This spot requires fishing, long sleeves (for the mosquitos) and hiking boots - not safe for running unless you want a twisted ankle. Glad I made my pup walk, I don't think a premium doggie stroller would survive the terrain but maybe a sturdy baby stroller might. read more

What a great area to get some steps in! Short distance or long. Maps along the way to ensure you are on the right trail! Although one map was really bad and it was our splitting point to head back cause sun was starting to go down, thankfully I had my phone and was able to see where we needed to go. I'm not no professional at maps I have to admit but this this one this one definitely needs to be replaced. Other then that very well maintained and great info about the wildlife and what to expect while walking. read more

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Much bigger than first thought. A lot of great space and different habitat areas. A very nice urban park to enjoy. One thing to note is that mountain bikers use it a lot. They are almost always polite & friendly, but be ready for them to scream by so be careful. read more

Spring Lake Natural Area - The trail system is pretty big. - Parks Near Me - San Marcos, Texas

This is my favorite San Marcos trail system. There's a waterfall (OK, it's more of a water cascade) on Centipede Trail and two more on Roadrunner - one of them is exactly where Porcupine turns into Roadrunner, and the other one is west of Grey Fox just a bit (left on the map for those that are Cardinally Challenged) The Tonkawa and Blue Stem trails are easy, but I'd consider the rest of the trails moderate. These trails aren't heavily trafficked, and if you get creative, you can get a good 5-6 miles in. Some parts of the trail get muddy, and stay muddy for over a week after a rain. Most of the trails are in the woods and shaded. Trail signage is pretty darned good, there's only a couple of unmarked trails. Parking at the Meadows Center is free on weekends but $3 on weekdays. You can also park free at the Lime Kiln trailhead (685 Lime Kiln Road) but there's only 10 parking spots. Print a trail map out before you go:: https://gato-docs.its.txstate.edu/the-rivers-institute/MCWE_NEW_SITE/SLNAgallery/SpringLakeNaturalArea.pdf How to find the trailhead: If you're parking at the Meadows Center, cross the street and walk toward the two buildings with trucks parked at them. They look like houses, but they're actually Texas State maintenance buildings. Walk between these two buildings and you'll find it. Restrooms available at the Meadows Center and there's a porta potty at the Lime Kiln trailhead. read more

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I love this place. You can walk short or long trails. It's hilly on the escarpment side, flat on the Blackland Praire side. There's a little creek and beautiful little falls if there's no drought at the time. Trails are a bit confusing so pay attention. Very few people on these trails compared to Purgatory. read more

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I've come here to hike + trail run so many times.... It's always been a natural haven for me. Somewhere to get lost, to escape, and to just breathe and experience some nature away from the I-35 corridor. There's a small pond nearby (that's a great walking distance for families) that I'll frequently find turtles, fish and blue herons at. Outside of this, there's a diverse trail network where I've seen herds of deer and a myriad of bird life. The trail network connects to many parts of San Marcos (I usually access it from Lime Kiln Rd., but you can also access it from N. LBJ). Couldn't say enough nice things about this area. read more

Lime Kiln Entrace Review This park promotes Hiking and Biking and has no river access. It is not wheelchair accessible. There is a port-a-potty and mutt mitt station at this entrance. No water fountains at all. Somebody: Are there things you think San Marcos doesn't do well? Me: Yeah, promote it's other parks well. Like, zero percent brown signs pointing to trails. There's blatant intention to keep long and short-term residents from parks away from the river. Today after exploring the city's parks and rec website, I ventured out to this Natural Area aka a PARK. I'm a short term resident (student-ish) here and I was just wondering if there was somewhere else to take my dog to other than the perpetually muddy, ambiguously routed, and mosquito ridden Purgatory Creek at the Prospect Entrance or bland dog park. So I've wondered what San Marcos does with that park and rec money, since the parks near the river are kinda meh, and now I know. They put into these natural areas. It rained this morning so we encountered mud and more mud, going up the right Encorya (sp?) trail and coming back down on the left Heroin trail. It's kind of a insult having all that mulch piled up at the entrance after encountering the mud. However reaching Tonkawa Trail was awesome, there was actually a sun dial and calender slab at the top of the hill and the paths became paved and pebble covered. The Tonkawa trail runs for 2 miles to the Meadows center, which by the look of things is pretty inaccessible and easily missed. There was no definitive signage I could see from the road telling anyone they were near a park trail. Walking from the entrance, Meadows, and back it was 4 miles so it was a good leisure hike. However back at the top of the hill where the sun dial was you could actually go down another trail that took you all the way to North LBJ! So when I find the time I will go to that entrance and see what the area is like. Can't wait for the weather to dry up so me and the pup, can have another opportunity out there. Edit: 6:18:15: North LBJ entrance is closed and in the worst location possible. It's immediately behind those colorful townhouse apartments they squeezed onto LBJ before it becomes a residential area. I barely noticed it until I saw some of those prism boulders the city uses at all the parks down the road. This entrance is so narrow, I mistook it as an entrance to the apartment complex or a place for a dumpster to go in and haul trash. It looks like there's barely any parking there, just a few spots. I already know they have problems with students parking there and going to school. Definitely not using that or the Meadows entrance. read more

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Beautiful place to spend the day hiking. Very well maintained with multiple paths to choose from. Pet friendly. We couldn't get to it all in 1 day. Can't wait to go back and see / hike the rest. read more

This park is behind the apartments "Logan Ridge". If you continue on the trail behind the apartments for a bit you will run into all these signs. Some trails are rocky, some are steep, some are flat. Great exercise and overall a good time to spend alone or with friends/family! read more

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This is one of my favorite hiking spots in San Marcos. It always makes me feel like I live in a fairy wonderland. Also, people are so friendly and I haven't had a mountain biker try to hit me yet :) read more

Love this spot. I hike Purgatory Creek more because it's closer to my house, but I honestly prefer this trail system.