from the old (and new!) Backyard (a great place to see live music in the live oak capital of Texas), Pace Bend is a quick drive away. A perfect spot to pitch a bunch of tents, jump off cliffs, swim and barbeque. Maybe 45 minutes from downtown Austin (without traffic).

I won't lie the cliff diving kinda freaks me out. Be careful is all I'm saying!

There are several primitive campsites throughout the park with picnic tables, grills and toilets. Additionally there are 20 RV hook-up type sites that offer running water, electricity, restrooms and showers.