Hike Report: South Llano River SP: Walter Buck WMA Trails

March 19, 2013

Most of the hiking trails at South Llano River State Park are in the southern part of the park in the area known as the Walter Buck Wildlife Management Area. The trails are not named on maps provided by the park with the exception of the Fawn Trail (see map of park). However, on the maps that appear at strategic locations on stands throughout the parks, names are provided for a few of the trails, though not all of them.

Since this area was a working ranch once, most of the trails actually follow ranch roads, so hiking is fairly easy. There are hills, some steep, but most of the time grades are slow and gradual. Loose rock is common, so footing can be tricky, but bare earth also abounds throughout.

Trail head for Fawn Trail and other trails; located behind the park headquarters building.

We began our hike at the trail head located behind the park headquarters. For the first half mile or so, this is a single track foot path. The trail is lined with plaques with information about the plants along the trail. The plaques are flip-top. When I first saw them, I thought they were stands merely waiting for the information cards to be attached. Then I noticed the hinge and flipped one. The top merely protects the information cards. 

Flip-top information stands line the foot path

A bird blind is located near the start of the trail. There are actually 4 bird blinds in the park (that I saw). The park is popular with birders, and we saw numerous bird watchers during our stay.

This is a drift array, a device used to trap ground dwelling lizards. When lizards encounter the metal, they drift along it to the end, where they fall into a trap -- in this case, a 5 gallon bucket -- where they may later be examined and released. We saw several of these along the trails we hiked.

After about a half mile, the dirt track merges with a paved road for a short distance before giving way to a double-track trail. A bit farther on, the Fawn Trail turns sharply east at a junction where a windmill is located. We continued on in a southerly direction on what is now called the Golden Cheeked Warbler Trail. 

Fawn Trail veers left; we took the road to the right. Note windmill on left side of picture.

Juniper and other trees are pretty thick along the rolling trail. We then came to the first of what the park calls box-type house blinds. These are animal blinds located near the trails. The WMA opens up the area to hunts during the year, and these blinds are assigned to those whose names are drawn to participate in the hunt.

Sign indicates a box blind nearby. It is in the left of the picture. Can you see it?

About half a mile past the Fawn Trail cutoff, another trail veered to the west up a steep hill. This trail wraps around the perimeter of the park. That distance was too great for us, so we continued along our route, which soon passed a primitive camping area to the west. A bare wall of limestone soon appeared on our left (east), carved by years of water erosion. It’s quiet here, very peaceful and very shady. 

Exposed limestone wall carved by centuries of erosion. It's very peaceful and cool along this stretch of trail.

Near blind #10, I looked for a trail leading east, but never saw it. I don’t know if I simply missed it or that it is not a clear trail. We continued on south. After more than half a mile, we came to a marker with a “You are here” map indicating that we were on the trail I wanted to take that crosses the park to the east. I saw no trail, though. Not wanting to return on the same route we had followed out, we cut across a clearing. I saw  something ahead that might be a trail, and we soon came to our trail. Had we stayed on our southerly trail, we would have come to it, but the posted sign misled us.

This trail crosses the park to the east side, where we intersected with the trail that returns to the north and our camp. The cross trail is a very slow and gradual slope up. Once atop, we had great views, especially to the west. The landscape atop this hill is more open with fewer trees. A short half mile hike brought us to our trail junction, and we turned north for the return to camp.

Looking west from the top of the cross trail

There are few ups and downs along this trail, and even those are very slight for the most part. At one point, the trail turns west to flow around a hill. After this turn, we intersected with the trail I had failed to see on our way out. It is a clear trail, so I obviously must have been daydreaming when we passed it. We curved back east, then intersected with the perimeter trail along a fence line marking the eastern boundary of the park. After a gentle up and down and curve, we rejoined the Fawn Trail.

At the intersection of the perimeter trail, looking north.

At first, the trail looked simple, then we encountered the most challenging part of our hike. It is a steep downhill grade on loose rock. We slowed down, planted our feet sideways, and used our hiking poles to steady us as we slowly worked our way down. We slipped and slid a few times, but nothing major. We took our time and finally arrived at the bottom. 

