We arrived early this morning for our first hike of the year. The rangers were very efficient; our…read morereservation was checked and our permit was brought out. We drove out to the water and decided to walk those trails. The trails are all very easy to navigate. The more challenging trails may not have actually been trails at all, but got us down to the river bank for some lovely photos. The grounds and trails are very clean and well maintained. The camp sites look really nice and the bathrooms (I'm told) were Buccees level clean. There's a Discovery center that seemed to be interesting for the littles. I really enjoyed the solitude and the zen. I suspect it probably gets pretty packed though.

Lovely park! Make sure to prepay entrance fee online and discount was offered with military park…read morepass. We parked near the end of the road where you'll find a parking lot with bathrooms and changing facilities. We met our hiking group and trekked off walking along the Guadalupe River. Make sure to bring water shoes with grip cuz you'll cross the river to get to more hiking trails. The water was cool and the flow perfect...depending on the time of the year, it can get quite powerful. The weather was gorgeous - fall vibes of overcast and cooler temps. We hiked a mix of many shaded forest areas and open fields . Captured many pics of the fall changes - leaves turning shades of yellow and orange. And I gotta kick seeing live armadillos scurrying amongst the long grasses. So cute!!! With the great weather and scenery, we hiked a steady pace and clocked in approximately 8.5 miles ! Loved hiking through the river : ) Clean bathrooms and changing rooms were a plus!

We had an absolutely wonderful experience at Natural Bridge Caverns, and a huge part of that was…read morethanks to our amazing tour guide, Amy B.! Amy was excellent from beginning to end. She was professional, knowledgeable, funny, engaging, and incredibly friendly. She made the entire tour entertaining and enjoyable for the whole family, while also sharing interesting information in a way that was easy to understand and fun to listen to. What really stood out to us was how wonderful she was with our children. She was patient, kind, playful, and made them feel comfortable and included throughout the entire experience. You could genuinely see that she enjoys what she does and loves making people have a great time. Amy made our visit truly special, and we are very grateful for her enthusiasm, kindness, and professionalism. She is an outstanding tour guide and a fantastic representative of Natural Bridge Caverns. Thank you so much, Amy, for making our family's experience so memorable! We would absolutely recommend her to anyone visiting the caverns.

Decided to take my daughter and grandson to a couple of caves. This was our second location and by…read morefar our favorite. A Cave Without a Name is stunning! Our guide, Julia, was a pure joy. So friendly and knowledgeable as well as just fun! I will be bank and be bringing others.

This review is targeting active adults who love the outdoors and like to run, hike, or cycle…read more(mountain bike) on trails with a variety of terrain: grassland, limestone rock gardens, oak groves, and lake shoreline. If that doesn't float your boat, or you are looking for a spot to have a family swim & picnic with the kids, knock the stars down to 2 and find another pretty park to explore during your visit to North Canyon Lake. Old Hancock Equestrian Trail is a free, public, day-use-only park on land managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, like all the other land in the flood plain surrounding Canyon Lake. It is designated specifically for horseback riding, so everyone else must yield to those riders. If you get there before 9a on a weekday, chances are, you'll have the whole place to yourself for a 7-mile round-trip (out and back) trip from the trailhead around the north shore of the lake to Canyon Park Road (near Brookshire Brothers and Canyon Beach). The horses are more commonly seen on the weekends but may be there at any time, along with their owners' trucks and trailers in the dirt parking area. Just off the parking area, there are a few spurs that take you through the bushes to the lakeshore. This area is often used by anglers and kayakers to access the lake during good conditions for their sport, but its main purpose is for horses and their riders to take a dip after their ride. Toward the northeast from the parking area is the main trailhead, next to the informational kiosk. Take the path in the grass that heads north/northeast and follows the shore of the lake. About half the time, you'll have a water view; other times, it will be tall grasses, trees, or cow pastures. Depending on the time of day and time of year, you'll see a variety of birds, insects, deer, cattle, and maybe a big spiny lizard, a snapping turtle, or a harmless rat snake if you're lucky. In the spring, wildflowers and butterflies are abundant, but so can be the mud. In summer, it is hotter than Hades but the lake breeze is nice with the blue water and blue skies. In the fall, a few of the trees take on a magnificent red, orange, and yellow color scheme. In winter, everything is dried out and gray. I just love watching the seasons change here. At different points along the trail, you'll find rest benches, trail markers, and spurs down to the water, where you are welcome to go for a swim (at least at the time of this writing in June 2022). It's one of the last places around Canyon Lake where you can do that without paying a fee, but you've got to want it bad enough to hike there & back, and you can only bring what you can carry on your back. The trail (more like a dual-track dirt road) is mostly flat and open with sand, grass, or caliche surfaces, but there are a few challenging sections with short inclines, yards of bumpy rocks, and a couple of wet weather creek crossings. After a rain, there's also the possibility that some local dude from the adjacent neighborhood will have gone "night muddin'" out there in a 4x4 and made the ruts deep in some areas, but this has lately not been such a problem since the Comal County Sherriff has started warning about the potential $5,000 fine for using a motorized vehicle on the trail. A few words of warning: - This park property is between private land (residences, ranches, and businesses) and the lake. Be sure to stay on the trail and don't trespass over fences or beyond posted "private property" areas. - Shade is limited and the sun can be intense at least 10 months of the year, so wear a hat and sunscreen, make sure you're hydrated, go with a buddy, and try to time your trip for hours close to sun up or sundown. It would not be easy for an emergency vehicle to reach you out there if heatstroke happened. - No restrooms, water fountains, or trash bins are available to users of this trail. Pack in and pack out everything. Leave no trace. Litterbugs, shoo, stay away!

