Fairfield State Park
We are slowly making our way around our part of Texas trying out all the camping spots. Someday I suppose we will have some favorites we go to regularly, but right now we are still trying out different spots. (So if you know of a great place to camp with a small popup in the North Texas area, feel free to pass that recommendation along). Father's Day weekend we headed out to Fairfield State Park in Fairfield, TX.
Texas has switched to a new reservation system and I LOVE it. You can now pick out your actual campsite when you make your reservation. This is a game changer for us, because being a smaller popup (less than 20 feet when we are set up) we would often get weird spots assigned to us, to ensure that the larger RV's would have a site they're equipment would fit into. Now we get to pick the site we actually want.
Below is the view from our camper door. We have a nice view of the lake and we were relatively close to the bathroom...with a toddler bathroom proximity is important. There was also nice space for the dog's tie outs.
That stop was Echo Springs Blueberry Farm. This time we picked berries. We were a little worried that the actual experience might not live up to expectations since we were soooo excited. As it turned out, it was the highlight of the trip and has now been worked into pretend at home.
She even has some rules to share:
1. Only pick blue berries. Big ones too. Don't pick pink or green or yellow or red. Just blue.
2. If you pick pink or green, throw them on the ground. Don't put them in the bucket. Just throw them.
I promise we didn't teach her rule two. Rule one may have been something we went over a number of times before we even made it to the Farm's driveway. The blueberries were amazing as was the pineapple muffin we got to split as a little snacky-snack.
On the drive back we saw an awesome dam. At least I enjoyed it and I made the driver slow down so I could take a picture of it. Other members of my group were less impressed.
It was our first trip without rain in a while, until Sunday morning came. We woke up to clouds (and no weather report since we had no cell service). By the time we made it back from the bathroom it was raining complete with wind, thunder and lightning. We had breakfast inside the camper and ended up having to breakdown camp in the storm. Not our favorite thing to do.
When we got home, we had to reopen the camper after unpacking everything so it could dry. We found this stowaway inside. The picture doesn't do it justice. This guy was larger than my hand.
To summarize my feeling of the park and the camping areas for future reference: The park is really nice. Bathhouse was under renovations, so that's a good thing. Day use area was not very nice and the bathrooms were dirty enough to make my three year comment on it multiple times. Our campsite was perfect for us. The drive around did show that there are quite a few good sites, but most have steps between the parking pad and the table/fire ring. Our site was close to the playground, but the playground wasn't all that great. Swings were weird and had too much friction to really swing. Close to lots of fun stuff. Definitely worth another visit.
Below is the view from our camper door. We have a nice view of the lake and we were relatively close to the bathroom...with a toddler bathroom proximity is important. There was also nice space for the dog's tie outs.
We had beautiful cool weather to set-up in and even enjoyed a campfire up close our first night at the park.
Saturday we didn't stay at camp, instead we headed out on the road. Important thing to remember, there really isn't cell phone service at Fairfield, and the Wifi they claim they have, they really don't, so if you are planning on visiting anywhere else you should probably bring a map or directions because you can't use the GPS on your phone to get those directions you need. The extra travel time may result in you teaching your toddler how to pee on the side of the road....hypothetically of course.
We stopped by Big Chicken Daylily Farm again and they didn't disappoint. We came home a a half dozen daylilies and two bonus plants. It was a great Father's Day treat for the Plant Geek. the Garden Apprentice was less impressed and wanted to get to our second destination ASAP.
That stop was Echo Springs Blueberry Farm. This time we picked berries. We were a little worried that the actual experience might not live up to expectations since we were soooo excited. As it turned out, it was the highlight of the trip and has now been worked into pretend at home.
She even has some rules to share:
1. Only pick blue berries. Big ones too. Don't pick pink or green or yellow or red. Just blue.
2. If you pick pink or green, throw them on the ground. Don't put them in the bucket. Just throw them.
I promise we didn't teach her rule two. Rule one may have been something we went over a number of times before we even made it to the Farm's driveway. The blueberries were amazing as was the pineapple muffin we got to split as a little snacky-snack.
On the drive back we saw an awesome dam. At least I enjoyed it and I made the driver slow down so I could take a picture of it. Other members of my group were less impressed.
It was hot when we got back, so we ate a quick lunch and then lounged around the campsite. I may have taken a little nap. Then we attempted a little walk along the lake. This time the spiny vines were the issue, not the walking. It went better than the our last attempt and nobody laid down on the ground and cried, so I'm calling it a win.
It was our first trip without rain in a while, until Sunday morning came. We woke up to clouds (and no weather report since we had no cell service). By the time we made it back from the bathroom it was raining complete with wind, thunder and lightning. We had breakfast inside the camper and ended up having to breakdown camp in the storm. Not our favorite thing to do.
When we got home, we had to reopen the camper after unpacking everything so it could dry. We found this stowaway inside. The picture doesn't do it justice. This guy was larger than my hand.
To summarize my feeling of the park and the camping areas for future reference: The park is really nice. Bathhouse was under renovations, so that's a good thing. Day use area was not very nice and the bathrooms were dirty enough to make my three year comment on it multiple times. Our campsite was perfect for us. The drive around did show that there are quite a few good sites, but most have steps between the parking pad and the table/fire ring. Our site was close to the playground, but the playground wasn't all that great. Swings were weird and had too much friction to really swing. Close to lots of fun stuff. Definitely worth another visit.
Fairfield used to be our go-to camping place when I was growing up. I went again a few years ago with everyone once again and it was fun. My brother and I would ride our bikes for hours and hours around there.
ReplyDeleteThat sunset shot alone would have been worth the trip in my book but the blueberries were a bonus too. Was the Apprentice intrigued by the walking stick?
ReplyDelete