Best Equestrian Camping near Quitaque, TX

Equestrian Camping Reviews near Quitaque, TX

64 Reviews of 5 Quitaque Campgrounds

• 

  Neil T.

  Legend

  Sep. 13, 2020

  Wild Horse Equestrian Area — Caprock Canyons State Park

  Well maintained and accessible canyon exploration

  Wild Horse Campground Spot 74 

  I showed up at the welcome center with a reservation for primitive camping, not realizing the only spot to set up my RTT would be the parking lot. A nice lady working the desk, slide me into a spot that had cancelled earlier that day at the Wild Horse Campground. 

  Wild Horse is the equestrian camp and each spot has horse pens, picnic table, fire ring(though burn ban was in effect while we stayed) and water. No restrooms. The campground is behind a drive through gate that you have to close to keep the buffalo out. 

  Only one slot had horses while we were there. Several had mountain bikers staying in them. Everyone besides us and the horse folks were in ground tents. Plenty of room for us and the horse trailer setup didn’t look too cramped either. Slots are well spaced out, but not much privacy– see tree comment below. 

  Not much shade to be had except what little you get from scrubby mesquites, but if you are looking for lots of shade, this probably isn’t the park for you. The park itself is great. Easy to get around. Lots of well-marked trails. Bring water and what for snakes. Gorgeous canyon views and features. 

  Very quiet after sundown.

  Quitaque(kitty-quay) is a couple of miles from the main entrance and has a convenience store, a grocery store and a couple of cafes. We drove ten miles further to Turkey, Texas for dinner– very cool setup at Hotel Turkey. Good food, good music and fun casual outdoor atmosphere. Be sure to check their website for hours. Speaking of website, we had no service on Verizon cellular except very slow spotty connections from 10 pm to 7 am. Service in Quitaque and Turkey was very spotty and very slow. 

  Definitely glad we stopped here. Wouldn’t hesitate to do so again.

  Read More
• G

  Gretchen N.

  Guide

  Sep. 29, 2016

  Wild Horse Equestrian Area — Caprock Canyons State Park

  Caprock Equestrian Camp

  Caprock Canyons is as good as it gets for equestrian sites in Texas. Stay away from summer temps, but go in late fall or early spring and plan to stay awhile. Lots of trails to explore in the area and plenty of pen space at Wild Horse. Take the Wild Horse Trail from there for the scenic windmill tour.

• 

  Alexandra

  Ranger

  Jul. 15, 2021

  North Prong Primitive Campsite Camping Area — Caprock Canyons State Park

  Amazing site

  This is my favorite place to camp in Texas, second only to BiBe (though I haven’t been to Palo Duro yet). A truly beautiful site. We hiked out at 11pm and the moon was so bright we almost didn’t need headlamps. Lots of bison poop, and lots of coyote howling. The sites were pretty spread out, and the central area had a decent pit toilet. Completely surrounded by red rocks - loved it. Close access to some of the park’s major trails, and an easy hike out to the site.

• 

  Shari G.

  Legend

  Dec. 27, 2020

  Wild Horse Equestrian Area — Caprock Canyons State Park

  A Spectacular Park with Surprising Scenery and Wildlife.

  Created by the Red River, Caprock Canyon State Park, lies about 125 miles to the southeast of Palo Duro Canyon. While many similarities exist between the two state parks, the differences are striking. For starters, this park features the remaining heard of Southern Plains Bison (related to the Bison heard managed in Yellowstone N.P.) who wander the park roads and graze upon the local vegetation. So, keep your speed down and pay attention around every corner, especially at night!

  We stayed in the Equestrian Camp (water only, no toilets, no electricity so come prepared with your solar panel).   Spacious sites, corrals for horses at each site, and one very squeaky windmill that will keep you awake at night if it's windy, which it always is.  Try to get a spot that is NOT right next to it!  The campground has a gate to keep wildlife out and horses in.  You'll have to open and close it each time you leave/return.

  Hiking might just be the best way to see this park, but miles and miles of horse trails offer an unique experience from the saddle. Many trails crisscross the dry washes so pay attention to your trail markers so you don’t get turned around. Opportunities to hike up to the highest point in the park are strenuous but well worth the effort. So too is the hike back to the year-round springs that keep the wildlife running.

  The nearby town of Quitaque also has an ice/water kiosk and a convenience store which is less than 5 miles away.  The closest town with a real grocery store and restaurants is Plainview, about 55 miles away.

  Read More
• 

  Chris K.

