We decided to get another quick trip in before our big journey northward in July. I really wanted to go to Dangerfield State Park but they were full. So we headed for our second favorite which is Tyler State Park.
The lake at Tyler State Park
We got to Tyler State Park just about thirty minutes prior to check in time but the Rangers let us head back to our spot. Coincidently we were assigned the exact same spot we had last year, one that we loved. When we pulled up to the site it was still occupied by the previous nights residents. They were in the middle of packing up, so we sat patiently and waited.
I noticed almost immediately that we had something in common with these folks. They had the exact same travel trailer as us, an Imagine 2950RL. However we did not share the same process on breaking down a campsite. These campers were really disorganized in how they went about packing up and connecting to their truck. What took them 30 minutes to accomplish would have taken about 10 if they had some organization to the process. As they pulled out of the site they actually had someone riding on the rear of the truck bed. This not only looked precarious but dangerous as well.
Tyler State Park – Hannah and Kendra relaxing outside the Imagine
I have to say this is a beautiful park, and I love the campsites. They are large and private and there are plenty of trails for the dogs to get exercise.
Last year I found this park was pretty full of raccoons, and this year it seemed worse. In fact the first time I took Hannah for a morning walk, the campers next to the trash dumpsters told me that we “might not want to go near the dumpsters” as a whole family of raccoons were trapped inside. The campers had placed a large tree branch inside the dumpster to give them some form of escape. Over the next ten minutes, one by one the entire family of raccoons climbed up the branch and made a hop to the ground and scurried away. Surprisingly Hannah seemed quite uninterested in the activity at the dumpster.
I saw a lot more raccoons during the five days we stayed at Tyler State Park, and when I got home I took my Truck in for an oil change. When the dealership opened the engine compartment there were a bunch of Racoon footprints on my engine. Thankfully none of the raccoons had decided to chew on my wiring. So BEWARE the racoon population at Tyler State Park. This is not something that would dissuade me from camping there, it’s just nice to know ahead of time incase that sort of thing is a deal breaker for you.
Another nice thing about this park is that I have never had any issues getting a satellite signal. It’s nice to travel with your channel line up from home. In addition I did a little extra wiring on the Television in the trailer so that we could go between “air” TV and satellite. Prior to running a little extra wire to make that possible, if we wanted to use the antenna (vs. satellite dish), we actually had to remove the TV (a real pain requiring both of us) and then move a bunch of wires around to make that work. By running one extra wire from the TV we were able to avoid this process completely. More about that in a minute.
Now you may wonder why this is important? Well with Direct TV when you leave your home area (Texas) you are no longer able to get your local channels (CBS, NBC, ABC). We discovered this last year when we were on the way to Wisconsin. As soon as we left the state we noticed that our local channels displayed a message that they were not a part of our package.
When we called from the road to ask why we couldn’t get our local channels, DIRECTV reconfigured our box so that we got Wisconsin local programming on our dish for that trip. What we didn’t realize is that making that change actually reconfigured our home DVR box, which in turn impacted our shows that were set to record. It took quite a bit of time to get it corrected, as does everything when you call DIRECTV.
As a result we decided (after that fiasco) that we would just watch “Air” TV in the bedroom; instead of messing with local programming through the box when out of our area. However, watching local programming in the bedroom is not as comfortable as sitting in your recliner in the living room. So one morning when I was reviewing my notes on how to switch the living room TV back to antenna from satellite I had an epiphany. I came to the realization that I could run one extra cable pigtail down to the antenna connection by the cable box. Now I would never have to lift the TV again – problem solved. Now I just needed to test it, and Tyler State Park was the test, and it functioned perfectly.
The weather on our trip was in the upper 70’s during the day and 50s at night, perfect for April. I will say that camping at Tyler in April is rather buggy, with a bunch of natty bugs flying around. It was even worse if you decide to turn your awning light on in the morning, it gives them an open invitation to the inside of your trailer when you open the door. I learned my lesson the first morning and never used the light again. I believe the huge rainfall that we had received throughout march contributed to this problem.
Hannah on our long, long walk.
Hannah and I decided to do a walk on one of the mornings, as there is a nice loop around the lake. What we didn’t know was that a large part of that trail was under water requiring us to find another way back to camp via other small trails and roads around the park. After about an hour and the sun beating down on us I realized I had made two mistakes:
- To do this walk
- Not to have brought any water for us.
This was one of those times where you start to picture yourself calling your wife and saying “I have no idea where I am, and I don’t think I can find my way back”. Fortunately, we were able to finally find another way back to the lake just beyond the flooding. It was a relief to resume our trek back to the campground. I was pretty sore by the time we got back because Hannah has a way of pulling me down steep embankments; always at a point where I am not ready for it. Several rolled ankles and a hundred stumbles later we were back at the camp. Hannah had a great time…me not so much.
The rest of the stay was just a nice relaxing time.
Now comes a part of the story that is interesting. I noticed a brand new Jayco Jay Flight Travel Trailer next to us in the campground. We have had three Jayco’s and they are great trailers. I never got a chance to talk to the folks until the day they left; when I noticed they were struggling to exit their camping spot.
The husband had pulled their trailer extremely close to the power box; and that is a big problem. This leaves no margin for error when moving the trailer. Making things more complicated is that the power box is protected by cement posts. I watched his wife try to help him maneuver; but his angle of attack was going to put him up against the posts. After watching them for about ten minutes, I thought I’d volunteer to help. I believed his wife would probably appreciate the help; since his voice was already getting loud enough that I could hear every word.
I walked over and began to tell him “What you need to do” and he yelled “I know what I need to do sir!”. Then I reached into his car and put my hand on his shoulder. I said “I know it’s frustrating but all you really need to do is pull straight out and you’ll be fine”. After that I walked away. I could hear the wife saying “You heard him – pull straight ahead”.
At this point I was back by our trailer and Tammy was coming down the steps. I told her what happened and my thoughts on ever helping someone out in a similar situation. Just at that point the folks pulled up next to us. They thanked me for the advice and admitted that it worked like a charm, and he even apologized. So who knows, I may stick my neck out again sometime.
You know everyone needs a little help now and again. I know I have.
All in all another great trip to Tyler State Park – If you get a chance this is a great place to unwind, and maybe just help a neighbor!
For a more in depth review of Tyler State Park click here.
For more information on Tyler State Park click here.
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