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Martin Dies Jr State Park

4.4 (29 reviews)

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Alexia B.

My boyfriend & I decided to take a hike after church on a nice Sunday afternoon. It's late October so the weather is cooler & there's some beautiful color changes in the leaves. There are two different sides to the park. The Headquarters office is where you check in & pay $4 per adult for the entrance fee. They give you a map & a receipt to tape on the windshield & you can park at any of the parking spaces around the park near hiking trail entrances. There are walking/hiking trails that are easy enough for children. There isn't big slopes or rocks to climb. We walked Island Trail (we highly recommend) for great water views, benches to sit & overlook the water, & plenty of shaded trail. We saw a family with small kids & people with small dogs on leashes walking the trails. We also walked across Observation bridge & the Nature trail that took us along part of the slough & through most of the wooded area. We saw white cranes, alligators, turtles, a wood pecker, turkey vultures, ducks, & mosquitoes lol (we recommend spraying Deet on even in cooler weather the wooded areas are still pretty dominated with them skeeters!) Anyway, there's a few paddling trails we still want to do & a few other walking/hiking trails. You can mountain bike some trails also & rent canoes & bikes at the Headquarters office. We look forward to coming back to visit this park again.

Genius idea to bring movies with a projector and white sheet for the kids.
Pokemon Y.

Camped here Nov 2020 in my fold-up tent. Open during Covid. Wonderful trails to hike, clean restrooms with showers and hot water, beautiful East Texas swamps. Firewood can be purchased near the park ranger. Lots of people on bicycles, people fishing, canoe rentals. Bring white Cmas lights for night around your tent; everyone has them. There is an incredible country restaurant 20 minutes west, serving the most amazing food I've ever had: homemade buttermilk biscuits with butter and honey on the side, collard greens with bacon like granny used to make, crispy delicious fried chicken, homemade mashed potatoes with brown gravy, cornbread muffins, chicken n dumplings, etc, all served family style, peach cobbler for dessert; waitresses wore cute country granny outfits-- I can't remember the name of the restaurant, but you MUST go there once. The food is amazing.

Bulletin board outside Nature Center, located in Walnut Ridge Unit. Check for any events happening in park during your stay.
Kim D.

We came out for Valentine's Day weekend to enjoy the hiking trails and to take part in the star gazing (astronomy workshops) on Saturday. We stayed in Limited Use Cabin #15 in the Walnut Ridge Unit. It is a lake front cabin on high ground. Cabin #15 is much better situated than the other Limited Use Cabin in the Hen House Ridge Unit which had several large puddles of water right next to it which would be a problem during the summer mosquito season. The bathrooms in our camping section were very clean and heated! No hand soap, so make sure to bring it with you. The heater in our cabin was powerful. There was also an outdoor water faucet at every sheltered site. We first walked the Wildlife Trail loop and then took the Island Trail, where we found one of several benches along the northern (looks eastern on park map) side of the island to stop and enjoy our packed lunch. If you have kids, or are not up for heavy hiking mileage, you will want to drive up to this trail entrance point, right after campground 104 in the Walnut Ridge Unit. We saw several senior citizens and younger couples with dogs parking here to enter the trail from this access point. We were fortunate to stay here during the Star Party hosted by The Astronomical Society of South East Texas & Martin Dies Jr. State Park. We met the President of the astronomy group, who was very friendly and informative. We saw Jupiter with all four moons lined up perfectly. Several other telescopes were set up on various other planets, stars and constellations, and eventually the full moon that was out later that night. Park Ranger Amy Kocurek in the Nature Center (Walnut Ridge) is absolutely fantastic! She ran two star gazer activities (astronomy workshops) for the kids earlier that day before the main Star Party event held later that evening in the Hen House Ridge day use area. After the star gazer activities held in the Nature Center earlier in the day, Amy brought out the snakes and baby alligator for us to touch. Definitely stop in the Nature Center while you're here. During our weekend stay we spotted deer, armadillos, squirrel and various birds. No alligators though. We did not have time to rent canoes (starting at $15 for two hours). The guided canoe tours that run every third Saturday of the month don't start up until March. We did see a few folks on canoes, and some of the locals came through the sloughs in speed boats, but slow enough so as not to make much of a wake. If you canoe or kayak, I imagine the marked paddling trails are pretty amazing. Just the views from the shoreline looked interesting. Great scenery and terrain. This is a great weekend getaway, and if you canoe or fish, I imagine you'd want to spend longer than just a weekend. Otherwise, two nights tops is just about right for this place.

Park headquarters
Amanda S.

