As I sit in my cheap folding chair, I can feel a slight breeze hitting the back of my neck. It’s welcome since the temperature is climbing. I’ve found a spot, between a tree and the little screen shelter that’s still in the shade at 10 a.m. And, even better, it overlooks an open field instead of other campsites. I can see cacti everywhere, and at one point, two deer wander across the edge of the campsite. Even on this holiday weekend, Fort Richardson State Park is calm and relatively quiet.
We always have to debate going camping on a holiday weekend. On the one hand, for me especially, it’s almost a given. Something I’ve done since I was a kid. The extra day leaves more time for relaxing or elaborate outdoor cooking experiments. On the other hand, everyone else is going camping, so, will it just be loud and annoying, with everyone packed in together?
This weekend we took the chance. I figured we would never find a spot at a state park because of the holiday. But, after choosing a few possibilities, I called Fort Richardson State Park in Jacksboro. There were campsites available. The park has history, hiking and is near some small towns with potential so, I made the reservation.
We arrived late Friday night. I called earlier in the day, so we knew the two site numbers we had to choose from, which definitely helped. State Parks usually have non-site specific reservations, which means you can choose the amenities you want (water, electric, sewer) and they give you a spot when you get there. If the campsite isn’t crowded, you usually pull in and choose a spot that looks good. For this particular weekend there were only two spots available meeting our criteria, that were available for the entire weekend, so I was glad I called ahead and asked about it. If you have a reservation (or even if you don’t) and you know you will be arriving late, it is always a good idea to call. It helps to ensure that the campground or park holds the site for you, and gets you important information like gate entry codes and campsite numbers if you’ve been assigned a certain one.
Fort Richardson has 11 campsites that feature screened shelters. It is a normal campsite for a tent or RV, with water and electric hook-ups, grill, picnic table and fire ring as well as a small wooden shelter with screened windows and a picnic table inside. The shelters are a nice place for eating if the bugs are out, doing some cooking on the camp stove or even sleeping if you have an air mattress and it’s cool enough outside. If it was a rainy weekend it would also be a good place to hang out and have a little more space than we do in the camper. The park has 73 campsites overall, as well as 7 overflow campsites.
Campsites at Fort Richardson come with a variety of price tags, depending on what you’re looking for. A hike-in primitive campsite is $5 and the premium shelter sites with water, sewer and electric are $24. RV sites with at least water and electric are all between $20 and $24 depending on specific site amenities.
Campsites at Fort Richardson are very large. Picnic tables and fire pits have some distance between them and many sites have areas behind the RV or tent pad that are secluded from nearby campsites because of tree cover or the shelters. Our specific site has a long asphalt parking pad (very level) for the camper and the truck. Off to the right of the rear bumper about 30 feet is our picnic table and grill area. Off to the left of the bumper is the shelter. Directly behind the shelter is our fire pit, with a view of an open field. Just outside the camper door is a screen of trees, with a small opening near the shelter where we can look out over another open field. The campsites are far enough apart that you don’t have to worry about being on top of your neighbors at all. There was definitely some good thought put into the campsites here.
The Fort itself offers some interesting historical perspective on the local area and the Lost Creek Reservoir State Trailway is an almost 10-mile multi-use trail that begins in the park. There are several other hiking trails available, a camp store, plenty of places for both kids and adults to ride bikes and abundant wildlife viewing opportunities if you have some patience and can get up early.
The one major downside to the park is the lack of showers. We prefer bathhouse showers to trying to cram into the tiny RV shower we have. Fort Richardson has exactly two showers. One for men and one for women. Even at 11 p.m. there was a line for the shower. If we were here at a less busy time, it would probably be a non-issue.
Fort Richardson is a great place to come for a day hiking trip or a visit to the Fort, but if you have a few days, make sure to experience the campground. Because of the large, well laid out campsites, this has been one of my favorite Texas State Park campgrounds so far. If they would add a few more showers, it would be perfect.