The Old Hancock Trail is primarily a trail for horses, but it also makes a good hiking trail. If it…read moreis warm outside, beware because there is lots of sunshine on this trail and little shade. Investing in some SPF 40 might be a good idea. It is mostly a dirt trail that skirts the northern side of the lake and stretches for about 3 1/2 miles to end at Canyon Park. To find the trailhead, just find your way to FM 306 (I took FM 12 out of San Marcos and it was a scenic drive). Once you pass FM 3424 on the north side of the lake, continue for about 1.9 miles on FM 306 until you see a street sign for Hancock Road. This road passes by a small airport and then dead ends at the trailhead where there is tons of free parking. Take a picnic with you and maybe a swimsuit, because there are several places along the trail that would be a good stop for a swim and a bite to eat. I mostly felt like I was hiking on someone's ranch road that happened to be next to a nice lake. I saw several deer and birds along the way, and there were a few people on horseback also. I'm sure this trail would be full of wildflowers and butterflies in the Spring. Anyway, I hope this encourages you to check it out when you have a free day to play in the sun. I'm not sure how Yelp ended up with this in Lubbock, but don't worry, I am working with them to fix this error. Yes, it is on Canyon Lake. Google Maps must hate Canyon Lake for some reason. :-)

The older male attendant with the beard refused to refund my $20 after our GPS took us to the wrong…read moreentrance and we had to make a U-turn before even getting to enjoy the lake. He told me, "No refunds, I'm sorry," and I replied, "You're not sorry." It was incredibly frustrating to lose $20 without seeing any part of the lake. I wish the staff had more discretion and common sense to handle situations like this, especially when the issue was caused by incorrect directions rather than us using the facilities. Couldn't even hold eye contact with me.

So this park is not worth it at all. It's a tiny area sectioned off that makes you think it's…read morebigger than it is. You can walk to the water, but it doesn't really look like it's good for swimming. This is a fishing lake. There are shells and broken glass here. It was $20 just to get inside, and I regret the price for the minuscule amount of time we spent here. Meh, maybe the park next door was better.

Unfortunately, one bad experience does spoil your opinion. I have to say this was our first time…read moreout on the lake this season. There were a lot of new deck hands and there is a new manager for the boat club. We have been mostly pleased with our experiences with the boats. The boat was in pretty good shape except for some upholstery issues. The motor ran great. The deck hands were very helpful. But when we came into the dock, there were a couple of other very full boats with lots of passengers that had been pulling tubes. We made the mistake of not sticking around to check and see what the gas fill up was and somehow our fill up got mixed up with one of the other 2 boats that had been pulling tubes. Soooo, we were charged the wrong fuel charge. Our gas gauge barely made it past Full but we were charged $63.46 which meant we would have had to use at least 9 gallons of gas. We might have used at most 3 gallons. After explaining this to the front office, the best they could do was offer us a 5 gallon credit on our next trip out. I'm sorry, but the new management is going to have to do better than that, especially considering they may not remember this so called credit. To any other potential boat club members, pay attention to your gas gauge and the fill ups. Don't leave until you see what it is.