It looks like the trail just drops off, and it actually does to some degree.

The remaining three-quarters of a mile was an easy hike through a tree-covered section, often running parallel to a dry creek bed. We then intersected with the scenic overlook trail we hiked upon our arrival at the park and worked our way back to camp.

Technically, our hike for the day was 5.3 miles. However, since we walked from and to our campsite, the total distance was probably 6.5 to 7 miles. The hike is easy to moderate, mostly easy. There are several sections with baseball and softball sized rocks where you need to watch your step. The total hike took us about 2 hours and 45 minutes. We encountered only 2 other people on the trail, bird watchers whom we passed soon after we split off the Fawn Trail near the beginning of the hike. During the entire hike, we heard only the sounds of nature with the exception of a small plane that flew over near the end of the hike. This is really a great way to spend some time.

In and Around Junction, Texas

I've always enjoyed Junction, Texas. But then, I like small towns; after all, I grew up in a small town.

I consider Junction to be on the western edge of the Hill Country, though a clear definition of the boundaries of this area differ from person to person. But it does have many of what I consider Hill Country landmarks: hilly country, limestone cliffs, spring-fed streams, a ranching culture, and lots of wildlife, among others.

The population of the town is approaching 4,000, and there are various types of accommodation available for visitors. I've always found the restaurants to be quite good -- nothing fancy, mind you, but just solid good food with BBQ, Mexican, and fast food available. Boating, swimming, and fishing are popular on both the North and South Llano Rivers, which merge in Junction, thus giving the town its name. Hunting is also a major attraction. Several major highways merge in Junction, including Interstate 10, US Highway 83, and US Highway 377.

Loop 481 bridge crossing the South Llano River on the east side of downtown Junction. Picture taken from a scenic overlook just east of the river along Loop 481.

Junction is also home to Texas Tech University at Junction. I suspect this 410 acre campus on the banks of the South Llano River was formerly the site of the Texas A&M campus where Coach Bear Bryant held his infamous training camp in 1954. The group of men be coached there became known as the "Junction Boys", and the training camp is an interesting study in former methods of training football players. A TV movie, The Junction Boys, starring Tom Berenger, was made of this incident in 2002.

Entrance to Texas Tech University at Junction

Junction has a lovely city park on both banks of the South Llano River near downtown just before it merges with the North Llano River. It's a great place to spend the day and is within walking distance of downtown and the Kimble County Historical Museum.

Dam on South Llano River near downtown Junction. Bridge in picture above is same as in first picture. Park area is on both sides of river, and downtown is in background near water tower.

If you enjoy scenic drives, take US 377 south of Junction for about 20 or 25 miles. The highway passes South Llano River State Park, then continues to parallel the river with a couple of low-water crossings where canoeists can put in for a leisurely float down the river. The highway leads to the small community of Rocksprings, then eventually to Del Rio and the Rio Grande at the crossing into Old Mexico at Ciudad Acuna.

South Llano River winds through limestone hills near a ranch.

South Llano River south of Junction

One of two low-water crossings over the South Llano River south of Junction.

South Llano River SP: Scenic Overlook, March 18, 2013

The day of our arrival at South Llano River State Park was beautiful -- the sun was out, there was a slight breeze, and the temperature was about 75. So, we were eager to get outside. Since it was already mid-afternoon, though, we did not want to venture too far, so we opted to take the short hike up to the Scenic Overlook on the east side of the park.

If you view the map of the park, you will see the Scenic Overlook at the top center of the page, which is near the eastern perimeter of the park just south of the river. We walked from our campsite to the primitive camping parking area. As soon as we entered the trail, we came across one of the 4 bird blinds in the park, the Juniper Blind.

Juniper Blind

I visited two blinds while at the park, and both were equipped with fresh water sources and bird seed for the birds in the viewing area. Inside the blinds themselves, bird books and bird cards were available to assist with identifying the birds. The park also makes available a field checklist entitled Birds of South Llano River and Walter Buck Wildlife Management Area. This checklist is available on the park's website.

