Caddo Lake State Park Campground

The facilities were great. Clean and well kept. The site that we stayed at (#34) was too close to the main road and the noise from the cars was so loud, which led to an awful nights sleep. Also there was a cat (seemed like a camp cat) that roamed around all night and that freaked out my dog. The lake itself was fantastic and otherworldly. Absolutely beautiful in early November. Definitely gonna visit again but will not camp here.

Peaceful at night. Fairly private sites. Beautiful bayou.

I've never seen anything so unique and beautiful as Caddo Lake!! Like being in a movie! The State Park campground is immaculate, staff and hosts are super friendly. Fishing, kayaking, canoeing, boat tours, walking/hiking trails, awesome! Nearby historical town of Jefferson was a quaint day trip or artists, shops and eateries. What a trip! Can't wait to revisit Caddo Lake and all its beauty!

PROS 

Saved $42 With TX STATE PARK PASS 

No fee to reserve online. 

No sales tax. U

pon arriving at Site 23, we had no power at the pedestal. Called Park Headquarters and 2 park personnel were at our site in 10 minutes and resolved problem 

Site 23 level asphalt 

Site 23 partial shade 

Aluminum picnic table, 2 hook lantern pole and metal fire pit with cooking grate 

Donation firewood available 

Soap and hand dryer in toilet/shower facility 

3 bars TMOBILE when not storming 

CONS 

No overnight security gate closure 

Site 23 was 1/3 covered with poison oak and remaining living area covered with tall weeds. 

Some highway noises. 

Two PARK HOSTS occupy sites in Woodpecker Hollow. That reduces full hook up sites to 6. One of those sites were used as a temporary dump station due to out-of-service park dump station 

Woodpecker Hollow toilet/shower facility needs some deep cleaning 

11 windows in Woodpecker Hollow women’s toilet/shower and only 4 were open. Camp host said rest of windows were painted shut.  Floors were continuously wet and slippery. What a mess! This place needs a fan or two.

Most pets we saw were NOT on leash 

No privacy from surrounding campsites 

No ranger drive thru Woodpecker Hollow 

No park WIFI

Went right after Memorial Day weekend and basically had the campground to ourselves. Campsite 64 had a large flat surface to accommodate a six person tent (North Face Wawona 6) with a vestibule. Great place for a weekend getaway from the DFW area ~3 hr drive). Overall the park has nice amenities, easy hikes, and great canoeing-kayaking!

Very well kept, great park staff, excellent boat ramp and pier.  Could use more camping spots especially for tent campers.

Camped at site #63 in the Mill Pond Camping Area - tent area. This site backed up onto Saw Mill Pond - beautiful cypress swamp. Bugs were not too bad. Gravel drive on site. Level tent pad. Water only; no electric. Clean fire ring. Lantern post. Large site, good separation from other sites. Campground is heavily wooded, lots of shade. Campground is clean & nicely maintained. One restroom is at the entrance to the Mill Pond camping area, just off of a day use parking lot. No shower in this restroom. A newer, nicer restroom/shower house is located in the Woodpecker camping area. Quiet campground; no issues. Good AT&T service. Despite saying it's allowed in the campground features list, alcohol is prohibited. Excellent T-Mobile 5G service.

I’ve been here twice and really enjoy it! AT&T service is pretty good here too. It’s only 20 min from Jefferson which is a must do. Go eat at Big Pines Lodge and check out Uncertain flea market 1st and 3rd weekend while you’re there ❤️

I arrived after a storm hit the area and had to wait until the park team cleared downed trees from the park roads. They did an efficient job. Stayed in Squirrel Haven campground with 30 amp and water hookups. Site 44 was level. There’s a good amount of space and cover between campsites. Dump station in the campground. 

The restrooms were clean. I didn’t use the showers. 

Highlights for me are the hiking and kayak trails in this park. Also, the lake itself with its cypress trees and Spanish moss. This is such a beautiful area. The park itself is older, but I find that’s part of it’s charm. Definitely worth a visit.

A Texas C.C.C. state park in east Texas on Caddo Lake. Beautiful sites and canoe rentals for the old mill pond. Tent sites, RV sites and shelters along with cabins.

We were at Mill Pond site #64. Right on the water, it was really beautiful. I’d heard after heavy rains this campsite goes underwater.. something to keep an eye on. We didn’t have a kayak when we were camping but were able to rent one nearby and had a blast on the water. Didn’t see any gators though.