So my fiance grew up in Fred, which is not too far from Martin Dies and he would often go here as a kid with his family. We decided to plan a camping trip out here and make a long weekend out of the trip and invite some of his family and friends out to the park to hang out while we were there. We reserved the Hen House Ridge cabin (cabin #41) for 4 nights. The cabins are in the back of the park and right by the lake. Our particular cabin was the largest kind that they offer. It had 2 sets of bunk beds and one set had a full size bed at the bottom. There was an air conditioner/heater unit as well. There was a small table and desk with shelving. When you first go in the main door from outside the first door is to a screened in porch where we kept all of our coolers, folding table, fishing poles and other random camping stuff. Then there is a door to get inside the main part of the cabin. The cabin is not huge by any means but absolutely comfortable. Cabin 41 is also a small walking distance to the restrooms and showers. Each campsite has a wooden picnic table out side and a fire pit/grill. The bathrooms were actually pretty clean and nice for camping I thought. They were also heated. One issue I ran into with the woman's bathroom was that the heater was getting stuck on. The lights are automatic and will pop on when you walk in and a minute later the heater would come on. When you left if no motion was going on I guess it would cut off. About the second day the heater started not cutting off. I let the park ranger know and she reset it, but the issue persisted. It was not a huge issue it was just unnecessarily hot in the woman's restroom when you walked in. The park itself was beautiful. There are forest and nature trails all throughout. There was a swimming spot, but it was too cold for that in February. There was a fishing pier where one of us actually caught a fish! We got there on a Wednesday and it wasn't until Friday afternoon when we started seeing other people at the park really. It was cool to have it all to ourselves the first few days. It was quiet even with the other people on there on the weekend. The park also offers firewood for a suggested donation that goes back into the park. It was actually worth it and easy we thought. We were able to have a camp fire most of the time we were there. It was awesome! They have RV hook ups and tent spots throughout the park too. I know Steve H and I will absolutely be back here in our lifetime. This is a great place to spend time with family and friends, experience the forest, nature and camping.

Swimming alligator
Elizabeth J.

The boyfriend had never been fishing before, so we took a trip to the state park to cross that activity off the bucket list, keeping in mind that fishing is allowed WITHOUT a license inside of all Texas state parks. Of course, being "city folk", we forgot damn near everything but the poles. Luckily, the entrance office sells ice AND bait. We drove over to the day use area, parked the truck and set everything up. After many attempts to cast properly, and having to stop and untangle his line about ten times, he caught his first fish! Granted, it was about the size of the bobber and had to be thrown back, but dammit, he's an angler now! I almost hate to review this particular park, as it's kind of a hidden gem and I don't want to ruin that. Lakefront camping and day use areas, hiking and biking trails, only about 20 minutes to the nearest Wal-mart (in case, like us, you forget everything) but still easy to immerse yourself in nature. We saw an alligator swimming in the middle of the lake early in the morning. They also offer canoe rentals, playgrounds, and a swimming area for those brave enough to swim with the gators. We have yet to personally camp there, but when I finally wear him down enough to the point he will spend a weekend in a tent, this will be our campsite.

My sweet campsite!
Laurie H.

Ahhhhh peace and quiet at our lovely campsite! What a wonderful weekend! Fishing , sipping coffee, napping and listening to the birds! We will definitely be back!

Saturday evening dinner with my wife and daughter! Who needs an Italian restaurant anyways!!
Rudy P.

This is a great State park with canoeing, fishing, hiking and overall great fun! We stayed in the walnut ridge area at site 117 on the water in a travel trailer.

Meagan M.

We camped at Walnut Ridge on 4- 9- 2017. There is also another location called "Hen House Ridge" right across the street. While I recommend Hen House (better campsites in my opinion), Walnut Ridge was very nice! The bathrooms were the cleanest bathrooms I have ever seen while tent camping! They stayed that way, too. You do have to purchase firewood and stick gathering is prohibited. It was quiet and everyone stayed to themselves as the park was full! I do recommend this place. I would say campsites 120 - 124 were the best. They were right on the water. There is no swimming at Hen House right now due to construction. We walked Slough Trail all the way to Sandy Creek Trail. Pretty nice trail!

Views from the park
Bobb G.

Very nice park with lots of amenities if you are into having all the comforts of civilization but still like to sleep in a tent and do the campfire thing. One complaint is that it's supposed to be quiet time after 10 pm but there was a nearby group that partied until after 12, good thing I'm a heavy sleeper lol. I guess that's what I get for going on a Friday, but I was trying to get away from the noise. Anyway, the lake is nice and the swamps look really cool, next time I'll camp away from the lake and maybe it will be quieter.

Beautiful sunset on the Steinhagen Lake of the Neches tributary..

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5 years ago

It's pretty nice, the trails are excellent however the fishing there is not that good. Most importantly beware of alligators.

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4 years ago

I love the campsite and trails. Definitely will return soon with my wife. Park rangers are very friendly

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4 years ago

Excellent park very nice saw deer just walking in front of my car like I wasn't even there

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Ask the Community - Martin Dies Jr State Park

Review Highlights - Martin Dies Jr State Park

We walked Island Trail (we highly recommend) for great water views, benches to sit & overlook the water, & plenty of shaded trail.

