Richardson Creek

This is my second time staying on Emory's property and it was just as amazing as my first trip. Emory is a great host who takes the time to ensure your stay is very comfortable. He is very welcoming and eager to show you his property on which he has created a beautiful orchard. This site was very nice because it is very private, has an abundance of shade (especially great in the summer heat), and is right next to a creek (which you can cool off in). The site met all of our needs with a nice fire ring, a toilet, and a clean picnic table. There is a lot of opportunity for exploring on the multiple dirt roads on the property. It was the perfect site for a fun weekend :)

This campground exceeded all expectations. With a picnic table, pit toilet, thick grass, and lots of privacy, it felt more like glamping than camping on this property.

After spending some time setting up camp and stretching after our long car ride, I decided to go explore down the backside of the campsite, into a wooded area. I had completely forgotten that this campsite sits adjacent to a creek, and was delighted when I found it by happy accident. Since I was there late December, I opted to look and not jump in, but I can only imagine how amazing it would be to camp there in the summer and spend all day sitting in the shallow pools of clear creek water.

The toilet is minimal, but better than a cathole! Double-check the seat nooks-and-crannies for spiders before sitting down--I found 3 little buggers hiding out. If you're planning on staying for a while, I would recommend bringing some extra rolls of toilet paper and hand sanitizer!

If you have a smaller vehicle, I wouldn't recommend driving through the first gate (just walk). It was pretty muddy and bumpy and my Subaru definitely came in handy.

The water spigot was a little bit hard to find, but it's definitely there. To access it, walk over to the barn (can't miss it) and look for the circular trough. The spigot is by the trough (see photos).

Overall, I would highly recommend this campsite and will definitely be coming back.

I hate to be the first mediocre review on this site, but we are normally very happy campers and we will not be returning here, so thought I’d share in case it helps someone else in planning.

The site itself is great—secluded from the other site on property, picnic table, pit toilet, fire ring, nice flat area for tents etc. BUT oh my god the bugs there! I know this will make us sound like a bunch of ninnies, but my husband was in the infantry and I have been camping my entire life and neither of us have ever seen this amount of flies—it was like something out of a horror movie. You couldn’t do anything without having 10-15 flies on you at all times. It was horrible. Even with a fire roaring in the fire pit you could not escape the flies—everywhere. Same thing with mosquitos, even after coating everyone in DEET the mosquitos just kept swarming. This is not an exaggeration—it was unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. We even debated leaving after dinner because the bugs were just that bad.

Perhaps it was the time of year (late June) or perhaps it is the close proximity of the campsite to a giant stagnant swamp/pond (right behind the site), either way it was a bummer that a beautiful campsite was made unenjoyable by the never ending plague of flies and mosquitoes.

I should note that we spent the next day hiking at Mineral Wells State Park and saw basically no flies nor mosquitos there—so it was just the campsite that was overrun.

Loved staying at EcoRich! The private area near a small lake is a perfect spot to set camp.

Hi Emory!

Just wanted to send you a note thanking you again for lending your beautiful creek property to us for two nights. Like I first mentioned, the damn state park expected us to hike through a creek and get all wet but wouldn’t allow any fires….stupid crazy. Anyway, kids had a blast, my 7 yr old boy caught a fish, his very first one! He was so happy J My 5 yr old girl loved feeling safe with a fenced in area and a good fire going. She was so scared about going to the bathroom in the woods, so the bucket toilet was great for her.

The first night there, the coyotes were loud and close, it was kind of scary but really cool to hear them so close at night. The second evening, two beautiful white pyranese looking dogs showed up on the site. They must have kids, because they were both so friendly and sweet with my kids, just licking them and playing with them. They hung out for a while, tried to see what they could steal off our table, LOL. We didn’t give them anything but a few crackers. They just sat around the fire with us, like they were right at home. These sweet friendly dogs reminded us of our own and how much we miss them when we leave home. They left and then came back right as we were going into the tent….They stayed at the camp site all night, and when the coyotes got loud, they hollered right back at them….we felt very safe.
Funny side note: They did take off with a bag full of plastic utensils this morning, but my husband got it back. We walked around to pick up any plastic that fell out, but apologies if we missed any, we left at dawn.

All in all, we had a blast. You have a special piece of heaven out there, Emory. Thanks again, and we’ll stay another time we are up that way.

Kind regards,
Angie

Great campsite! Definitely going back, it was super relaxing and private.

great creek 👍, great mostly fenced in area for dogs 👍, livestock around 👍, responsive host 👍, other campsite nearby / one access point to creek through camp site 👎

My husband, daughter and I loved Richardson Creek. We explored the creek several times and saw fish, frogs and even a turtle. Emory has strategically placed his campsites to keep them private and separate. As another reviewer mentioned, the toilet is close by but no odor issues. The bench and fire ring were perfect! We put our hammocks up for an afternoon rest after returning from a day hike/visit to Dinasaur Valley State Park (30 minute scenic drive away). Our daughter flew her kite for a bit near the barn. We had no cell coverage which was wonderfully peaceful. Thanks Emory for sharing your beautiful land with us.

Quiet, heavy shaded beautiful spot that I loved. The addition of the heavy duty stone fire ring and a picnic table made this spot superior to others. Not that it matters that much, but wifi service can be spotty.