Pros: There is only one site right next to it... I don’t like being cramped between two sites

Trees for hammocks

Site is right on the water. I don’t kayak but I think you could easily get in the water from the site.

Lots of history at this park and some short, beautiful trails

Cons: Site is a little small for multiple tents

Lots of tree roots sticking up so it’s easy to trip. They also hurt if you fall out of the hammock on them 🤦🏻‍♀️ I did both

The picnic table is old, warped and unbalanced

Bathroom is a little bit of a hike. We drove to it.

The park was beautiful & clean. Huge trees. The walk to the bathroom was a little far but the bathroom was new. The park rangers patrolled constantly. We were in Armadillo Run loop. It was Beautiful but traffic from the highway was pretty loud. We brought kayaks and drove to a nearby boat ramp to put in. (Outside the park, called Crip’s camp) From what I had read online, it should have been fairly easy to find a paddling trail but it was much harder and very, VERY easy to get lost. After talking to a few people who paddle their quite often, I have a plan for our next trip. ***The water at the state park does not really connect to Caddo Lake. It can be fairly misleading. Definitely do your research. The lake is HUGE and you can easily get lost.

Stayed at site 47. Great park. Another park that the CCC left its mark on. For a West Texas kid, Caddo feels otherworldly. Fun fishing, many big sites, decent bathrooms.

We loved the cabin, it made winter camping with kids do-able! Loved hiking and exploring! A ton of CCC history and beautiful bald cypress here!

Caddo Lake State Park looked amazing in pictures—shaggy, mossy trees in the bayou ecosystem, spring greenery, shady campgrounds—so my two friends and I booked it. It’s actually a very nice state park. The bathrooms are immaculate and have soap and TP, the campgrounds have water and electricity for cheap, and they have pre cut firewood you can pay for by donation. They had so many amenities compared to other campgrounds I’ve been to. However, I am more accustomed to having several miles of hiking trails. We hiked every single trail in 2.5 hours. The next day we were looking forward to canoe rentals, but unfortunately the park isn’t doing that during COVID. The park staff by the way is very friendly and helpful. They have several cute and kid friendly maps. The ranger at the desk also gave us the phone number of a boat dock in town, but by the time we got there all the boats were taken. I feel a bit guilty for the lower rating here, but we were pretty bored the second day then got rained out and left early instead of staying a second night. Our campground in Armadillo run was too swampy and our gear got muddy. Wish we’d had our own kayaks to bring!

Beautifully creepy with its Spanish moss covered trees all through the lake. Quiet and great trails for you and the doggies!

Another great Texas State Park. I didn't see as much security as I usually do but the whole area is clean and well kept.

The bathrooms are amazing with fully enclosed toilet/shower/changing station for family bathrooms. As someone traveling with a toddler it is a HUGE relief to lock him inside while I shower.

We tent camp and while our site was perfect (#32) others were awful. It's very common for tent pads to be placed far away from the electrical box, so that's not a big deal... but after a rain storm it was apparent that a lot of tent pads need attention. The pads are dirt and many were uneven enough that 50% were well under water. Our pad was right next to the electrical box and someone had evened it out so while it rained and rained, we were good. So if you are tent camping pay close attention to the location and evenness of your tent pad. No amount of tarps would have saved some of these sites!

The trails are good and it's a very unique location. Reminds me of South Florida!

Lastly, the Armadillo circle is right next to the road. Okay maybe not right next to but you will hear traffic all night.

Great for $15/night!

The park is nice but if you tent camp you will hear traffic noise all night long. Each car seemed to take forever to go by and within minutes there was another. It’s worth the visit to go out on the lake. The trees in the water are beautiful and eerie at the same time. There’s a great little restaurant on the water  in Uncertain. I think it’s called The Riverbend Restaurant. Worst ticks I’ve ever experienced!!

Nice place but not free like advertised. 10$ to camp still isn’t bad but I decided to move along an find a free location

Camping in the pines was wonderful. Very nice bathrooms, private. Firewood is available for a donation. Canoes available. Water, sewer and electric hookups very close to trailer. Quiet and good site spacing. We would definitely stay here again. We stoped for 1 nIght on our way to Florida.

