Cleburne State Park, 6/26 - 6/28/18

65. Scampsite #38, Tuesday through Thursday.  We actually started out in the Poplar Point area, site #46, but it became obvious that "our" site was THE path to the lake.  This was not the kind of Scamping experience we wanted, so we scoped out the other camping areas, found a site in the North Creek area that we liked and a ranger who was willing to let us move!  Site 38 was 2 spots away from the Park Host, who told us she would be gone the next morning, and the next closest RV was several spots away.  It turned into exactly the kind of Scamping experience we wanted!
Wednesday morning we decided to hike the perimeter trail and to the old CCC bridge.  The trails were challenging - hillier than we anticipated - and FULL of poison ivy.  SO MUCH POISON IVY!  We had to keep the dogs on short leashes so that they wouldn't walk in it and give it to us.   The old CCC bridge is gorgeous - it's a footbridge now - and it's also the logo of the park, which is pretty cool.  The "charming" (according to the state parks guide) 3-tier dam was also quite impressive.  We noticed that the wildlife - squirrels and cardinals - were especially unafraid of us.  While we were loading our Camelbaks with our lunches, one squirrel was actively begging at our feet for our bags of chips! The cardinal perched on our trailer step within minutes of our arrival.

Scampsite 38.

Scampsite 38.

Begging squirrel!

Fearless cardinal!

The "charming" 3-tier dam built by the CCC.

Bridge built by the CCC, also the park logo. 

Detail of the bridge construction.

Scampsite 38 from the road. 

Cleburne State Park is close to Cleburne, which is the county seat.  The courthouse is beautiful, the town has numerous antique shops, and it's on the Amtrak rail line.