Brantley Lake State Park

We loved this campground! Quiet, great views, nice bathrooms and showers, and a good road in and out. Level site with nice picnic table (covered.) use of grills prohibited due to current fire risk.Water and electric were good. Dump station is at the entrance.

It is 12 miles north of Carlsbad, plus another 4.6 miles on Capital Reef Road to get to the campground. Still, imho, a much better choice than the parking lot style commercial parks in Carlsbad. Was an easy enough drive to Guadeloupe National Park, Carlsbad Caverns, Sitting Bull Falls.

Sites facing the dam were closed while we were here. Don’t know why.

Great State Park. Very windy at this time of the year. Busy, but spots were available. We had to stay at 2 different sites due to a change of travel plans. Camp host on site. Water and electric as well as cement pad with picnic table and sun shelter like the other NM state parks we have stayed at. Bathrooms were spotless! Dump station is off the campground and down the road a ways. You’ll see it on your left on the way in. Next time we plan on spending extended time in NM we will purchase the season pass. We went to the Caverns and we also did the typical chores in town like laundry and restocking food. Would stay again.

Camped in a 35” motorhome. We are self-contained so cannot comment on restrooms/shower facilities. Probably wouldn’t stay again – would prefer something closer to the caverns. Site #18

Pros –
- Camp hosts were very helpful.
- Nice views of lake.

Cons-
- Some spaces are very unlevel and are not depicted that way in the description or photos on the reservation site. We had reserved #22 but it was not possible to park our motorhome in the very sloped site. We had to pay a cancellation fee to move to another site.
- Very windy – maybe just the time of year we went.
- Not as convenient to Carlbad Caverns as we had hoped.

We love this state park as a base for our adventures around the Carlsbad area of New Mexico. Public campgrounds around Carlsbad Caverns and Guadalupe Mountains are lacking and we don't mind the day trip approach from Brantley Lake. As some reviewers have noted, it is some 6 miles from the interstate so if you want something more convenient, find a private RV park. Campsites are well spaced and many have views. You are on the prairie so expect open land and winds. The state is overhauling the restroom so an inconvenience for this year with temporary facilities that were really clean when we were there in February. We had a full hookup site which is unusual for NM state parks. You still can't beat the price compared to surrounding states. This is a remote park with little to do but relax, enjoy the views, and walk trails to the lake and boat ramp.

First stopped there a year ago and loved it. Appeared to have had a fire and it was pretty rugged but great view. Returned again last year and the sand stickers or goat heads were just horrible. My dogs had them all over their coats wouldn't get off the pad. I am still finding them in my camper that came off me. Bathrooms are nice and clean but can't take the stickers. If that would not be a problem for you, then it is a great place.

Wifi: Verizon - 20 down, 5 up, ATT - 20 down, 5 up....We loved Brantley Lake State Park. The views were great, the sites were fairly level, everything was spacious, and even with neighbors we never were disturbed. The bathrooms are under construction, but the outdoor concert style restrooms worked just fine. Our cell signals were strong, we didnt have to worry about overflowing dumpsters, and it was easy to access our site. The only downside (which may be an upside to some) was that we were half an hour away from any sort of store. That meant we had to be more aware of how much gas we had on our motorcycle before we went anywhere. We would definitely be back.