Cedar Hill State Park

This place has so many trails! Be surrounded call in advance to ensure the trail you’re planning on discovering is open! I made the mistake of not calling or checking their site/​app if the trail I wanted to hike was open. I also went sunset kayaking here with the Audubon, highly recommend that or any outdoor activity!

Fun place to visit. Went to Dogwood Canyon and wanted to swing by there. It was definitely worth the 7 dollars to go in and visit and see the marina and walk the trees.

With the unseasonably warm weather, we decided to spend a night camping at CHS on Dec 25^th. No big deal, just grab a tent, some firewood and a few snacks. Unfortunately, we awoke to ants in the tent. Understandable, since we had some food inside; however, I could not believe that ants had converged upon the OUTSIDE and INSIDE of the car! We were on a hill across the street from the lake. I dont know why it happened, if we should have done something differently, or if this is to be expected, but we definitely were NOT prepared.
I enjoy Cedar Hill SP for a night away because of Penn Farm, clean restrooms and fishing, so I rate it 4 stars. But, BE PREPARED for ants to invade!

This place is awesome. Great fishing!
The rain has taken a toll on some spots in the park bit still some fishing spots open. Volunteer if you have a chance.

Wonderful park with some lovely views by the lake! I ran a half marathon out here and the course was quite challenging & hilly. There are paved roads throughout the park if you venture out far enough though & it’s very shaded & wooded. Which I loved! Great spot for a race too, it kind of makes you feel like you’re not in DFW! Parking is sparse but if you get a chance grab friends & get off the beaten path & check out this place! You will certainly not regret it.

Given that this is so close to the DFW metroplex, it is not surprising that one can hear the traffic on the nearby freeway. Kind of spoils the «I’m a nature buff» mood. Having said that, kudos to the Parks and Wildlife folks for preserving a natural area near an urban area (friendly folks at the front office which seems to be open later than some). While this isn’t the prettiest of the state parks (on this road trip we also enjoyed Mineral Wells and Abilene), it is worth seeing and convenient for a weekend camping trip next to Joe Pool Lake) with the kids… a great way to expose them to nature and to begin developing in young future taxpayers and voters an appreciation for the diverse array of our state parks. Definitely worth the short trip from the metroplex!

I have been a member of the State Park Pass holder for several years and over the years I have visited most of the Texas State Parks. Cedar Creek State Park is close to the DFW area and convenient for a quick weekend away.
The campground is one of the largest in the State Park system but I would rate it as one of the least attractive. The Park store is a joke, compared to Inks State Park, Mineral Wells State Park, Tyler State Park are just a few that operate a quality store.
Depending on the section your assigned will determine the Quality of site you receive. Some sites you will find that the pads are in need of maintenance. Uneven and holding water. Some sites need to be mowed and cleaned of fallen trees and debris. The grill pits are in need of repair. The staff can be absent of any emotions or humor. What ever you do, don’t make any changes at the time of check in to your reservation or they will tack on «administration «fees.

I’ve been twice now. I love it!
A nice little park with great biking trails. The trails are nice for hiking as well, but they are really built for biking! Great location, being driving distance from Dallas.

We have been here a few times and I figured I would write a review now. Start off by saying the entrance to the park is not as visable as I thought it would be. The people working at the gate have always been really friendly. I have been inside to get my lifetime veteran pass and the lady polite and helpful. The kids loved playing in the lake in the summer. My little one is used to living by the ocean so she was asking where the sea stars are. There is an old farm there with some old machinery and my kids always request going there. This last time that we went, we figured we would look at a different area after the farm and we found trail. It was 2 miles I think, we walked it and my kids were nice and tired when we got home for the day. I guess we will fave to use that trail more often.

My favorite park. Big sites nice lake and very well maintained. The bike trail is fantastic. I’m a geocacher so I have a great time here

Great intermediate mountain bike trails and camping.
$ 7 to get in, or $ 70 for a state-​wide season pass, which allows you to bring in up to 14 guests in one car.
Highly recommend!

Great little park we finally had the opportunity to visit. We tried to come a few months back for biking, but were told the trails were closed due to a little drizzle (come on now Texans).
Anyway, since the state is quite dry, we were able to visit with some friends for hiking :) And boy was it hot. The park offers a lake for swimming (if you like the whole brown water thing), fishing, and hiking/​biking trails. We did about 5 miles of hiking in the middle of the afternoon so we were understandably exhausted but had fun anyway. The trails are well-​maintained and the views are wonderful.
Suggestion? WEAR LONG SLEEVES/​PANTS AND BUG SPRAY!!!
My husband and I got totally torn up by chiggers :(I am on a course of steroids and antihistamines because I had an awful allergic reaction to all the bites. Do yourself a favor and spray up.
Side-​note: Luckily we didn’t encounter aforementioned «park officer» another reviewer mentioned, but good grief: I’m glad we didn’t. Look out for that one if you do visit.

Having a great time here with my wife for our anniversary. We sorta «glamp» and not rough it. We are right on the water and isolated but all the sites seem pretty well layed out. It is much easier to not get busted drinking when you’re only camping with two and not a loud ass bunch. *sips whiskey. Did some fishing until a snake freaked out the wife. The army put on a pretty sweet helicopter show last night. 15 attack helicopters practicing their moves for a couple of hours. Not usually a fan of state parks because there is always a Ranger Rodney (as we call them) trying to screw with your good time. Hot showers, cleanish restrooms. Will def come again. Okay, back to the tent to watch a movie. OH! I have 4G LTE service with TMOBILE! and their service always blows, so that is a plus. Happy camping! 343

Have been back numerous times to hike the trails as well as camped. We just love the park! Can’t wait to bring my kayaks to the lake this summer and do some fishing.

