During Spring Break 2021 we visited Purtis Creek State Park, which is located about four hours from us. Purtis Creek State Park was only our third campground to stay at with the trailer and it was a beautiful park.

The campsite offered privacy, the site was fairly level, and we had water/electric hookups. We were able to have campfires, relax on the hammock, go on hikes, our girls went on bike rides, and we all had a wonderful-relaxing time.

Each day consisted of morning walks with Stella, mid-morning hikes as a family, and evening walks as a family. Throughout the day, we would play games, read, and relax, while enjoying the peaceful serenity the campsite offered. Since the weather was a bit on the cooler side, we also had campfires in the morning and in the evening.

One of the many things we love about camping is trying new recipes on the grill and in the oven. Some of our meals included pancakes, sandwiches, hamburgers, salads, and of course dessert to end the day. Now that we are more experienced campers, we’ve expanded our meals to include breakfast scrambles, fish tacos, and a favorite of chicken enchiladas! Meal prepping is the way to go when preparing for a camping trip, it helps us not to overpack and bring only the food that we will end up eating. No need to haul something that we won’t use… that rule applies to not just for food in this case!

We didn’t know how popular fishing was to people who are at the campgrounds! We don’t own a fishing pole, but it’s on our list to buy soon! For now, watching others fish is fascinating to us. The patience they must have to wait for a “bite” and then reel it in… makes me appreciate the seafood we buy a little more.

There are tons of trails, fishing, campsites, and memories to be made at Purtis Creek. We had a wonderful visit while there and plan to someday go back now that we’ve camped at over 25 campsites since March 2021, we still talk about Purtis Creek as one of our favorite parks.

In July of 2021, we adventured to Pedernales Falls State Park with our previous trailer, the Prowler by Heartland. We had heard of the popular park and were excited to camp there. While at Pedernales, we camped in site 47, with water and electric hookup. The site was huge and we were completely unplugged for an extended weekend. We had no cell phone service, so we weren’t even tempted to just “check in” on social platforms, texts, or email. When was the last time you disconnected for 72 hours? It was a perfect mental break and we recommend it!

Our site had beautiful sunset views that also brought the sounds nature; which included a boar family that frequented a lower portion of our site. We were also greeted by several friendly deer who would watch us from a distance, although Stella hoped they would adventure closer to us. From sunup to sundown, the quietness and relaxing environment, was something we thoroughly enjoyed. Since the sites are so spacious, we couldn’t hear others around us, which was a bonus to the relaxing weekend we all needed.

On Friday, we hiked to the falls, early since the summers are very toasty in Texas. Be sure to pack plenty of water and wear supportive shoes if you do the hike the trails. The view of the falls was breathtaking and one we were all amazed at. We sat near the water and just took in the beauty with the incredible views. We’re fortunate we have such a wonderful park within an hour drive from our home. In the evenings, we enjoyed campfires, star-gazing, thrilling stories, smores, and uninterrupted family time.

On Saturday we did some hiking and bike riding on a few other trails around the park. We enjoyed hiking the trails around Pedernales, that are mostly family friendly. We also went to the river to wade and swim, just to cool off a bit. The campground has around 65+sites, so if you don’t want to take another hike, but need to meet your daily step count, just take an evening walk and say “hello” to fellow campers while walking on the paved roads.

Several things we enjoy while camping at the Texas State Parks is how friendly the staff is, hiking, biking, and walking trails are accessible, and parks are well organized with friendly employees. If you are ever in the Austin area, be sure to check out Pedernales Falls, even for a day trip, it is a perfect hideaway from the big city.

We surprised the girls with a weekend trip to Yogi Bear’s Jellystone Park Camp-Resorts, located in Canyon Lake, Texas. The Resort had spacious sites, full-hookups for the RVs, along with a waterpark, putt-putt, horse-shoes, laser tag, several pools, and walking trails. A bonus perk to the resort is if you don’t own an RV, there are also cabins available to rent! One thing we weren’t aware of were the golf carts that were for rent. Unfortunately, all carts were rented while we were there, but we were able to walk throughout the resort with no issues. 

Jellystone was very family-oriented and also offered an arcade, tractor rides, gem-mining, and “America’s First RV”, which was actually an old chuck wagon! While Dan and I thought it was a really interesting feature, it also made us think about how much the RV’s have changed throughout the years. 

Our weekend at Jellystone consisted of time at the waterpark, racing each other down the waterslides, plus relaxing, cooking, and sleeping in. In addition, we also played putt-putt, swam, stargazed, and planned our next adventure on the road. As a family, we love getting away and exploring the different parts of Texas. While we are currently weekend warriors in the RV, it’s always fun to get out and explore new adventures!

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Check out our YouTube channel for a video about this incredible weekend!