Best Equestrian Camping near North Richland Hills, TX

Roberts Lake State Park has two main campgrounds, the Isle du Bois unit and Johnson unit. These are what I would call twins. They are very similar in layout, scenery and activities. They are on opposite sides of the lake.

Isle du Bois is a little different in that it has legitimate equestrian camp sites with horse pens built into each site. The park has several equestrian trails and is perfect if you like to ride and camp with your horse.

The rest of the park has several walk-in camp sites and then a section for campers and RV's. It is a good park and I would normally rate this park as a three but I think that all of the equestrian activities and amenities for horses moves it up to a four.

This place is just far enough from DFW to not be to far. Great place to camp, fish and hike. Bring your horses for a equestrian trail as well. Great beach for some sand castles and swimming. And don't forget to hit the Dam store and get the dam special. Good burgers there.

Late in the day we stopped at Lake Mineral Wells State Park, TX. We weren't sure where to go as the gate was unmanned at our arrival. We missed the turn to the campground, but a friendly and helpful Texas State Park Officer directed us how to get there. He helped us with how to make payment as well. 

The campground was beautiful. It was quiet, the bathrooms were clean, and the lake was serene. There are at least 3 campgrounds, including shelters, equestrian, a loop for tenters, and a loop for larger rigs.  We stayed in the Plateau loop. Even though we only stayed one night, I would go back.

The first thing that brought me here was the option to fish without a license! It's been several years now since my wife and I stayed here the first time. It's a good size park with several options for activities: boating, fishing, picnicking, equestrian, hiking, camping, etc. The trails are thorough through the park. The lakefront is great as it gives you a good sense of the size of the lake. I'm looking forward to our next stay here!

This place fits me. Dog park, horse stall rentals, storage unit rentals, recreation room, bathrooms and showers, tiny home rentals. Most people stay here long term. Country feel but not far from Walmart, gas stations, eateries, etc...

Been to this park a couple of different times it has rock climbing boating,fishing, trails for walking, hiking. separate camping loop for tents and also separate one for horses. We have camped there in February, in June and also October

For a more tranquil experience, book a site at the Hawthorne grounds. Showers are available at Deer Ridge and Quail Run campgrounds (less primitive). Hawthorne has water, restrooms, and some tree coverage. “Luxury” camping features can be found at other grounds (ex. Fish cleaning, electric). Camping tends to book up fast so plan your trip in advance. Fishing, swimming, lots of trails (horse, hike, bike).

Campground Review

I spent a night at Holiday Park which is one of three on Benbrook lake. It used to be father outside of town, but as the suburbs creep in, it is slowly becoming surrounded. In fact, it appears part of the property had been sold off for development as one camp road ended and houses began. It must be a wonderful perk for those residents to be able to just walk in for swimming or fishing. I neglected to do a satellite view before choosing my spot, so I was in one of the handful that had no trees. It was fine though as there are covered tables and the polls were strong enough to hold me in a hammock as well as put up shade. I was also right on the water, so there was a nice breeze.

If you’re into fishing, this spot is for you. Every couple of minutes there was a “plop” from another fish popping out of the water. If you have a small boat, you could drop in right from your site and head out across the lake. Take care though, there are a few boats and some moving pretty quick.

Love wildlife? There were dozens of deer out of all sizes. I came across 5 different groups of them as I was driving around taking in the entire campground. Of course, where there are deer there are ticks. Make sure to use insect repellent and give yourself a check.

The toilets and showers are showing their age, so they are not for the squeamish. There are no hiking trails to speak of, but they do have an equestrian trail and sites if you have horses. Bicyclists seem to love it here as I saw dozens riding the streets. I got to barely hear a Friday night football game being called across the lake with bright stadium lights and all. Site prices were $14 for just the covered table or $28 with water and electric

Pros

• Close to town
• Easy online check in
• Friendly park staff
• Access to various water sports

Cons

• City is encroaching
• Relatively expensive
• Not many hiking trails
• Aging facilities

Product Review

As a ranger for The Dyrt, I get to test products from time to time. I was given the opportunity to test the Hellagood blanket by Belmont Blanket. As a cover, it is very warm. The soft layer is a faux fur with medium plush. The other side is a rubbery, waterproof material. The soft side tended to hold onto debris and pet hair, but cleaned up with a few shakes. It's a bit heavy, weighing about 3 lbs, so it's not bad for day hikes, but I would not recommend it for long excursions. I laid it out on the wet ground and it is completely waterproof. If you camp in a rainy area, the blanket would act as a decent rain shield. It got a bit chill once the sun went down and the breeze came off the lake. Soft and warm by the fire. When I went to sleep, I realized I’d forgotten my pillow so I folded it up with the soft side out and slept like a baby. All in all, I love the blanket and look forward to using it on other trips.

