Yep, it is that time of year again. Time to get in the water, go boating, camping, and hiking. Watch out for ticks this year. I was at Hagerman the last week of April, in its visitor center, and a young lady had run in the restroom covered in ticks after hiking. Speaking of Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), it only costs $10 for an individual and $15 for a family membership.
Starting with Hagerman NWR, visitors will find a great place to discover Lake Texoma’s natural wonders. Jack Chiles and experienced birders perform a thorough bird census of the entire refuge of 11,000 acres every week. Admission to the refuge, tram tours, activities, and events are free and funded by donations. Dogs on a leash and non-motorized bicycles are welcome.
Hagerman NWR in Texas is open from sunrise to sunset. You can drive through Hagerman at night, but you cannot stop. I see wild hogs (boars) when I drive through Hagerman at night. The Visitor Center is open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday and 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday. Events include activities like guided birding, butterfly and bee education, photo club meetings, kid’s fishing events, alligator research, tram tours, and holiday events most Saturdays and some Sundays.
The Tishomingo National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) wraps around the upper Washita Arm of the Cumberland Pool of Lake Texoma in Oklahoma. It is open from sunrise to sunset, allows camping with a permit and night fishing with a permit. Admission is free, there is bus and motor coach parking, and pets are allowed on a leash. It features a variety of wildlife-related activities, including wildlife watching, photography, hunting, fishing, environmental education, and interpretation programs.
Temperatures During Season at Lake Texoma
Lake Texoma’s temperature still feels a little cool for swimming at the time of this writing, the second week of May. Right now, the water temperature is hovering around 70°. As summer comes on, the water temperature rises with the weather temperatures. The striper fishing gets productive at around a 65° water temperature. July and August are the hottest months, with temperatures in the mid to upper 90s, and sometimes over 100°. Swimming should be comfortable around the end of May or early June.
Lake Texoma’s Best RV Campsites and Tent Campsites
For RVs, Thousand Trails in Gordonville, Texas, is outstanding with a pool, lakefront, a pavilion, an adult’s only area, horseshoes and volleyball, laundry facilities, and planned weekend events. Eisenhower State Park is wonderful for tents and RVs. Visitors swim, fish, hike and bike four miles of trails, climb boulders, geocache, ride ATVs and dirt bikes on OHV trails, a recreation hall, screened shelters, Ike’s cabin, and the Eisenhower Yacht Club Marina.
Take your horses to Platter Flats Campground eight miles east of Calera, Oklahoma. This campground offers 35 equestrian sites with electric hookups, 26 equestrian sites without electricity, 26 family campsites, and RV sites with a dump station. Amenities include a day-use group picnic shelter with electricity, flush and vault toilets, horse stalls, and corrals. The US Army Corps of Engineers (U.S. ACE) manages Platter Flats. Both Platter Flats and Eisenhower State Park recommend making reservations, and you should call Thousand Trails for availability.
Lake Texoma’s Best Boat Ramps
The best boat ramps on Lake Texoma are as follows and fees vary:
Texas
- Big Mineral Camp
- Cedar Bayou Marina
- Cedar Mills Marina & Resort
- Damsite Park
- Eisenhower State Park
- Flowing Wells Resort
- Grandpappy Point
- Highport Resort
- Juniper Point West and East Campground
- Lighthouse Resort
- Little Mineral Marina
- Mill Creek Marina
- Paradise Cove
- Preston Recreation Area
- Rock Creek Marina & Resort
- Texoma Marina & Resort
- Walnut Creek Marina
Oklahoma
- Alberta Creek Boat Ramp
- Bridgeview Marina and Resort Boat Ramp
- Buncombe Creek Boat Ramp
- Catfish Bay Boat Ramp
- Johnson Creek Boat Ramp
- Lakeside Park Boat Ramp
- Little Glasses Resort and Marina Boat Ramp
- Platter Flats Boat Rampohnson Creek Boat Ramp
- Texoma Shores Resort Boat Ramp
- Willow Springs Boat Ramp
Best Beaches at Lake Texoma
Are you looking for a great beach at Lake Texoma? Lake Texoma will not let you down because it is wealthy with beaches all around its shoreline, and a few islands with fun beaches and party coves. Island View Park is day use only, offers a large sandy beach with primitive shelters for rent, and kids under seven get in free. You cannot go wrong when you choose Eisenhower State Park for its Sandy Beach. Sunset Beach is near Cartwright, Oklahoma, and is true to its name for watching beautiful Sunsets.
The above beaches are some of the best at Lake Texoma, but there are hundreds of beaches in campgrounds and day use areas in Oklahoma and Texas, plus, if you boat, you can find awesome coves with little secluded beaches. The shoreline on Lake The U.S. ACE manages Lake Texoma’s shorelines, so all beaches accessed by boat are public unless access is denied.
What Are You Waiting For? Come on Out and Enjoy the Lake Life at Lake Texoma!