After our brief stop at the bird blind, we continued on the trail. Just beyond the blind, the trail intersects with a paved road. We would be on pavement for almost the entire hike. The Fawn Trail also follows the pavement for a short distance, but soon veers south.

It's been a long, long time since this low-water crossing has seen any water.

After dipping down into a low-water crossing, the trail then begins a fairly strenuous climb; however, it is certainly easier walking on pavement rather than loose rock. As we progressed up the hill, the views began to become impressive. At the very top is a parking area; I'm not sure who can drive up there and park, though. We turned north, and after a short distance, we found ourselves on the edge of a hill. There is a green rail fence there to keep folks away from the edge.

Redbud in bloom about halfway up the scenic overlook trail; note the paved road that was our trail.

View from the top. That is our campground below. Views stretch for miles.

Those are native pecan trees, and these trees are what attract the turkeys. The river is along the far edge of the trees. The exposed limestone in the left center is where the highway is cut.

The trail down. Our trail winds off to the right and curves around the base of the hill, to the right of where the water tank is visible at the end of another road.

That is the hill we were atop of a few minutes ago.

Once back down to our starting point, we followed the Fawn Trail westward until we came out behind the park headquarters. It was then a short walk back to our campsite.

Park headquarters located in a former ranch house.

Total length for this hike, including walking from and to our campsite, was probably no more than 3 miles.

South Llano River State Park

March 18 - 21, 2013

We recently spent 3 nights at South Llano River State Park, located about 3 miles south of Junction, Texas. The park opened in 1990. We lived in Ozona, Texas, during most of the 1990s, and this became our favorite camping spot. Not only was it close to our home at that time, but it offered so much: a beautiful spring-fed river for swimming and tubing, miles of trails for hiking, beautiful trees and campground, and lots of wildlife to view. In the early days of the park – before it was “discovered” by the camping hordes – we seemed to have the park to ourselves. Those were lazy and good times. Today, the park is very popular, and it provides a great environment for outdoor lovers.

Pecan and other trees abound in the camping area, so almost every spot has some type of shade in the summer. All sites are paved, and all sites are back-in. The angle on some spots is difficult to negotiate for longer rigs. Our spot, number 49, was at a 90-degree angle. I had to remove my sway bars before backing in, but I normally do that when we check in anyway. Some sites have gentle angles and are much easier to negotiate. All sites have fire pits and picnic tables; many sites have covered picnic tables.

Our site -- #49.

Nice shaded sites, some with covered picnic tables. The pecan leaves will begin leafing out soon, providing good shade for hot weather camping.

Water and electricity are available at every spot; I believe all sites are 30-amp, but I'm not certain of this. There are no full hookups except for the 2 host sites. The dump station is located on the right as you leave the camping area. It is a “two-holer”, but is a bit tight. A row of dumpsters line the edge of the area, making for a sharp turn when leaving. In anticipation of this, I left my sway bars off until after leaving the dump station. 

This is the only state park we’ve been to in our travels in our current trailer where we could not pick up some type of TV reception on our antennae (Davis Mountains provides cable). We could also pick up only 1 FM radio station when we scanned. If you can’t live without media entertainment of some sort, this place may not be for you. But we came here to enjoy the outdoors, and enjoy them we did.

As we drove into the park, we saw a small herd of exotic hoofed animals on the private property bordering the west side of the park. I don’t know what they were, but I will take a stab and say they may have been axis deer; they were smaller than white-tail deer and a lighter tan color. 

Axis deer on neighboring property along entrance road of park.

This was to be the first of many wildlife sightings. After setting up the trailer following our arrival, we opened up all the windows to enjoy the beautiful day. We fixed a couple of sandwiches and sat at our dinette beside our big bay window and were looking outside. Donna spotted a colorful bird in a tree just outside the trailer. At first she thought it was a cardinal, but then noticed it had no crest. We also saw that it had dark wings. After consulting a bird book at a bird blind later, we came to believe it was a vermillionflycatcher.

