Daingerfield State Park

Daingerfield State Park is southwest of Texarkana and is a 506 acre recreational area deeded in 1935 by private owners. It was opened to the public in 1938. This area was the center of the iron industry in Texas. Development of the 80 acre lake included an open beach area, a landscaped peninsula, and the site's hilly terrain. The park has a swimming barge and piers. The lake is also known for fishing. Small boats can be rented or visitors can bring their own boat.

Here is JoAnn at a park sign within the park itself. We're near the visitor's center. This was the sign built by the CCC that once marked the original entrance to the park.

This is a small panorama at one end of the lake. The area has extensive hiking trails around the lake which go through a dense forest of very tall trees.

JoAnn sitting on a log at the Dogwood Camping area. A portion of a trail that runs around the south side of the lake can be seen next to her. She's looking out at the lake. The weather is beautiful with temps in the low 80's and very low humidity.

If you look closely, the swimming barge can be seen in the distance toward the right between the opening of the trees. The lake is roughly 300 ft above sea level. One of the trails on the northwest side of the lake goes up to about 500 ft above sea level and offers a view of the Piney Hills.

Panorama of the landscaped beach near the visitor's center. Note the swimming barge. JoAnn and I are sitting on a park bench looking out across the lake.

JoAnn is on the pier. The lake is quite pretty due to the landscaping methods used during it's early development.

Rental boats. While we were on the pier, two men had brought their own boat and were fishing in this area. Two large geese wandered around a bit on the grassy lawn visible in the right side of the photo. There wasn't a sound to be heard except for the light breeze in the area.

A large panorama of the lake from the pier. We had a mild wind which made the experience even better (slightly cooler temps).The beach area (other side of the trees on the left) is landscaped and has picnic tables and benches.

Here are the picnic tables on the landscaped area. A visitor can bring their pre-prepared food or cook it in one of the stoves next to the table.

Here is one of the benches along the shoreline. It was a wonderful experience to sit and just let the world go by for a while. This will be a grand memory for us.

Copper Breaks State Park

JoAnn and I needed a break so we revisited Copper Breaks State Park. The weather was ideal. Bright and sunny, low humidity, and blue skies. There was a bit of wind which was a bother sometimes but it was an enjoyable trip.

Big Pond Lake is popular with boaters and folks wanting to walk on the shoreline.

The water level is very high this year. In years past, this area would be completely dry and the boat dock would have been useless. 

Little Pond Lake is an interesting little lake in an out of the way place in the park.