Pros

• Soft
• Waterproof
• Washable
• Durable
• Handmade in the USA

Cons

• A bit heavy
• Tricky to roll up
• Kind of pricey

The campsites here are pretty primitive. Seems like you can set up just about anywhere. There are two non flushing restroom. Plenty of poles for tying horses and there is water trofts for them but the water looked pretty disgusting. May want to think about bringing several gallons of water. Not a lot of area to get privacy from other campers as the area is pretty open. There are trails that I didn’t take to know if there were other areas that you could potentially set up at least a hammock camp at. $10 per car fee to be paid at a self serve box.

We enjoyed our overnight stay near the trailhead. We weren't sure about the accessibility to the trailhead road with our 23 foot travel trailer so we opted to stay off road 904, where the horse trailers park, since there were some nice flat spots. Since we were just staying overnight as we were traveling back to the Midwest we didn't check out the other options. We did call the park Ranger and he said the trailhead is a great place to camp and easy to access with a trailer. Our hot spot on our cell phone was slow since we only had a couple bars, but we were able to get our work done. I would stay here again. We enjoyed a nice hike in the morning before we headed out.

In the hot month of July 2020 I loaded up Little Red and headed out to spend several days camping at the Isle Du Bois Unit of Ray Roberts Lake. Located north of the greater DFW Metroplex Isle Du Bois is one of the busiest Texas State Parks in North Texas. Ray Roberts Lake is situated in the Cross Timbers region of Texas as a result there are plenty of big oak trees to provide shade and there is an abundance of wildlife as well. The Isle Du Bois unit features well over 2 miles of concrete hike and bike trails as well as one of the nicest beaches found in North Texas. Isle Du Bois State Park on Ray Roberts Lake is an excellent place to catch a whole lot of fish! A five lane boat ramp means there is very little wait time to launch and recover. No boat? No worries! Isle Du Bois features an excellent fishing pier and plenty of easy to access bank. Come along with me as I explore the Isle Du Bois Unit of Ray Roberts Lake State Park!

https://youtu.be/iS52vk-nY3o

It’s okay but it’s too pricey for how small it is. Good representation of Texas wildlife and a good spot for family camping. Lots of traffic and places for rvs and such. Good trail system

Big, beautiful Texas State Park. Very clean and nice level camping sites. The beach area was closed due to past flooding and cleaning but all else was open. My rig and I enjoyed site 136 🚐

I've camped at several Texas State Parks recently. They're very nice places to camp at. Restrooms are well kept. Some are free and can stay up to 14 days.

Beautiful little spot, only stayed a night. Walk right up to lake. Spots to our right had kayaks to put in right at campsite. Dump site on the way out. Spotted a Texas bobcat.

St Patrick’s Day 2018 we head out to Cedar Hill State Park on the banks of Joe Pool Lake. Cedar Hill State Park is one big Texas State Park! With over 300 campsites you are sure to find one to your liking! A visit to the historical Penn Farm, heavy spring rains and lots of paved roads for scooting make this visit to Cedar Hill State Park a truly unique Texas State Park Visit for the Dude RV crew!

There are 5 camping loops in this park! If you are wanting a lakeside campsite there are many options. The 3 loops on the north end of the park are close to the very busy road so there is road noise all the time.

The Penn FArm exhibit is very cool for the whole family and is ADA compliant but a bit on the rough side for handicap scooters. 

The day use area was in need of some work on my visit but I think the day use area has since been rebuilt.

You can see the several videos of my visit on my YouTube...DudeRV

Cedar Hill State Park, Cedar Hill, TX Site# 42

Cedar Hill State Park is only 10 miles southwest of Dallas, but its topography will remind you of the Texas Hill Country. The park is situated on the shores of Joe Pool Lake and it features 30 primitive hike-in camp sites, over 300 wooded modern sites, and more than 1,200 acres of mountain bike terrain. The park also offers multiple boat ramps, kayak rentals, and a swimming beach.

Lake mineral wells state park was great for biking, hiking, swimming and fishing. We had something fun for all 6 of us. My husband and I stayed in our tent, while rest of family stayed in their RV. It has been a very rainy month in Texas so some trails were closed. The camp store was awesome.we didn’t take advantage of the kayak or canoe rentals, but the prices were reasonable. Bathrooms, while a little dated were clean and had soap!

Not as quiet and a bit more busy than most Texas state parks we frequent but the kids really enjoyed watching the planes and the skyline views at night. Cant beat full hookup either.

There are plenty of city comforts 10 minutes away. We stopped in the area mostly to disc golf and hang out at the campsite so didn't try any local places eat. At the park there is a nice variety of trails and lake access as well but there were lots of renovations going on so some of the areas were closed.

It was a great place to stop after dealing with the Dallas traffic heading south and will stay again.