Nice marina with a pier. For some reason the pier was closed. Really wish we could have used it to…read morecatch some fish. Couldn't really fish from anywhere because of the grass growing close to the beach.

Nestled right along the lake, this park is the perfect spot for a fun-filled family day outdoors…read more With plenty of open green space, shaded picnic areas, and beautiful waterfront views, there's something for everyone to enjoy. The kids loved the playground and splash areas, while the walking trails and peaceful lake breeze made it relaxing for the adults too. Whether you're grilling with family, playing games in the sun, or just enjoying the scenery, this park has an inviting atmosphere that makes it easy to spend the whole day there. Clean, family-friendly, and full of activities, it's definitely a go-to destination for sunshine and outdoor fun.

Not ideal for getting to the water with a lot of items, it was quite the hike and down steep rocks…read more Kids needed assistance. Not sure if all areas are like this but the area we went to was. When you get to the water very rocky, no soft place to sit or lounge on a towel. I recommend bringing chairs to sit on. Water was very choppy due to all the jet skis and boats.

What a gorgeous trail! This was such a good find. Plus nothing else was open because of the…read moreholiday. I needed a short hike to shake off the day and this was it! Gravel nature trails that led me down to the lake and back within 30 minutes. I saw a few people along the trail which was nice too! All the trails led back to the parking area and they're easy to read on the map in case you feel lost. Highly recommended!

Time for a 2025 update on the changes to the visitor experience here at Madrone Trail. My past…read morereviews go over the terrain (varied with rock gardens, shade, & minimal elevation change) and rules (stay on trail; no lake swimming access). Check those older reports for more details. The biggest change since my last update is the opening of the Butterfly Garden just a few yards from the trailhead off Canyon Park Road. This curated and annotated pocket park is a neat little fenced-in microbiome of native plants offering a great place to observe the changing seasons and pollinators at work. The local chapter of Texas Master Naturalists have done a wonderful job here! The devastating drought in Central Texas for the past several years has dropped the level of Canyon Lake by 29 feet and there's no end in sight. This is sad for many reasons, but offers some interesting opportunities at Madrone Trail in early 2025. The shoreline has changed dramatically and you can now see what used to be under water since 1968. During our most recent visits in 2024-2025, we've walked on uncovered asphalt roads that used to service the Hancock community. We've also found sunken water craft and all sorts of lost objects from boaters over the years. WORD (the local nonprofit that stewards this park) is currently cleaning up all 85 miles of Canyon Lake's shore, so most of the big items will be taken away soon. However, it's always appreciated when trail visitors bring a trash bag and pick up any smaller debris encountered along the way.

Enjoyed a great day tubing today. Started with the easy parking and very friendly check in…read moreprocess. Isabella made sure everything was seamless, quick trip to drop off with friendly driver, and very timely pick up. Corner Tubes is top notch!

Corner Tubes is located right across from Prince Solms Park where the tubing activities start. I…read morelike the location. It's easy access and the offer hotel pick up. The bus was really comfortable, although the ride was short. They offer tubes that are bottomless or with bottoms. I heard the water was shallow, I chose the one with bottom. I certainly don't want my bottom kissing the bottom of the river. I went to tubing with a group of my bear friends from Houston. We had a blast in the Comal River. But I had a different experience than them. My friend and I got off the river earlier than my group. We were picked up from the last public exit and brought to the shop to wait on the bus. The driver kept updating me on the status. We heard the bus broke down at one point. Okay. No problem. The New Braunfels sun was shining at us for about an hour. Finally, a windowless van picked us up and dropped off at the hotel. Even with minor glitch, I would come back to get my tube at Corner Tubes.