San Pedro Campground — Amistad National Recreation Area

Great value, only $3 with the senior pass. We stayed at site 31, level, gravel with a picnic table under a sun shade and a grill. There were maybe 4 or 5 others here and all very quiet.
Pit toilets were clean and had TP and did not smell.
It was a great overnight. Easy to get to, the dirt road here is in great condition, and it is not far from 90. It's close to Del Rio and we have internet, but the lake is low and it was hot, 89 on March 6 so we didn't stay longer.
Payment is easy at the kiosk. It right there at the end of the camp sites Takes credit cards.

Perfect place for a short stay to get away from everything and have some very peaceful nights. No road noise or people noise. With the lake being low it keeps most people away but it was perfect to just hang out. We had great Wi-Fi and long walks.

Note, this is my second review of San Pedro campground. My first review was based on good nostalgia from around 2010 when the lake was high. However, I tent camped here on July 5, 2023 and I was the lone camper. The place felt scorched abandoned. It was hot. There is almost zero shade apart from the metal shade structures. I stayed in site 10 or 12 where there is some evening shade from the mesquite or huisache trees. The closest lake water is a 2 mile drive down Spur 454, where the NPS has improvised a boat ramp and swimming area with parking. But man, San Pedro campground is now high and dry and hot. I hate to give it 2 stars because I love Amistad but times have changed. Maybe some day the lake will rise again but it’s been like 12 years already since the lake receded. I had planned to stay more nights but it just wasn’t wise. Not in July anyway.

This is a wonderful dispersed campground in a national rest/park area on the hill with close access to the highway.

When traveling near Del Rio, we always try to stop here for a night or two. Well spaced sites and clean pit toilets. If looking for an out-of-the-way place to spend the night, this is it. Just a short 1-mile drive on a gravel road (well maintained) to a number of great sites. The only downside is that the water at this “water front” site was nowhere to be seen. The lake hadn’t extended up this far in many, many years.

We stayed 2 nights at San Pedro, using it as a base camp to explore Amistad National Recreation Area. It's very close to the Spur 454 boat ramp, which we used to launch our kayak. You can also get over Diablo East, Governor's Landing, and the Figueroa trail for good hiking by driving maybe 10 minutes. 

The non-tent sites all have covered picnic tables with a concrete pad and charcoal grill. There are quite a few pit toilets dispersed amongst the sites. There doesn't seem to be anyway to get down closer to the lake from this campground. 

When we were there, we saw 4 - 5 other campers in the campground and everyone setup spaced apart. We heard lots of coyotes in the distance just after sunset.

Campground is located just a few miles from Del Rio, Texas and is part of the Lake Amistad Nat'l Rec Area. Great location if your looking for a safe, quiet, level, overnight stay location with good cell service signal (AT&T). Not so good if you're here to enjoy the water as there is any lake access from the campground proper (hence the 4 versus 5 star rating). Nevertheless, very clean and numerous pit toilets, covered picnic tables, and 30 or so level sites await the road weary RVer. And if you do want to enjoy the lake, lake access is a few miles nearby.

The lake as of October 2021 is so dried up you can not see it from the tent sites. But everything is clean. Fire ants EVERYWHERE. We just pitched a tent by the pavilion where we found the least ants.

Just an over night stop for us, primitive campground with shaded tables, park is minutes away from lake and Del Rio

Just $6 ($3/night with senior or access pass). Only one other camper during our stay. Dry camping only. Vault toilets. Nice covered picnic tables and grills. No ground fires allowed. No dump station (but free dump station 4 miles away at devils river day use)

Lived in Del Rio over 15 years and didn't know this campground existed until my brother was visiting from San Antonio and brought up the idea of staying there to fish all weekend. Nice, quiet and comfortable place to camp.

Just 5 miles outside of Del Rio, Texas lies the limestone lined Amistad Reservoir which gathers the waters of the Rio Grande river on its journey to the gulf. Amistad means friendship, and as a dam project, was co-sponsored by the US and Mexico.  This park is a confluence of three distinct ecosystems, which makes the flora extra special.

There are many developed campgrounds throughout the Recreation Area, the San Pedro campground has a few sites that offer more privacy away from the main campground, and dozens in the larger, more open area.  Each is set up with a grill, picnic table and shade shelter. A large group campsite is available for reservation, but not during COVID. There are no electrical hook-ups (bring your solar!), and no water available at this campground.  Pit toilets were clean and hopefully they'll fix the lock on the doors soon (in the meantime, just use a stick).  Whaddya want for 6 bucks a night?  The stay limit is 2 weeks, and the rangers do check.

San Pedro is further away from the water than some of the other camping areas, but it was quiet, comfortable and lovely. Since the Verizon signal was super strong we were able to get a ton of things accomplished while also squeezing in some hikes, bikes, paddles, and runs. There are a few trails around, but lots of quiet dirt roads to stay active.  The boat launch was a short 2 mile drive away. And of course the crystal blue lake offers everything from swimming, fishing, paddling, and powerboating.

Del Rio is one of the larger cities along the border between Loredo and El Paso, so there really isn't much you can't get in town just a short drive away. We even got some work done on our truck and were able to just bike back to the campground whiel it was in the shop.  Drinking water can be filled at the Diablo East Campground dump station, about 4 miles away for no charge, and of course the town is full of water filling kiosks like all southern desert towns.

A must see

We stopped at Amistad for one night on our way to Big Bend. I wish we had built in some time to spend a couple days here. Absolutely beautiful area. The camp area has minimal amenities (compost toilet) and is first come first serve. Self pay and is $6 per night.

My son and I tent camped at San Pedro several times circa 2010 when the lake was high. We always had a good time. I waded into the lake chest high and caught a bass with a rod and reel. The only time we found it busy was Easter but we still got a site and had a great time. The drought came in 2011 and the lake receded far from the campground. I don’t know how far away the lake is now.

We stayed two nights on our way south to Big Bend National Park. Because it was winter we were not interested in the lake (it was cold) but we appreciated the ample space between each campsite. We had a covered picnic table and fire ring.  Overwise there is no water, sewer or electric.  They do have vault toilets conveniently located throughout the campground.  It's a self-serve place. We just paid our $6 fee at the entry kiosk and that was it.  There was quite a bit of traffic in and around the campground as it appeared some people stay quite awhile.