This past weekend we went and visited a park we’ve already marked off our list, but it’s still one of our favorites! Tyler State Park is located out in east Texas, relatively close to Tyler, Texas.
This region is known as the “piney woods” region, and boy does it live up to its name. One of our reasons as to why it’s one of our favorites is the all of the pine trees in the area!
We got there late on Friday night (Hannah had to work), and it only took us about 2.5 hours leaving around 4:15 from the DFW metroplex. If you leave at any other time, it usually only takes 2 hours, meaning this park is great if you’re looking to day trip.
When we visit a state park over the weekend we usually will hike all-day on Saturdays. We started off our Saturday with a quick 3.1 mile hike on the B Loop and after lunch we took a leisurely walk on the Lakeshore Loop (2.1 miles).
B-Loop is rated as moderate, and we would say that is true. There were several elevation changes that took place as we walked through the pine trees, and there was a really neat historical marker on the trail that you should check out.
TSP trails are mostly multi-use (mountain bikes and hikers), with a few that are just reserved for hikers. If you’re looking to get a big hike under your belt, trails A, B, C, and D are all connected, and make a big loop.
Our tent site was really great and spacious which worked out great since we camped with Dan’s parents this weekend. We picked a site over in Sumac Bend. We usually go for the sites that are bit removed from everyone, so we can try and really enjoy the outdoors undisrupted. We will say the one downside to the sites at Sumac Bend are the raccoons. Just make sure that you put up all of your food if you end up camping there.
The weekend that we were here at Tyler they had some great outdoor education classes! There was a class on Navigation, Survival Fire, and then the Dutch Oven Association was out at the park with a dutch oven cooking demonstration and lunch! We went and tried out the dutch oven lunch, and it was SO good. It’s free, but consider donating if you get to attend that class. The Dutch Oven Association is usually out at TSP the first Saturday of every month.
Overall for now (since we’ve visited only 20 parks so far) we’d probably rate this in our Top 5. If you want to know more, feel free to reach out!
Dan & Han's State Park Adventures 