Central Texas hikes

[Levi Allen]

I am looking for hikers and hikes in and around central TX. I am really looking for overnights for my wife and I to complete on weekends. Any help is greatly appreciated!

[mark henley]

If Austin is ok with you …. I would suggest the Goodwater Trail at Lake Georgetown.

Too hot at the moment, unless you just like sweating at night, but it's a 26.5 mile loop around the lake. It was built by the Army corps of engineers in the early 80's.

I probably won't go out there again until late October, but I'd be happy to meet you there and show you some of the better spots ….

There's also a 5 mile stretch at Round Rock, some great backcountry sites at the Hill Country SRA near Banderia Texas …. then there's Lost Maples, Enchanted rock, and several others ….

North of Houston there's the Lone Star Trail in the Sam Houston national forest … a 100 mile long thru hike trail with a lot of great loops throughout the lobb lolly pines.
There's also the 20 mile long 4C trail in the Davy Crockett National Forest …. there's even a AT style shelter along that trail.

In West Texas you have the Mountains and some great remote hiking on up into Southern New Mexico and the Peco's wilderness and the San Monte de Christo range.

North in OK and ARK there's the Ouchita trail, which spans over two hundred miles and two states in the Ouchita Mountains.

Further North is several other trails in OK, including the Osark Mountain trail.

Mark

[Levi Allen]

Thank you for the info, I think I am gonna try the Goodwater Trail next week. I would like to meet up and hike later this year also, I will have to figure out my schedule more as it gets closer. I am in the Army so I never know my schedule very far out.

[Me]

Not sure if you are still in the area or looking for people to hike with. I am assuming you are at Hood. A friend and I are beginning hikers in Killeen who are looking at doing regular hikes at many of the trails/parks in the area. Have plenty of info on local parks and looking at doing backpacking later. If you are interested, let me know!

[Brian Morgan]

I am in southeast texas but would be glad to meet you anywhere in Texas for some backpacking.

[email protected]

[Joe Clement]

Head west some weekend, and spend a few days in Guadelupe. Worth the trip.

[Richard Lyon]

Definitely worth the trip – scenery I never thought possible in Texas. Be prepared for ferocious winds!

[Rod Guajardo]

If anyone in Texas is looking for others to hike/backpack with, there is a Meetup group in San Antonio that just started. In fact, I am joining them for an overnighter at Lost Maples this weekend. If you would like to check it out, here it is…

The San Antonio Backpackers Meetup

San Antonio, TX
77 Backpackers

Meet other people in and around San Antonio interested in backpacking. Share experiences, great locations, gear and equipment, and find people to take trips with. Periodically…

Next Meetup

Hike Pikes Peak Trails

Tuesday, Jun 1, 2021, 5:30 AM
1 Attending

Check out this Meetup Group →

[Jennifer Mitol]

I'm resurrecting this thread as I am now…for better or worse…a resident of Austin TX. I really thought living in Chicago was the worst place I could have planted myself if I loved taking a walk in the woods…boy was I wrong! This place is even worse!!

So all you texans…convince me to love your state while I save up money (spending time with my brother and 20-month-old niece) and prepare for the pct next year!

I know about big bend and Guadalupe Mountains…but for quick Friday after work to Sunday evenings trips…where do I go?? CharlieDog is missing the trails too…so I need to consider that as well.

[Luke Schmidt]

Lost Maples and Enchanted Rock are some good options for day hikes. You might consider mountain biking as a better sport for Texas. I never got into it but there seemed to be more biking trails then hiking trails.

[Richard Lyon]

There are a couple of campsites at Lost Maples, though water is a problem. The hikes are easy and you could pack in enough for an overnight. Pretty crowded (meaning advance reservations are necessary) most weekends.

East Texas has some trails but none I've been on worth the three hours it'll take you to get there.

I'd certainly check the meet up group referred to in an earlier post. I'd also acquire a taste for bluegrass music.

[Rick M]

del

[Luke Schmidt]

Come to think of it there is a trail association that is working on a 32 mile trail in the area, I think its closer to San Antonio. Its going to be a multi-use, not totally wilderness trail but its an option. I'm sorry I don't remember the website but I'm sure asking around at REI's or googling would yield an answer.

The camp I worked with west of Kerrville ran several adventure races and there were a couple others my friends attended. They were mostly day long orienteering type events but they looked fun. One we ran had a bike ride, a swim, a rappel and shooting to name a few events. Might be a fun way to meet like minded people even if adventure racing is not completely your thing.

[Sean Rhoades]

I'm glad to see that there are some hiking opportunities in Texas. There is a great possibility that I will be moving there sometime after Christmas. I'll be living just outside San Antonio. If there's anyone interested in hiking after January 2014, feel free to contact me.

[email protected]

[Mitch Kilby]

Just to comment – the name of the new trail in Austin will be the Violet Crown Trail. Supposed to be 30 miles and stretch into Hays County. The city also just developed an 8 mile paved trail on the east side called the Southern Walnut Creek Trail. It's not too bad. In downtown Austin, we also have the Barton Creek greenbelt (which the Violet Crown will connect too) which is about 16 miles round trip and longer if you add in the connecting shoal creek greenbelt and the town lake green belt. This is great if you just want to hike on a Saturday or weekday evening after work. Lots of rock climbing, mountain biking and swimming (in the springtime generally) on this trail too.

For local backpacking I always like the Goodwater Trail in Georgetown which is a good one night trip. The Lone Star Trail north of Houston can be nice too during the right times of the year. That's about 100 miles total and just opened back up to the public in Jan 2014 (it was closed because the 2011 drought killed tons of trees which I guess created a dangerous situation according to the authorites). Further out from Central Texas is the Caprock Canyons Trailway which goes 70 miles. Also, in North Texas they just developed or are still in the process of developing the Lone Star Walkabout – a long walking trail of about 100 miles I believe. See link: http://www.tpwmagazine.com/archive/2013/nov/ed_1_trail/

For day hiking w/ camping, there are the well known state parks but also less known is the Government Canyon State Park right outside of San Antonio. Good for setting up camp and hiking all day – just one loop is about 15 miles and there are several loops. It's great because it feels pretty remote but if you feel like going into town for Hamburgers and a beer after the hike, it's totally possible to do that and still come back for camp. Additionally, there is the Hill Country State Natural Area north of SA, which feels pretty remote and provides some good hiking, etc.

There is also this discussion out there that discusses other Texas parks:

http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=2384&disable_pagination=1

[Q Smith]

Jennifer,

If you lived anywhere else there would closer access to backcountry.

I live in Fredericksburg so I completely understand. On the upside it is a nice place to live and I have a great job.

Locals to consider (all nice in Fall and Spring, ok in winter, hell in the summer):
– Lost Pines: big fire a few years ago…
– Pedernales Falls State Park: ok trail, not back country. water in places. crowds.
– Guadalupe State Park near Boerne: haven't been there, sorry
– Lost Maples: 2 or 3 ok trails. not backcountry. water in places. crowds.
– Enchanted Rock: near Fredericksburg. I've covered 110% of it about 5 times… Water in places. Can get away from crowds by going to the edges. Not much fauna, foxes, white tail deer (big deal).
– Guadalupe Mts are the elite in Texas with much forest (but no water and no fires). True backcountry. Few peeps. Might see some bighorn sheep (very cool) or even a mountain lion once in a lifetime…
– Big Bend is blah unless you love desert. Very little forest.

q

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