Thinking about taking the family camping for Thanksgiving this year. Any suggestions on places to go? Looking for something within a half days drive of DFW. Considering Ouachita National Forest, Palo Duro Canyon, Wichita Mountains as about the limit, distance wise. Looking for somewhere pretty. We are good with remote camping or an established campground, as long as folks aren't stacked on top of each other. Some activities we could do with young kids would be good, like fishing, bike trails, canoe rentals, etc. Thanks!

Palo Duro has some cool cabins you can rent cheap

Bated breath.

Stay away from Garner State Park, that place is packed during that week.

palo Duro Canon Awsome scenery, didnt know about the cabins.
On way (Tyler), ta were ya see the dinosaur & human ft prints in river.
We stayed night in cabins, forget the town. Edge of lake, had full kitchen & rent boat..
& (Betty Jean NF) Off sonic route 7 around Hot Springs Ark. ? Has nice cabins & Beautiful sensery

also has many Beatuful State Parks...
We did a lot of camping...

Guadalupe Mountains National Park is way past your travel limit, but if the weather is nice November is a good time to spend time there.

Beavers Bend State park in Oklahoma would give the kids lots to do. Not sure what the crowds would be like during that week though. I was up there last week hiking in preparation for an upcoming elk hunt and it sure was nice.

I definitely want to get the boys out there, but I think I'll wait a couple years until they hike up some of the mountains.

Thanks for all the suggestions, going into research mode now...

Pedernales Falls is one of my Favorites. Great Fishing. Also, might look at the Guadalupe just below Canyon lake damn. They stock trout at some point every fall, and that would be pretty cool too!

I grew up camping for thanksgiving at Fairfield State park. Great time of year to visit.
Beavers bend is nice in the fall as well with plenty of activities and places to eat..

Palo Duro state park is great. If the play Texas is being performed these days, you do want to see that.

One of my favorite places near dfw is robbers cave in Oklahoma. Another slightly closer is mcgee creek sp in oklahoma both are within 3, 3.5 hours

What type of camping? Tent, pop up, rv?

We are tent camping. Good to go either completely self supported, or with campground facilities.

Robbers cave has the better big the bathrooms of those two parks great hiking trails. Horse back riding.

That would be my go to. But don't pay for the cave tour. Go hike to it. But no need for a tour.

I'm gonna need more time off work. You guys have some great suggestions.

Check with Hords Creek Lake, https://tpwd.texas.gov/fishboat/fish/recreational/lakes/hords_creek/access.phtml See if they will be open. Small lake, but if you can camp on the southside, you might have an area all to yourself. In the past we camped many times at Flatrock Cove and were the only ones there. No real organized activities except fishing, but we always found the perch biting. But we hauled horseshoes, a washer pitching game and either our canoe or kayaks.

Meridian State Park, southwest of DFW might be the place you want. This close to Thanksgiving, you might have a tough time finding a camp site at most parks, but at Meridian SP they have some camping slots that are too small for any travel trailers and are just right for tent camping. Hiking there is really good, and the lake is just a short walk away. We’ve taken the TT there a few times, and though the TT slots are all booked, those smaller sites are usually open.

Go with this!

They only have the play during the summer months. Palo Duro weather can be dicey in late November. It can be anywhere from 6 degrees to 60. For a thanksgiving camping trip I’d head south. Just my

Good advice

We went to Palo duro canyon right when the covid was setting in last winter/spring. My issue with that is it appears you have smaller children because you said you didn't want to go to Guadalupe peak. Palo duro is breathtakingly beautiful I plan on going back. My kids were four and six on this trip there is not so much as a swing set at Palo duro canyon it is 100% for hiking trails through the brush and sightseeing. My kids just aren't old enough to enjoy that yet. We do go on hikes but they cannot be long hikes and there is a lot of trips to the playground etc to break up the hiking trips.


I forgot that Robbers cave stocks trout in their lakes as well I'm not sure when they start stocking but he would be worth looking at as another activity for that weekend as well.

Good point on kiddos. Robbers and also turner falls has trout for kiddos

An old girlfriend of mine had 100 acres near 'Robbers cave'. Beautiful country around Wilberton.