Okay so we visited at the beginning of fall so the mosquitos were on the Down slide but if you come, bring bug spray. It should go without saying, big bits of standing water in Texas, but ya know. The big turn off for me on this park is that, despite its beauty, there is incessant road noise that you hear from every campsite. If you’re a big boater, kayaker, or fisher, maybe you won’t mind because it’s the best place to do those things, but if you’re just looking to escape the city and get away for a while, there aren’t a ton of trails here and the road noise at all hours was not cool.

We were eaten alive. It is to be expected that you will attract mosquitoes, but this was extreme. Nothing we did short of covering our bodies in toxic chemicals would stop them. Even then they surrounded us. We also came home with fleas, also not the end of the world, but unpleasant.

The park itself is must see for fans of the forests of East Texas. The lake is so intriguing and the history is very interesting. It is a heavily populated and used lake... I wouldn't describe it as a peaceful area. I could also do without the partisan political imagery surrounding the park. The park is large enough and the campsites are embedding into the woods.

Campsites are thankfully spread out and when were there it was maybe 35-40% capacity. Lots of privacy. Be sure to stop during the day and listen, you'll hear trees and birds. 

Park is situated among lake towns, but during the day and morning it is very quiet. evening and nights are much louder. The trails need some updating.

Amenities used:

Bathrooms need some updating, but were clean

Trails need work done

Minimal firewood available

Be smart and come prepared and you'll be wowed.

Great trails! This park has both land and water trails. Wonderful place to canoe, kayak, paddle boat and fish. Good space between camp sites and there are full hook up sites. First come choice. Friendly staff!

Very well maintained park with easy access to all areas.  Newer restroom new Woodpecker hollow ground entrance is highly recommended for those needing a shower.  Due to Covid, park is currently NOT renting watercraft.  Family Dollar very close and recommenced for any items needed..including food, beer, water, etc. Finding a way to get on the water a must! Beautiful park and we will be back!

When we called to make our reservation there was only one spot left and it was at the Mill Pond camping area. I was a little hesitant because this area is water hook up only. However, it is the only camping area in the park with water view. So, we sprung for a generator and reserved the spot. On arrival, we were surprised to find that there were plenty of open spots even after being told several times there were not. My assumption was that this had to do with Covid 19 and limited capacity regulations. Nevertheless, the Mill Pond camping area is the way to go. Easy access to the pond and breathtaking views made this my favorite camping location so far. It also could have been the swampy nature reviving my Louisiana roots. Other pros to Caddo State Lake park were the very long scenic hiking trails that included beautiful rock stairs, canoeing through the pond out into the bay, adorable cabins, and wildlife. We spotted a deer, paddle fish, and a baby gator! About four miles from the park is a National Wildlife Refuge with walking trails and auto-tour route. There are several canoe trails on Caddo Lake. I strongly suggest putting in at Crip's Camp to explore the"Old Folks Playground" paddle trail for some very unique scenery.

Check out our entire trip highlights here  https://champagneondeck.com

We totally lucked out getting a spot at Caddo lake on a holiday weekend during the pandemic. Normally we tent camp, but went with the kids and grandkids who have an RV. We were glad we were in the RV as it rained quite a bit. The campground is gorgeous with all the trees and Spanish moss and swamps. The bathrooms are really nice, great showers and spacious. The trails are well marked, the park roads make for good biking (no bike riding on the trails) and the fishing piers are nice. Even though the canoe rental was closed, there are rentals a short distance away. During the pandemic, we think every other site was blocked off, it was nice not to have a super crowded park, but will sure be glad when this is over!

Unique lake ,Beautiful trees all in it.I had a electric and water site, was very nice .on site 36 I was close to a pretty new bathroom they were clean. With a Texas state park pass ,it was $15 a night. AT&T 0-1 bar

Visited with a group of friends and stayed in a cabin. No frills but super clean and functional. Great facilities, beautiful kayaking and hiking trails. A great time all around and the scenery is out of this world!

I just visited the park for the first time since the renovations have been completed. The park was closed for three months, re-opening in December 2018. Many people consider Caddo State Park to be the nicest park in the system.

It's really nice. There a some sites directly on the water. There are also really nice full hookup sites for RV's that are pull-through.

Local news story on the renovations:

http://www.ksla.com/2019/01/17/caddo-lake-state-park-reopen-after-renovations/