  Guide

  Aug. 4, 2018

  Honey Flat Camping Area — Caprock Canyons State Park

  A Piece of Texas Heaven

  • Burn Ban in Effect - No firewood or charcoal - Only Propane
  • Night sky is awesome
  • If you are expecting shade…forget it
  • Bison roam free and they are bigger than you
  • Horse flies are everywhere and according to my wife they do like gray leggings
  • Watch out for critters, large and small
  • Watch where you step..land mines (Bison poop is everywhere)
  • Fishing at Lake Theo - No license needed
  • Really nice park store
  • Ranger led Bat Tours in the summer

  We went with some friends who also pulled their camper. We picked Sites #22 and #24 because they were connected and the kids could roam between the two sites. The park has a lot of wildlife…in addition to the Bison and the Prairie Dogs we saw Road Runners, Jack Rabbits, Horned Lizards. If you are a first time visitor going hiking in the summer, plan and heed the warnings of the park rangers. The park has very limited cell service (AT&T works better than Verizon) and canyon floor is much warmer than up top. We hiked early in the mornings and the kids were awed by the red rock and the quartz. After sunset it is very comfortable outside and the night sky will leave you breathless. Quitaque is the closest town 3 miles away and has a gas station. Amarillo is a hour away and we went for a day trip taking TX 207 N through Mackenzie Lake. It is a scenic drive. We stopped at the Cadillac Ranch, had lunch at Tyler's BBQ and made a trip to Palo Duro Canyon State Park to watch "TEXAS". Next time we pull a camper, I will definitely carry a tent and go primitive for a couple of nights. Also, take a telescope if you own one. You won't regret it.

  Read More
• M

  Michelle T.

  Guide

  Nov. 2, 2021

  Wild Horse Equestrian Area — Caprock Canyons State Park

  A "memorable" stay

  Let me preface this by saying that our woes during our stay here didn't really have anything to do with the campground or the hosts. Our stay here was, however, eventful. 

  We stayed here because this is the only area that the state rangers said was open... more on that later. We did find it interesting that there were only out of state license plates here... but again more on that later (and maybe a coincidence?) 

  It was toasty hot- we stayed in a roof top tent, so if you're not in a trailer, think about how you're going to stay cool. 

  Late at night our roof top tent became overrun with small cockroaches. Yes I said it. It sucked. We fought them off for probably an hour before we finally plugged all the holes in our tent. Then we still found a few and got them out. Next the coyotes came in our site. Yes. You read that right. They were within 10 feet of us. We pick up our sites meticulously before we go to bed and store our food properly. Howling next to your tent is very... ominous. Yes, let's go with that. Then the wind came. This is an equestrian park, so there are horse corrals all around you. Just something... eerie about horse corrals (that we closed by the way because of the creaking) opening and closing in the middle of the night. THEN came the birds at 4AM who were singing the song of their kind... yep.. you guessed it, right next to our tent. 

  Again- nothing to do with how the park is run, just our one night there. UNTIL- the next morning when we went and saw the RV portion of the campground. All. Texas. Plates. Full. Hookups. I bet they slept nicely. Could be a coincidence, but could not be- who knows! At the absolute very least- this gave us the most memorable story of our entire 6-week trip. So we are thankful for that. Also, cool fact- the Texas State Buffalo Herd lives here!

  Read More
• K

  Katie R.

  Traveler

  Jul. 3, 2018

  Honey Flat Camping Area — Caprock Canyons State Park

  Spectacular Scenery

  Caprock Canyon is definitely off the beaten path but a wonderful place to get away.

  The park is large but there is only one camping loop for RVs. The facilities are older but the park staff does a good job maintaining the sites. Water and electric but no sewer available.

  The park has challenging mountain biking and hiking. The only negative is most of the trails are not easily accessible from the Honey Flat campground (without a long walk) so having a car to navigate the large park is helpful.

  Lake Theo is a nice bonus for swimming or kayaking/canoeing in the hot summer.

  The bison are the stars of the park. You'll see them on your way in and probably visiting Honey Flat in the evening.

  One of our favorite things to do is walk to the vista near the Honey Flat campground at sunset and enjoy the magnificent scenery.

  Make sure to bring what you need to the park. There is not much in Quitaque so bring your supplies.

  Read More
• 

  Carol L.

  Scout

  Jun. 16, 2018

  Wild Horse Equestrian Area — Caprock Canyons State Park

  Caprock Canyons State Park and Trailway

  Located in Briscoe County, TX, this park is over 15,000 acres and the third largest state park in Texas. There is hiking, biking, and an equestrian rail trail extending through three counties. The canyons and ridges, carved out by erosion, are beautiful. The area is home to sheep, deer, coyotes, opossums, raccoons, bobcats, foxes, porcupines, prairie dogs, over 175 various birds, golden eagles, numerous snakes and lizards. The animal that stands out is the plains bison herd. There is also Lake Theo here, which has bass, catfish and rainbow trout. Temperatures average from 19F to 91F. There are cabins for rent and camping sites. Great staff and clean bathrooms. It was very windy and hot in May. Advisories were to have plenty of water on hand at all times. We stopped here on our way back from a trip and wished we could have camped there after seeing the area. They were all booked, so we just napped in hammocks by the water. We awoke to the awesome sight of bison coming down to the lake to drink. It does not get any better than this park.

  Read More
• J

  Jared

  Traveler

  Oct. 14, 2019

  Wild Horse Equestrian Area — Caprock Canyons State Park

  Great stay!

  Beautiful park. Clean heated bathrooms. Tons of Bison and the views cant be beat. We stopped here on a whim and the campground was full. They were able to accommodate us for the night dry camping in the equestrian section. Was nice, not many people camping there. Staff were all super helpful and nice