Lake Arrowhead State Park

Lake Arrowhead State Park, located just outside of Wichita Falls, Texas, was a lunch stop on our way home from Wichita Mountains Wildlife Refuge. It cost $6 to get in since we hadn't renewed our Texas State Park Pass, but it was money well spent due to prairie dog entertainment (stay tuned) but not much else. When we visited (early May), the water was so far down that all the boat ramps within the park were closed. The lake also sports some unattractive oil rigs. Between the lake levels, boating hazards, and unattractive views, Rob's brother refers to Lake Arrowhead as "The worst state park in Texas." Half the reason we stopped here was just to see why.

Camping

We first checked out the camping accommodations, and we were severely underwhelmed. The sites are mostly open grassy areas (although they had covered picnic tables) and offer little to no privacy from neighbors or shading from the sun. There were a handful on the edge of the lake (sites 61-65) that were better than the rest, but we can assure you we won't ever be camping here.

Hiking

There's a sweet little interpretive trail within the park that our kids actually enjoyed quite a bit, mostly because they got to hold maps and look for markers. The path is only a quarter of a mile, however, and sported mostly the same terrain the entire time (grass and mesquite trees and small shrubs). It was pretty and it was short, which worked perfectly for a chance to stretch some legs.

The only other hike was a 5.5 mile hike/horse/bike trail, which we didn't do because the weather was warm, the trail offered little-to-no shade (more grass and mesquite trees and small shrubs), and as far as we could see, the terrain stayed the same the whole way.

Other Sights

If you stop at the picnic area close to campsites 43-48, you will find two dozen prairie dog holes dug among the covered picnic tables. It was like a live version of "Pop a Mole" (no prairie dogs or their holes were hurt during this game). For over an hour, our kids and our dog raced from one hole to the next, the prairie dogs popping up to chirp at a hole just out of their reach. It was hilarious and became the kids' favorite part of the whole weekend, somewhat to our chagrin. What a fun pit stop!