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Village Creek State Park

Village Creek State Park

4.0(22 reviews)
41.6 mi

When there was no other campsites available on the website for TX State parks, I kinda grew…read moreskeptical that this one being so close to East Texas that I would have issues as I'm a minority. However, nonetheless, when I tell you this state park is a gem and an underrated one too you'll be surprised to know why. Let me tell you: With the Texas Parks pass, I booked a weekend stay from Saturday to Monday at campsite 36. The original cost was going to be $36, but with the pass it was only $15 total. The campsite wasn't a drive-in and it was only a short hike in. I was a bit worried about this since the person I went with normally camps at drive up sites and not so much primitive. Rest ensure, he was fine because the parking lot to our campsite was approximately 400 ft in and the pathway was sand. The only troubles we had was our lousy portable cart that had a lame leg. Our campsite was the most primitive since most of the others were close in proximity to the others and your neighbors were either across from you or adjacent from you. Thankfully, ours wasn't. All primitive campsites are off of many hiking trails and campsite 40+ are near the creek so that's a nice view. The campsite itself has a lantern post, fire ring, picnic table, and a base spot for the tent (away from the fire ring). It is prohibited to burn or ignite firewood collected inside the parks. So, please go to the ranger station to purchase firewood. My friend and I ended up going to Home Depot, they sell it for $6 and it burned very well and too quick. Oh and please don't go to the gas station to get theirs, we made that mistake and it was not only expensive, but the wood burned too quick. The mosquitoes are absolutely terrible, make sure you bring DEET bug spray, citronella candle, or something to keep them invasive buggers off your skin and ears! I must tell y'all, the restrooms are amazingly clean. Every morning they are cleaned with Pinesol and are spotless. Once you sleep throughout the night and your body starts to feel sticky, please hit the showers!! The water pressure is perfect flowing and the water can get hot. The floors can be cold. I wore my sandals. I can say those restrooms are by far the best I've occupied in a state park or any park owned by the state! There was no dead bugs lingering around or weird mildew odor. If you like to hike, check out those trails. I hiked early morning just before anyone else was up and had a thrill exploring nature. I seen some deer, birds, another watering hole, and wildflowers. The trails are well maintained. There was some obstructed paths due to water or creeks passing through, but that was the fun part trying to maneuver to the other side. I had to get creative with where I jumped off of to get on the main trail. The main creek water was murky due to the amount of tannins in it and the water line wasn't high, so I opt out of swimming in it. The ranger station is clean and well organized. They sell the state park scratch off maps for those of you who are into exploring all state parks like me!! A true nature nerd, eh? They even sell Village Creek SP merch like stickers. The rangers were pretty nice and didn't display any form of prejudice or discrimination. Definitely a smaller state park than the others. It is settled in a residential area like most SPs are, but it's kind of a good thing especially if you forget some food, there's a Wal-Mart less than 5 minutes away. I would recommend this state park to visit.

Knew I would be in the area and wanted to check out their amenities. I was accompanied by my…read moremother, brother, and future sister-in-law. We took a rather short hike on one of the loop trails (roughly 1.2 miles). Thought the property was well maintained; however, the area seemed ripe for a proscribed burn to help prevent forest fires. The staff at the front desk were extremely friendly and helpful. Would gladly camp here in the future. If you're ever in the area, come visit.

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Village Creek State Park
Village Creek State Park
Village Creek State Park

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Lake Livingston - Over 100 RV spots

Lake Livingston

2.9(28 reviews)
57.1 mi

worst service ever the old lady in the front has the worst attitude with customers when we asked…read morequestions. We had a large crew that arrived at diff times and accused us of stealing when we called the number and were going to pay for our site the next day in the morning.

First time visiting any KOA campground. Typically we do Lake Livingston State park, but this was a…read morenice switch up. This review is mostly about the KOA, but I will use the state park as a comparison. First I should say, the staff at the KOA are very pleasant, not that the State Park isn't, but everyone at the KOA was helpful, waving, driving around checking on you. They take very good care of the campground as well. The bathrooms and showers were the cleanest of any campground I have ever been too, especially compared to the state park. I also would see the maintenance team cleaning up sites and shoveling out fire pits. We stayed in a tent site, and one of my gripes would be, that the sites are pretty small. It would be difficult to get two decent size tents on once site, without being right next to the fire pit at least. Compared to a state park site where you have a ton of space, this was kind of a bummer. The way it sits now, there is a large open green space across from the campsites, which did allow for more room to run around and explore, but this area is marked as future development. Once this place builds the remaining sites, I think the loss of the bonus space will likely turn us away. The only other issue I had with the place was the locations of the bathrooms. Staying in the tent site, it is quite the walk to either of the bathrooms, especially with kids at night and such. The exercise is great and all, but when you have to walk a kid that far to the bathroom at 2 AM, it gets kind of old. The pool was very nice, clean, albeit cold due to the time of year, but I am sure it would be very nice in the summer. Its mostly shallow, 3 feet on both ends, 4 in the middle, and a large shallow area for little kids. The hot tub is also a nice addition. The beach area is about what I would expect from a lakeside beach, but don't expect is to be like an ocean beach. The water off the beach was nice and clean, sandy, few rocks, and no sea weed. Overall, we really enjoyed ourselves, and met some very nice people, and that really made the trip worth it for us. Like I said, if the green space wasn't there, it would have been a bit of a bummer, but it was a very nice as it is right now.

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Lake Livingston
Lake Livingston
Lake Livingston

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Martin Dies Jr State Park - fishing - Updated May 2026

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