It was my first time camping in maybe 15 years. I wanted to pick a campsite that was affordable, not too far of a drive, and seemed primitive enough to feel like camping, while still having amenities like a bathroom and water, if need be.

This had it all. It’s at the head of a trail, just near the river. If you want, you can easily walk down to the river and hike along it. The campsites are spacious, easily allowing our 2 tent set up, but if set up well, they could potentially house 3-4 2-person tents.

The scenery was beautiful. It was Texas, in December, so things were dry and brown and yellow. But there was a serenity to it. At night, the stars were out. The light from nearby Georgetown and Austin didn’t allow for us to see them all, but they were there. The coyotes come out at night, but never got close to camp.

A camp guide caught up to us at about 5pm, and warned us of the coyotes and told us about the water spigot at the front. The walk to our campsite wasn’t far from parking, maybe about 150 feet, maybe a bit more.

There were fire rings at each campsite, and a post that had the number and a hanger for a lantern.

All in all, we had a great time. It made me love camping again. I will certainly be back soon.

Park Review

Tejas Park sits on the south side of Georgetown Lake in the Hill Country of Texas. The park offers good opportunities for hiking, camping and backpacking, fishing, wading or floating and features plenty of large, grassy open areas for enjoying the scenic countryside. 

There is a basic restroom with toilets. There is a water faucet near the Park Host's trailer. There are fire rings at the campsites and it is possible to collect fallen wood for a fire if there is not a fire ban in effect. There is a large parking lot, a large open field with campsites and my favorite is the group campsite at the end of the large open field. These sites can be reserved on recreation.gov

The Goodwater Trail is a trail that circles Lake Georgetown and runs about 28 miles. When backpacking the Goodwater Loop people typically start/park at either Tejas Park Trailhead, Jim Hogg Trailhead or Cedar Breaks Trailhead. If you are backpacking the loop parking and hiking are free. If you are using the park facilities just for the day, there is a day use fee.

The Hosts at this campground are typically very friendly. If you camp during the winter look up in the trees and you might just see some mistletoe.

Product Review

As a Ranger for The Dyrt, from time to time I get products to test. For this trip I was provided one package of Mountain House Beef Stew. The challenge was to create a dish using the beef stew as an ingredient. I decided to use Bread, Idahoan Mashed Potatoes and Mountain House Beef Stew to create a dish I called Brotato Stew. Unfortunately I was only provide one package of beef stew so we divided up the meal amongst six people and ate the meal as an appetizer.

Here are the instructions:

Boil 4 cups of water in a pot.

Pour 2 cups of boiled water into the Mountain House Beef Stew package and let it sit for 10 minutes.

Mix 2 cups of boiled water with the Idahoan Mashed Potatoes in a bowl or cup and mix thoroughly.

Using Onion rolls or Ciabata bread, cut the top of the bread and form a little bowl.

Spread the prepared Idahoan Mashed Potato into the bread bowl.

Spread the prepared Mountain House Beef Stew on top of the Mashed Potatoes.

Enjoy!

For more info about Mountain House visit their website at https://www.mountainhouse.com

I've camped at this campground a number of times while hiking around The Goodwater Trail.

There is a basic restroom with toilets. There is a water faucet near the Park Host's trailer. There is plenty of parking, a field with pad sites, a large open field and my favorite is the group campsite at the end of the large open field. The group campsite has a pad, but it also has plenty of trees and space to hang hammocks. It is also the more secluded of the campsites. There are fire rings at the campsites and it is possible to collect fallen wood for a fire if there is not a fire ban in effect.

Near the group campsite and through the tree line there is a small creek. Depending on the amount of recent rain or degree of draught the creek is deep enough to go for a wade or a swim. It is also fun to just explore the area around the creek.

The Goodwater trail is a loop trail that circles Lake Georgetown and runs about 28 miles. When backpacking the Goodwater Loop people typically start/park at either Tejas Park Trailhead, Jim Hogg Trailhead or Cedar Breaks Trailhead. If you are backpacking the loop parking and hiking are free. If you are using the park facilities just for the day, there is a day use fee.