Best Dog-Friendly Camping near Tuscola, TX

Honestly this place is way better than i anticipated. Gated, clean, several of the sites have a covered veranda over the private picnic tables. Dog park with separate areas for small and large breed dogs. Full hook up w/ 50 amp and well spaced out sites. The grass is nice too (a lot of places are mainly weeds and stickers/thorns that my dog doesn’t want walk in). $52 for one night so a bit pricey for us to stay longer than a couple days but definitely a good place to stop that i feel is clean and safe. Others complained of hearing a train but we were there in the summer and with our a/c on i can’t hear any exterior noises

Fairly new park on top of hill. Stayed long term so very familiar with park. Next to I-20 so there’s that. Good pool, dog park, laundromat with pay per load on machines-card. Hard Gravel parking- most sites not completely level, astroturf yard. Roads are asphalt paved so great for walks. Did not use showers. Good sewer, water pressure and 50/30 amp available-included for overnight. Good Spots just for overnight folks-Pull through. Backin long term-very good- best in area for electric kWh price. Good long term rent price. First A.I. mega center being built in the area so wait list long term.

This Texas state park was really nice, lots of shade for my dog and lots of friendly people. During the day lots of squirrels running around and at night raccoons and armadillos. The park is kept up with its cleanliness. Also there is restrooms and showers here.

This place is new and their facility is prestine with great FREE washing machines and all new hookups. The bad is it alligns with the airport runway perfectly, right next to the railway and highway. Most people are there full time and some keep dogs outside. As long as you are ok with all those aspects, you will be ok. We god a great night sleep even with all the noise.

So let me start this review by saying we found the stretch of Odessa to Sweetwater a bit challenging as far as campgrounds. Several of the places we called were completely booked - the one campground told me that industry was booming and workers were camping because housing wasn’t available. This type of campground wouldn’t be my first pick.

However, it has many advantages - the gate was secure, the sites were level and had an extra parking space, the WiFi was good, booking online AND checking in online were super easy, it was reasonably priced and it was located right next to the interstate.

There is a pickleball court, sitting area and dog play area in the center of the campground (it’s not super large), but we could not find the laundry anywhere and we really needed to do laundry! The bathrooms were located at the front of the park at the gate, which seemed weird and it seemed like there was only two and that while your showering inside, someone who has no idea it’s occupied, is out there trying to punch in the code.

To me, if you need a quick and easy place to park for the night in an area where the other options are sparse, this is a great fit.

UPDATE There is no laundry - you have to go over to the truck stop to use laundry, but it’s not part of the campground.

It has not been established long enough to have any trees. Hot in Texas and always look for trees to shade us. Really easy to stay here and get in and out easily. Walmart is nearby also

This is a very quiet and open campground. We saw lots of deer every night. This area of Texas is hot and dry and the landscape reflects that. We had electric and water (slow flow). There is a dump station at the front near the gas station and the store. Most people are here to catch giant fish in Lake OH Ivie.

We stayed in a tent only spot for 8 days in Dec. Really quiet even with a trail behind us. Lots of winding beautiful trails. One of the cheaper Texas State Parks so the trails aren't very long.

BUT the real hidden gem was in the bathroom by the yurts. They have a disabled shower. So it's within reach and the showerhead is lower. Awesome to use to clean my toddler without getting drenched.

Felt very safe, even walking around past dark. We saw feral hogs a few times at dusk. Really loved it.

The playground isn't very good but you are 20 minutes from Abilene with oodles of great parks and a small zoo.

If at first you don’t find something you like– keep driving! You’ll find it! This place is Texas big with more recreational activities than I have ever seen, and I have been on the road for quite a while. The only thing I didn’t see was a bocce court! There are multiple camping opportunities so take your pick. The Wagon Circle was a trip-- 17 sites with water and electric in a circle around the facilities, see the photos. There are two pools– a kiddy pool and a full size(25 yards) lap pool. The pool area is in great shape, but many of the other activity areas are a bit dated. I was relying on my Verizon hotspot because of issues with Starlink and the signal was not great. I ended up dry camping in a picnic area because it was the only place I could get two bars LTE.