BEWARE THE PARK OFFICER as he is one MAJOR JERK — To me the park is fine, nothing great, just ok. The real reason Cedar Hill State Park gets 1 star is because of their jerk park enforcement officers. We got stopped because we were «speeding», probably going like 2 miles over the 20 mph speed limit. The park officer was driving in his truck with no radar gun so not sure how he would even know we were speeding just 2 mph over as he is moving in his vehicle with no radar gun. He turns around and tailgates us for over a mile, and I mean he tails us very closely. He finally turns on his lights and pulls us over. He then accuses us of drinking alcohol and asks the driver how much they had to drink. No one in the car had taken a sip of alcohol so we responded that we hadn’t had any alcoholic beverages. The park officer then sarcastically asked if we were sure, because he definitely smelled alcohol. Again, we responded with the truth, that we hadn’t drank any alcohol. The park officer asked if we were sure again. So we said yes we were sure. He then asked the driver to step out of the car to take a breathalyzer test cuz he was certain he smelled alcohol on us. The breathalyzer was administered like 4 times because it was not reading properly. Of course the reading on the breathalyzer was 0.0. We received no apology from the officer for being a jerk and falsely accusing us of drinking and lying.
On top of that, my wife drove into the park to meet us later that same evening. It was dark and she noticed a vehicle tailgating her very closely for quite a while, so naturally she became uncomfortable. She decided to accelerate a bit to create a little space between them and when she did, the vehicle behind her turned on their police lights. It was the same jerk park officer. She wasn’t accused of drinking, but wow, what a major A$$h0le. This park officer was just too much of a jerk for us to return to Cedar Hill SP. The more I think about the harassment we received from this park officer, the more I dislike this park. And you know Cedar Hill SP will do nothing about this park officer, so I don’t anticipate any changes real soon. Its too bad.
Please BEWARE the park officer as he is one major JERK!!!

Recently discovered this gem and expectations were not only met, but exceeded! I can’t wait to see this park in the spring/​summer when it’s in bloom. I haven’t had the opportunity to explore all of it (it’s quite large) but have covered quite a bit a ground in the few visits to date. Great biking trails, several walking/​hiking trails, great camp grounds with heated shower area, clean restrooms, and friendly staff.
If you plan on visiting more than a few times a year, investing in the annual pass for $ 70 is gold. Normally $ 7 a head to get in, your annual pass not only covers you, but everyone in your car. Plus it’s honored at any state park and partner parks, in addition to discounted camping. Great deal all around!

I’m biased because my bridal portraits were done here ;) This place doesn’t charge an additional fee to take pictures here, unlike *coughArborteumcoughFWbotanicalgardenCOUGH*
So clean and well-​maintained.
I know some DFW running stores hold monthly trail runs here. I need to check it out.
The lake is breathtaking. The entrance is very easy to find too! Just plug it into your GPS.
Will come back again and again to explore!

This is a very nice park, and it is very convenient to the city. My only real complaint is that there are no paved walking/​biking trails. Although infrequent, there are times when you want to walk or bike at a state park right after a rainy day. There is plenty of space to accommodate it. Of the state parks within an hour of me, Ray Roberts gets my nod because of this miss.

I have to say this is by the best park I have camped out to date. The staff is very friendly and helpful and accommodating. We made reservations online, arrived to check-​in, were given a spot and told that if we found a spot we preferred better that was open, to call immediately and we could switch.
We drove around and found a spot with a lake view, called and thankfully it was still available! We drove back to the office to get our new parking card and headed back. We had such a beautiful view, lots of trees, very spacious and still plenty of privacy. Our site was equipped with a table on a cement foundation, a fire pit and even electrical outlets at our parking spot, which I might add, you have two parking spots.
We were in search of a campsite that offered fishing as well as challenging bike trails and were referred here by the Dept of Parks & Recreations, and we were totally not disappointed at all. We were actually located in Coyote Crossing and saw three coyotes running off on our way back to our site.
The restrooms were not that far off from our campsite either. The restrooms were very spacious and clean. The showers were also clean and spacious. The doors all had working locks on them and the facilities were fully stocked.
There were a good amount of trees on site as well. I enjoyed fishing while Chris went off and ran the trails. It was incredibly windy when we went, but it did not deter us from enjoying ourselves. We were able to build a nice campfire, AND Chris even went up to the Marina store for more firewood where the man was SUPER accommodating as well. We had a strong fire for hours; talk about lots of yummy burnt marshmallows, lol!
As the sun went down, the view was mesmerizing; it was truly breathtaking. We are definitely coming back here again, and I hope REALLY soon!

This is a beautiful park. It’s SO CLOSE to Dallas, and yet there are hills and trees and a huge lake. Entrance is $ 5 for overnight, $ 7 for the day, $ 25 to rent a campsite for 8 people, and includes a fire pit.
We came with a group and enjoyed roasting s’mores over the fire pit at our camp site. Our site was clean and just as described. We walked along the road to the lake, but there were many hiking trails that we hope to return to soon.
It’s also just down the road (maybe 2 miles) from ‘civilization’… Dick’s Sporting Goods, WalMart, Applebees, Dunkin Donuts, etc… so if you forgot something, or have a 13 year old diva who needs a break from the outdoors… you’re set! We also had cell-​signal (Verizon) at our campsite.
We will definitely be back!