lake somerville state park - birch creek unit

I like this park a lot. Lots of pretty scenery, good hiking trails and facilities, and plenty of room. Gets a bit crowded during the summer but still enough room to relax.

my son with with friends to the Primitive side camping. They loved it..Did alot of backpacking and hiking and very peaceful there.

We had a site right on the lake which was beautiful. The park was very quiet the first week of December. However, there is not that much to do in the park. Some hiking trails around the lake. The ecosystem was much different than other Texas state parks, although was interesting and a learning experience.

Grass was tall and needed mowing. They let the cane grow so much you can't see the lake on the east side. Was really disappointed in that. Would be a beautiful park if they took better care of the camping area grounds.

I used to frequent this place when I used to live in College Station. I usually visited during the winter or springtime, but I would always find the scenic view very calming and relaxing. There's not much but it's plenty of room and private for campers. I usually see many people come out camping with their kids and go fishing. There's a spot that I used to go to at night where it's kind of like a hill where you can overlook the river and it just sparkles so pretty. And when you look up, the stars are so bright and you're up so high that it feels like you can almost touch them. It's quite nice on starry nights for young couples to go stargazing. I saw many shooting stars from here.

We went to the fishing Jetty one Sunday and the experience was not all that great. Not one bite for the whole day and there was 5 of us fishing. The bathrooms smelled of urine and no TP or hand soap there.

We stayed on a weekend in March and found the campsites to be nice. We were in the last section of sites and they were not wooded at all (site 113). We were right on the lake. Very windy. We also had bathrooms with warm showers within a 3 min walk. There were ants but the didn't get into our stuff. We only spent time on lake and did not hike. I would stay here again.

We toughed out 30 degree nights, on 3 wooded campsites in trailers with electric hook ups (no sewer) with 12 people, ages 4 to 64! There were fun trails in between the sites that the kids could use w/out having to walk on a road! Lots of downed trees provided us with hours of entertainment with building a woodland shelter (as seen in picture below). Our young ones had fun walking the trails and exploring the waters edge, while our teens enjoyed the fishing opportunities, The bathrooms were always clean, the staff was amazing, and we all had fun on our camping vacation! If the camp store didn't have something, there was a store/bar across street that is open 365 days a year too!

We spent our last weekend before school at Lake Somerville, Birch Creek State Park. We were surprised at how low the water level was near Nails Creek State Park, which is on the other side of the lake. There was good fishing. Campsites are very secluded, but need brush removal, clean up of BBQs, ant removal. The one improvement was the bathroom - a very nice redheaded man was on his hands and knees scrubbing the bathroom (he should get a raise) - so we were very pleased at the cleanliness. There's no a/c in the bathrooms though, so it's really hot in there! We had a decent time but prefer Bastrop State Park's cabins.

Ants, ants, and ants. Oh, and did I mention the ants? Tent campsite with electric and water hook ups are overrun by carpenter ants. They do not bite, but are a nuisance! Other than that everything was great! Beautiful scenic view very close to the water, deer and wildlife everywhere, hot showers. My only issue was the ants. Plugged in a fan and hung from the top of our tent. The electrical outlet was enthralled with ants, which kept causing the circuit breaker to pop and fan extinguish. The ants also followed the extension cord into our tent and onto the air mattress. If the park will alleviate the ant problem, this place would be idea.**Probably will not return solely due to the ants!

Lake Somerville State park is a little more than an hour from Houston. It is a great place to go for a quick outdoor "fix." The camp sites were wooded enough that you felt like you had a little privacy and that you were actually in the outdoors. Campsites had both a nice fire pit, built-in grill and cement pad for the picnic table. We kayaked the next day. The lake is nice, however if you're looking for a great beach, this isn't it. It's more grassy than sandy. The water stays shallow for a long time, so it might be good for families with young kids.

we stayed easter weekend 2013 and had a wonderful time. with 3 kids ages 7-12 it was very easy to throw trash, walk to bathroom, walk on trails, beach area was clean, deer were around, rangers were present and helped us rescue our trapped easter egg. highly recommend. store doesnt have too much in it, so make sure your stocked for supplies and too far to ride bikes too. we enjoyed stay and kids want to go back.

We took our RV and stayed at Birch Creek on May 10-12. It was hubby and I and two 21 yr olds. The 21 yr olds rode bikes and hiked. They enjoyed this place better than others we've gone to. We rented canoes (only $10 ea. canoe for 2 hrs) and hiked a varity of trails. Hubby went night fishing at the shore line near our camp and caught 2 catfish. It was a great night to build a fire and to have smores. We could see the stars so clear and it was beautiful. Nights were cool.

We recently camped here during Spring Break. Campsite: We had a tent, but wanted water and electric. The sites are ok size, but if you have a large tent like we do, you'll need to make sure it will fit in the spot as some of the spots are different sizes. The sites are separated by brush and fallen trees. Each site has a rusted BBQ grill and ring for a campfire. It rained on us the first night and the trees were handy to hang a clothes line to dry our stuff out. Bathrooms: I would say average. The men's restroom had two stall...one with a curtain for a door. It also had two shower stalls that were manageable for a 5 minute shower. My younger son did run out of hot water during his shower...glad I went first.Office: Not the friendliest of people. I received confusing and conflicting information depending on who I talked to. I was trying to "claim" a spot for my friends who had already reserved a spot, but just hadn't arrived yet. It was a hassle, but it all worked out in the end. The office rented or loaned out fishing poles and sell bagged ice, marsh mellows and chocolate bars if you need some in a pinch. Hiking Trails: There are a number of hiking trails including one that goes all of the way around the park. There's also a 13 mile trail that I think goes to the State Park on the other side of the lake.Other items: The beach area looked nice from a distance, but we never went over that far, although it was too cold to get in the water anyway. There's a convenience store and bar just outside the front gates. That's the nearest place to get wood...and wasp spray as I found out I needed.This park will probably be on my list of places that I'd go again. It's about 45 minutes from Brenham and about an hour from College Station for day trips.

We stayed here and it wad nice but lacking. The site we were at, 46, had zero lake view and we had to traipse through site 45 to get to the shore. The fishing didn't prove successful for us, but that's just fishing. It was 35 degrees at night and in our popup we froze. Our site had a nice fire ring and paved sidewalk and table. Shoutout to the rangers! 1 mile from the gate, our popup had a flat and without my dad there yet we had 8 girls and 1 tween boy. The rangers were eager to help and Kyle changed it for us. Great staff!Bathrooms were OK. Dirty and only a curtain around the shower. No heater/AC in bathroom!