Abilene State Park is an interesting park to visit in the middle of Texas. The park is a short drive from the City of Abilene so it receives quite a few visitors on the weekend. During the weekday, you'll find considerably more peace and quiet. 

You can pick up supplies in the city and there is also a small store within the park office with some snacks and souvenirs.

The park has a nice grove of trees scattered around the open spaces and the campsites which can provide sanctuary shade from the summer sun. The campsites have clearings for tents, picnic tables, fire pits and water. There are restrooms nearby which have sinks, toilets and shower, all of which could stand some updating. There's a swimming pool which is often the main attraction of this park. 

When I was planning a visit to the park I thought that it would be nice to be right on the shores of Lake Abilene. However, I discovered that the main park area and campsites are in one area and the access point to the lake is in another area. You actually need to drive outside of the park, down the road and enter into another part of the park. There's a dirt road to access the lakefront and once you are at the lakefront there is a little beach. I guess that this is one reason why so many people appear to prefer hanging out at the swimming pool. 

The arrangement of the facilities is a little strange and many of the facilities could use an update. For this reason I only rate this park 3 out of 5.

General: Approximately 140 sites (plus 12 cabins) spread out all around Hords Creek Lake in two areas: Lakeside Park and Flat Rock Park. According to the map, two of the four gatehouses are closed – not sure if this is a permanent closure (and don’t know if these campsites are also closed). There was no attendant at the gate when we arrived.

Site Quality: Paved/gravel driveways, some are pull-through, some have sewer hookups, and some have 50 amp electric. A bonus for us that we did not know when we reserved is that several sites have screened-in shelters with electricity and a generous-sized concrete picnic table. There are many trees throughout the campground and although we didn’t need the shade when we were there, I imagine it would be nice during the hot summer. There is also a fire ring but there was a strict fire ban when we were there (In fact, there was a large wildfire about 8 miles from the campground and we had been warned to stay ready to evacuate if the wind changed direction).

Bathhouse: There seem to be more than adequate bathhouses located throughout, however, the one closest to our site was small and somewhat inadequate: one shower, one sink, and two toilets. If the campground was completely full, this may pose a problem. There was no hot water, even in the shower and the shower door did not have a latch for privacy. Also, no hooks or shelves, or soap dispensers. Make sure you bring a towel if you do not want to use the air dryer. 

Activities/Amenities: There are several boat ramps, fishing docks, and swimming areas at different points of the lake. There was a nice, covered playground in the Lakeside Park campground. It is a bit of a hike to the dumpsters. 

This was an overnight stay for us as we continued to travel through Texas, but we appreciated some of the amenities offered at this campground

We reserved a site here for the part of our trip between Hot Springs and Big Bend. It was a pleasant and quiet campground, and had many sites available. The cedars provided shade and the bathhouse was clean with hot water, which was amazing on a long camping road trip. There was a generator or water pump which was fairly loud.

A pretty basic state park, kind of in the middle of nowhere. I arrived at 9PM and google maps took me down a bunch of country back roads, which was a little unnerving. I camped in wagon wheel, which was doable, but definitely nothing to write home about. It had zero privacy and most campers seemed confused about which direction to park their vehicles. There was a yurt-like permanent structure in the middle that I was under the impression housed bathrooms, but certainly didn’t appear so. The pool area/buildings were very pretty, but the pool was bone dry. I never saw a single park ranger. I only stayed for one night and likely won’t be back.

I was the only camper in the Cedar Grove area (mid-October). I saw deer around the campsite and heard coyotes nearby. Got 1 bar with T-mobile very spotty at my site. Took a hot shower and enjoyed some quite breathtaking views all around the park.