Texas RV Travel : Discover Texas : Parks
State Parks and Historic Sites
Texas has over 120 state parks, natural areas, historic sites and wildlife management areas. From a restored dreadnought outside of Houston to the remnants of the Texas Longhorn herd scattered throughout the Panhandle, to the final home of the last president of Texas at Washington-on-the-Brazos to the Indian burial mounds of East Texas, there is a park for every interest you may have.
Texas has almost 50 state parks with campsites offering electricity and water; of these, over 20 have sewer hookups. For the latest information on park hours of operation, please check the park web site, contact the park, or call park information (1-800-792-1112-option 3) before you plan a visit.Colorado Bend State Park
Colorado Bend State Park is situated on the site of two former ranches and has six miles of river frontage. The park is not developed, but primitive camping, fishing, swimming, birding and wildlife watching await you. There are 16 miles of hiking trails and 14 miles of mountain bike trails. |
The most magnificent feature in this park is the 60-foot Gorman Falls.
Minerals in the water create travertine formations down the cliff face. The bottom of the drop is Spicewood Creek, a refreshing natural
spring-fed pool.
There are approximately 378 caves and karst features in Colorado Bend State Park. Contact the park (325/628-3240) to make reservations for Gorman Falls Tour or the cave tours. |
Garner State Park
Garner
State Park offers camping, hiking, biking, birding, canoeing, fishing, swimming
and tubing, seasonal miniature golf and paddle boats. The park is home to deer,
turkey, bluebirds, warblers, squirrels and raccoons, is heavily wooded and is
one of the most scenic parks in Texas.
For more
information on Garner State Park, please visit
Texas Parks and Wildlife
Department website.
Goose Island State Park
Goose Island State Park is located on Lamar Peninsula in Aransas Bay. Goose Island State Park is home of a Coastal Live Oak that is estimated to be over 1000 years old. Goose Island is right across the bay from Aransas National Wildlife Reserve. The park has wi-fi Internet access for a fee. RV campers must choose between a bayside camp site on the island or shaded sites on the mainland. What a choice!
Guadalupe State Park
Guadalupe River State Park is a huge park with small RV spaces. The campgrounds are away from the river, of course, but the day use area is right on the banks of the Guadalupe River. You may make arrangements at the park for tube rental and shuttle. For a free float trip you may take on the Guadalupe, see our trip information Guadalupe River State Park.
On Saturdays, you may take a guided tour of the Honey Creek Natural
Area adjacent to the park (sign up in advance). Through Juniper laden hillsides to a lush
riparian environment, we walked for two miles to reach the spring-fed creek
that flows from the mouth of the longest cave in Texas.
The creek is only a few miles long and empties into the Guadalupe River
below the park.
World Birding Center
Rio Grande Valley
The Rio Grande Valley (RGV) of Texas is a world-class birding spot. Follow the
path of the Rio Grande River, from resacas to riverine woodlands, from arid
chaparral to coastal prairie to coastal wetlands (west to east), and from
temperate farmlands to subtropical climes (north to south).
The Mississippi and the Central flyways, join in the spring and diverge in the
fall just north of the RGV. These flyways serve as a funnel for all types of
feathered visitors into the avian wonderland that is the Rio Grande Valley.
Click
to read article about birding in the Lower Rio Grande Valley (LRGV) by seasons.
The World Birding Center
Over 10,000 acres are planned to become part of the WBC, helping to protect
native habitat while increasing the understanding and appreciation of the birds
and wildlife.
Currently, The World Birding Center
is a network of nine sites strung along 120 miles of road from South Padre
Island to Roma, Texas. The habitats are as diverse as the sites, which makes
this the richest birding area north of the border.
- Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park-762
acres of wilderness and headquarters of WBC
- Edinburg Scenic Wetlands-oasis for
water-loving birds and butterflies
- Estero Llano Grande State Park-almost
200 acres of wetlands
- Harlingen Arroyo Colorado-55 acres
of Texas Ebony woodlands meet 40 acres of mixed upland thorn forest
- Old Hidalgo Pumphouse-historic
museum planted with hummingbird gardens
- Quinta Mazatlan-historic Spanish
Revival adobe hacienda surrounded by lush tropical landscaping and native
woodlands
- Resaca de la Palma State Park-1700
semi- tropical acres
- Roma Bluffs-riverside nature area
of three acres is part of a national historic district
- South Padre Island Birding and Nature Center-50 acres of dune meadows, salt marsh and intertidal flats, thickets of native shrubs and trees
Not one place, but nine unique locations, each with its own attractions for the first-time visitor or expert birder. Not one season, but all seasons, as more than 500 different bird species make this a not-to-be-missed nature destination. Access within the park is by foot, bike and tram only.
National Parks in Texas
Big Bend National Park
Big Bend National Park, over 800,000 acres, encompasses the largest protected area of the Chihuahuan Desert and the only complete mountain range within a National Park in the United States. The boundary on the south is the Rio Grande River and the international border with Mexico.
