Lake Bob Sandlin State Park, Pittsburg Texas

joanie7 — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 22:04:05 +0000

Lake Bob Sandlin State Park located in Titus County is near the small East Texas towns of Pittsburg and Mount Pleasant. With close proximity to both I-20 and I-30 this is a popular park with folks from the Dallas/Ft Worth metroplex approximately 140 miles distant. Reservations are recommended and should be made well in advance for weekends and school breaks. Although small (639.8 acres) the park feels spacious with 4 distinct camping loops. Located on the North side of the large (9,400 acre) Lake Bob Sandlin, a popular bass fisherie, you may cast your line from a lighted fishing pier, the shoreline or take advantage of the boat ramp to get right out on the water and snag one of those rainbow trout the lake is stocked with. There is also fishing in the trout pond located at one of two remote hike-in primitive camping areas. 66 back in campsites, nestled in the pineywoods offer electric and water. 9 of these are premium lakeside sites. We noticed that most of these sites were not very long so call ahead if you have a trailer or RV to make sure you can be acomodated. When not fishing there are almost 5 miles of nature trails that you may hike or mountain bike on beginner to intermediate trails 5 miles through the forest passing two ponds with crossings on 8 footbridges. You may spot bald eagles in winter as well as white tailed deer at any time of the year. Bobcats, although rarely seen live here and share their territory with at least one black panther who roams this part of Texas. A small cemetery in the day use area dates back to the days of Fort Sherman, a wooden stockade fort that would have been located in or near the park, built in the 1840′s to protect settlers from Indian attacks. The facilities here are older, the park was opened in 1987, but very clean. If you visit this park in the fall you will be rewarded with the spectacular red and gold colors of oak, hickory, redbud and maple trees. The staff at this park is outstanding. We were picnicking in the day use area when our puppy was startled and bolted off into the woods. When we reported this the rangers immediately went into action hiking the trails and helping us search. By the following morning this dog of ours was still on the loose. He was spotted by the ranger on duty who called us on our cell phone to advise where he had seen him. Happy ending we reunited shortly thereafter.

Purtis Creek State Park, Eustace Texas

joanie7 — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 21:43:50 +0000

Visit our Purtis Creek Photo Gallery

Located in Henderson and VanZandt Counties, 60 miles East of Dallas Texas, Purtis Creek State Park is a nice size park (1,582 acres)with a small lake (355 acres.) Developed in 1984 as a fishing lake it was stocked in 1985 with bass, channel catfish, crapppie and more. Fishermen arrive here early in the day (only 50 boats allowed on the lake at any given time) to troll slowly (no wake strictly enforced). If you catch a bass it’s catch and release however you are welcome to clean other species of fish at one of the fish cleaning stations and take it back to your campsite for dinner. Choose from 59 back in RV sites some with lake views equipped with water and electric (dump station in the park) or 13 primitive sites that are hike in or boat in. The only hiking trail is an easy 1.5 mile loop. The emphasis here is on the fishing! The best thing about this park is the comfy feel and great ambience. You can totally imagine yourself canoeing or kayaking in to one of the primitive campsites for a private secluded camping experience. The facilities in this park (restrooms, buildings) are dated but adequate and clean. 200 species of birds have been identified in the park however with limited hiking viewing them is more challenging. The worst thing about this park is limited hiking or biking for those who do not care to fish. The closest major shopping is Wallmart approximately 14 miles away in Gun Barrel City.

Visit our Purtis Creek Photo Gallery

Lone Star Travelers Blog » bass

Lake Bob Sandlin State Park, Pittsburg Texas

Purtis Creek State Park, Eustace Texas