I’ve written before about what a great camping experience you can have at Tyler State Park.
This place was Eva’s very first camping trip when she was a puppy. On that trip she just didn’t seem interested in relieving herself at the campground. Just about the time I had decided we had better go home, she relaxed enough to go potty on a short walk. Now she absolutely loves camping…anywhere. We don’t have any potty issues with her anymore. She pretty much goes on command.
Well, back to Tyler. The night before we left, there was a big series of thunderstorms that hit north Texas and then moved south also hitting Tyler. Unfortunately that caused our site to be a huge mess. A large amount of sand was all over our pad…at least an inch deep and oddly most sites were not affected. My personal felling is that this could have been cleaned up before our arrival. Mental note…bring the big push broom from now on.
This sand made the site slippery and of course a mess which made its way into the trailer. And Eva wanted to lay in it under our trailer. So the sand issue wasn’t great from a camping standpoint, but really just a minor inconvenience.
On top of that, the temps were 10 degrees above normal so it was a bit hot but manageable. Coming from Wisconsin, we take every opportunity to sit out when possible. We are always out on our patio at home and try to be when camping unless there is a mosquito infestation. Given all the rain I have to say that while there were bugs, it wasn’t that bad. So we spent a great deal of time sitting outside of the trailer.
Where you really feel the heat is when you start to take some of the trails at the park. Once you get pretty deep into the woods there is absolutely no breeze. Eva and I took a trail just about every day, which is something she really enjoys. The only criticism I would have of the trails is that they are not marked well. I would like to see better marking; and some of the markers they have are so faded you really can’t tell what information is on them.
One of the fun aspects of camping in a travel trailer is all the different people and campers you will see on your travels. On last years trip to Wisconsin we stayed at a campground near an antique Layton Trailer. In 2020 we saw a homemade tear drop designed to look like the classic wood paneled car that was towing it.
I have to say that the trailer we saw at Tyler State Park on this visit was one of the most unique we have come across. It’s a 2018 R-Pod owned by Darrell and Gail Crowe of Texas. They are the second owners having purchased it from a retired Kindergarten Teacher that lived in their neighborhood.
The former owner (Lynn) worked with Tyler Wrap Company to customize the trailer design to reflect her life. It tells the story of her life growing up at an orange grove in Southern California, her family name (Chandler), her 30+ years as a Kindergarten teacher, and the beautiful garden scene that represents her last name (Merryfield). Lynn named her RV “Chandlers Garden” as a tribute to her Grandfather who referred to his grandchildren as his “Garden”.
A Coral Snake appears on one side of the camper because Lynn had seen it at Tyler State Park while serving as a Camp Host. There is also a frog on the trailer as it is the official Mascot of the R-Pod Trailers.
Lynn referred to her trailer as her “Happiness Happening” because of all the visitors that Chandlers Garden made smile. She was happy that it had such a positive impact during the Covid 19 pandemic and was able to bring happiness to so many people.
From the orange groves, to the wild flowers and the books, this travel trailer is a real head turner. Darren and Gail said it has been quite the conversation starter at the campground. They have plans to modify the wrap slightly to make it part of their story as well.
Darren and Gail were camped just four spots down from us and their trailer immediately caught my eye when I saw it as I was coming back from a walk with Eva.
Tammy and I spent some time talking to Darren and Gail and you would be hard pressed to find nicer people. This was their shake down trip with the trailer and everything was going great, except perhaps for the raccoons tearing open a corn hole bag! The Racoon population here is about as dense as the trees.
I know where ever Darren and Gail set up their trailer, they are going to have a lot of visitors!
I also renewed my Texas State Park pass while we were at the park. If you live in Texas or want to camp here regularly; I highly recommend getting the yearly pass. It is well worth the money and you will find the Texas State Parks to be the among nicest campgrounds in the country.
It’s very hard to find semi secluded camping anywhere but you will find it here. In addition they have a great swimming area, store, boat rental, nice roads for biking, and of course the trails.
For us it is only a two hour drive from home so it is a convenient get away; but I would be happy to drive a lot further for a campground this nice.
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