The only campground that offers full hookups in Big Bend National Park is Rio Grande Village RV (432-477-2291). If you do not mind boondocking, there are two other campgrounds in the National Park. However, they are not suggested for large RVs.
There are other RV camping options in nearby towns:
- Big Bend Travel Park - Study Butte, 432-371-2250
- Big Foot RV Park - Terlingua, 432-371-2518
- BJ's RV Park - Terlingua, 432-371-2259
- The Ranch RV Park - Marathon, 432-386-4511
- Stillwell RV Park and Museum - FM 2627, 432-376-2244
- Study Butte RV Park - Study Butte, 432-371-2468
Guadalupe Mountains National Park
In far west Texas, along the southern border of New Mexico, lies Guadalupe Mountains National Park. The unique geology, miles of hiking trails, and fossil forests are just some of the features that attract visitors to this magnificent mountain range.
Bounded by the desert and pine forests, this is one of the most diverse parks in the Southwest US. Guadalupe Mountains National Park preserves one of the finest examples of ancient fossil reef on Earth. An uplift exposed massive portions of the El Capitan Reef here and in the Delaware, Apache and Glass Mountains. View a large map of the area.
Most visitors enjoy 80 miles of trails in the park by hiking. Trails lead to Guadalupe Peak, around the base of El Capitan, up to the high country, and into McKittrick Canyon. You will need a 4x4 to journey far by wheels.
There are two campgrounds in the park with RV spaces and tent sites, water and restrooms. If you are a seasoned backpacker, you might want to camp in the backcountry, which is free. Horseback riding also requires a free permit that can be obtained at the Headquarters Visitor Center or at the Dog Canyon Ranger Station. Click here to find RV and campgrounds.
Padre Island National Seashore
Padre Island National Seashore is the longest remaining undeveloped stretch of barrier island in the world. The National Seashore stretches for 110 miles along the Texas coast, much of it cannot be accessed without 4-wheel drive or by boat. Between the island and the mainland lies the largest lagoon in the world, the Laguna Madre.
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Shallow, salty and teeming with life, the Laguna Madre covers 609 square miles of estuarine and coastal marine systems, stretching 200+ miles from southern Texas into northern Mexico. Meadows of seagrass thrive in the lower Laguna Madre, providing a nurturing home for young finfish, shrimp and shellfish. Having established an exclusive dependence on seagrass, more than 75 percent of the world population of redhead ducks winters in the Laguna Madre, which also provides wintering habitat for the endangered piping plover. Endangered sea turtles share the beaches and coastal mainland with two magnificent wildcats: ocelot and jaguarondi. Laguna Madre and Padre Island are considered to be world-class fishing, windsurfing and kiteboarding destinations. |
San Antonio Missions National Historical Park
Remember the Alamo! John
Wayne recreated the Alamo in Brackettville, Texas and spent a fortune to
ensure that we would all remember the Alamo.
What is not remembered is that the Alamo is just one of many Spanish missions
founded in Texas. The San Antonio Missions National Historical Park was
established to preserve and interpret the chain of Spanish Missions that were
built along the San Antonio River in the 18th century.
Start your trip at Mission San Jose with a 23-minute film, a ranger guided tour,
and a visit to restored Spanish Colonial flour mill. Museums are located at
Missions San Jose, San Juan, and Espada. Espada Aqueduct is the only functioning
aqueduct from the Spanish Colonial Period in the United States.
Visit the National Park Services website to
plan your visit.
Spend the day visiting missions that still serve as parish churches, light
candles in dimly lit alcoves that echo with the prayers of centuries, and view
some of the most pristine lands remaining on the San Antonio River. Ponder the
priests that journeyed from Spain to Mexico to Texas to enslave the native
population and build the enduring legacy that surrounds you. It is a
breathtaking and a humbling experience.
Camino Real de los Tejas
The Camino Real de los Tejas was designated as a National Historic Trail in 2004. Many historical routes in Texas were named camino real (King's Highway). These reales followed prehistoric Indian trade routes from Mexico to the Mississippi and became the path for Spanish exploration and colonization in Texas.
The official website of the Camino Real de los Tejas is newly published and has information on East Texas and Louisiana sites on the road. This site will expand as the communities along the trail lend their historical knowledge and factual interpretation to the Camino Real de los Tejas.
- View a map of the missions and presidios on the Camino Real de los Tejas from the UT Library Map Collection.
- Take a drive tour from San Antonio to San Marcos, Texas, loosely following the Camino Real de los Tejas.
You may follow the Camino Real del los Tejas from San Marcos to Nacogdoches, Texas and beyond. Journey on Hays Country Road 266; switch to State Highway 21 in Hays County; onto the Old San Antonio Road (OSR) that bypasses Bryan, College Station and Madisonville, Texas. Read about our Journey to Arkansas along this road.
