Suggestions for travel in Texas?
Planning on going to Texas this winter. Leaving cape cod mid Jan have to be back mid March. Looking at heading to gulfport/Biloxi then on to Texas. We can use military fam camps. Looking at padre isla...
Forum Discussion
The Naval Air Station Corpus Christi campground is nice. Stayed there a few times. Good flat spaces. Plenty of room. The only RV spots I've ever seen anywhere that have the utility pedestal offset so that slideouts cannot hit the thing.
Good base with a nice small commissary, exchange. A new all-ranks club. Nice golf course. Good service at the base medical pharmacy.
The one downside to NAS Corpus Christi is wind. Out on a point in the bay, if the wind is strong, the wind at the RV park can be strong.
The Padre Island National Seashore campground is a dry campground one dune over from the beach. Wind can be an issue there also. The wind will be the same at both Padre Island and the base at the same time.
We like the Mustang Island State Park for near beachfront camping in that area.
As mentioned - Nueces County has a couple nice parks very close to the beach. Re: camping on the beach on the Padre Island National Seashore - recon before you attempt to take a trailer down there - and do talk to a ranger about current conditions.
Weather - it won't be nice swimming weather in mid-Feb. Should be okay to get wet. But the circulation and winds of the Gulf of Mexico put a lot of wind and waves into the Texas coast from Brownsville to Galveston.
Naval Air Station Kingsville is just too far from the water, and too much a small base temporary stop for the trip you are describing.
Lackland AFB FamCamp is in a good location for visiting San Antonio, however be aware that you have to enter (and leave) the base with the RV from a back gate which is a long several turns route to the FamCamp. You can use the regular gates with your tow vehicle or toad.
Never stated at the Fort Sam Houston TravelKamp, driven by it a few times. Looks nice.
Either should be a great base for a couple days in San Antonio.
We like the Joint Base San Antonio campground at Canyon Lake. The Army side is the better in my opinion. Due to your time limitations, you likely won't be able to spend more than two or three days in the San Antonio area.
The two military campgrounds near Temple/ Belton at Fort Hood are very different. The West Fort Hood Travel Kamp is an RV park with some long term residents. The Belton Lake Outdoor Recreation Area is a very nice lakeside campground area with most sites more like a state park than a military fam-camp.
Don't count on being able to stay at the Sheppard AFB Annex on Lake Texoma. The RV area got hit badly by 2015 and 2016 flooding. Work to rebuild was supposed to start a month ago. I don't know if they actually started.
On your way back - you might be tempted to stop at Murphy Meadow at the McAlester Ammunition Plant. The camp is very good. However, you should avoid traveling on US-69 from McAlester OK to I-40. Worst washboarded sections of highway I've seen in the US.
We've stayed at Memphis/ Millington at the Midway Park at NavSupFac Mid-South. Very good camp. An easy walk to a very good commissary.
We've also stayed at Camp Carlson outside Fort Knox. Very nice folks, good TravelKamp - but no cell or internet service of any kind at the location.
Wright-Patterson AFB FamCamp was very good during our visit a little over a year ago. Be aware that the gate very close to the FamCamp is only a Mon-Fri - working hours gate. Closes early in the evening, not open on weekends.
Good base with a nice small commissary, exchange. A new all-ranks club. Nice golf course. Good service at the base medical pharmacy.
The one downside to NAS Corpus Christi is wind. Out on a point in the bay, if the wind is strong, the wind at the RV park can be strong.
The Padre Island National Seashore campground is a dry campground one dune over from the beach. Wind can be an issue there also. The wind will be the same at both Padre Island and the base at the same time.
We like the Mustang Island State Park for near beachfront camping in that area.
As mentioned - Nueces County has a couple nice parks very close to the beach. Re: camping on the beach on the Padre Island National Seashore - recon before you attempt to take a trailer down there - and do talk to a ranger about current conditions.
Weather - it won't be nice swimming weather in mid-Feb. Should be okay to get wet. But the circulation and winds of the Gulf of Mexico put a lot of wind and waves into the Texas coast from Brownsville to Galveston.
Naval Air Station Kingsville is just too far from the water, and too much a small base temporary stop for the trip you are describing.
Lackland AFB FamCamp is in a good location for visiting San Antonio, however be aware that you have to enter (and leave) the base with the RV from a back gate which is a long several turns route to the FamCamp. You can use the regular gates with your tow vehicle or toad.
Never stated at the Fort Sam Houston TravelKamp, driven by it a few times. Looks nice.
Either should be a great base for a couple days in San Antonio.
We like the Joint Base San Antonio campground at Canyon Lake. The Army side is the better in my opinion. Due to your time limitations, you likely won't be able to spend more than two or three days in the San Antonio area.
The two military campgrounds near Temple/ Belton at Fort Hood are very different. The West Fort Hood Travel Kamp is an RV park with some long term residents. The Belton Lake Outdoor Recreation Area is a very nice lakeside campground area with most sites more like a state park than a military fam-camp.
Don't count on being able to stay at the Sheppard AFB Annex on Lake Texoma. The RV area got hit badly by 2015 and 2016 flooding. Work to rebuild was supposed to start a month ago. I don't know if they actually started.
On your way back - you might be tempted to stop at Murphy Meadow at the McAlester Ammunition Plant. The camp is very good. However, you should avoid traveling on US-69 from McAlester OK to I-40. Worst washboarded sections of highway I've seen in the US.
We've stayed at Memphis/ Millington at the Midway Park at NavSupFac Mid-South. Very good camp. An easy walk to a very good commissary.
We've also stayed at Camp Carlson outside Fort Knox. Very nice folks, good TravelKamp - but no cell or internet service of any kind at the location.
Wright-Patterson AFB FamCamp was very good during our visit a little over a year ago. Be aware that the gate very close to the FamCamp is only a Mon-Fri - working hours gate. Closes early in the evening, not open on weekends.