Later that day, we drove into town. On the way out of the park, we saw our small herd of exotics again, this time lying in the field. On the opposite side of the road were 2 turkeys strutting near the river. On our return, a large buck crossed the road in front of us, then lingered along the roadside as we stopped to admire him. That night around our campfire, 2 white-tail deer grazed nearby. 

Two white-tail deer graze near our camp late one afternoon. That is the door to our trailer on the right, which shows how close they were.

In the distance, we could hear turkeys repeatedly gobbling as they roosted in the pecan trees along the nearby South Llano River, and mourning doves cooed back and forth at one another. We had enjoyed a good day of animal watching. In fact, we’ve always seen lots of wildlife at this park; it is a major reason why we enjoy this place so much.

We saw wildlife each day of our stay in the park. One day, a flock of at least 2 dozen moved through the center of the campground, taking their time as if they had no worries at all. The park is becoming very popular among bird enthusiasts. We saw no fewer than 4 bird blinds in the park.

More than 2 dozen turkeys move through our campground about noon.

The nights at the park were great. No highway sounds, no trains, no unnatural noise at all. The quiet nights provided some deep sleeping.

Donna and a young camper on the fishing pier at Buck Lake.

The South Llano River as it slices through the northern part of the park.

Back in Angelo

Just a quick note until later . . . .

We arrived back in San Angelo this afternoon. This is my first connectivity since we left about 10 or 11 days ago. I'll begin posting entries regarding our just completed trip in the next day or two, and I'll try to post one or two entries each day.

The closing on our house has moved up one week, so we are now scurrying around getting things ready. We have a great deal to do.

Weather today is about 80 with a southerly breeze. Feel sorry for the folks with the snow up north, but I'm happy to have warm weather. Wish we could get some moisture, though.

One More Trip Before the House is Ready

Our house is nearing completion. With the warm spring days upon us, we want to take one more short trip before we have to get busy moving into our new home.

We'll be leaving tomorrow to visit 3 state parks:

• South Llano River State Park near Junction, Texas
• Palmetto State Park near Luling, Texas
• Lockhart State Park just outside of Lockhart, Texas

South Llano River SP is an old friend. We began camping there soon after it opened in 1990. It was our favorite camping destination when we lived in nearby Ozona, Texas. At that time, we had a folding camper. We'd spend our days in the river and our nights around a campfire. This will be our first time to camp in the park since those long ago days. We did visit the park about a year ago for a short day hike, though.

At Palmetto, Donna will spend her days fishing while I do a bit of hiking. Perhaps Donna will tear herself away from feeding the fish to join me.

From Palmetto SP it is a short jaunt up the road to nearby Lockhart SP. This park is unique in that it has a 9-hole golf course. We have a sport reserved in the campground that fronts one of the fairways, so we intend to relax and watch some of the duffers chase those little white balls around the course. We'll do a bit of hiking, too, and we'll also visit at least one of Lockhart's great BBQ restaurants. My mouth is already watering.

I am doubtful that I will have any internet connectivity during this trip. We hope to be back in San Angelo by the end of the month. At that time, you will see new entries appear as quickly as I can post them.

For those interested, here are links to blog entries on these or nearby places that I have posted previously. Enjoy, and I'll see you down the road.

• "A Tale of Two Parks" (about Palmetto SP and Lockhart SP)
• "Good Eats: Smitty's Meat Market, Lockhart, Texas"
• "Hiking South Llano River State Park "

Midessa Oil Patch RV Park

During our recent trip to Midland to attend the Moody Blues concert, we took our travel trailer and stayed at Midessa Oil Patch RV Park. The park is conveniently located halfway between Midland and Odessa, an area sometimes referred to as the Petroplex. The airport is no more than 2 miles away, and the Wagner Noel Center for the Performing Arts, where the concert was held, is located about 4 or 5 miles north. For Interstate 20 travelers, the park is an easy off/easy on location. Gas stations are conveniently located at exit 176 (Highway 1788) near the park.

This RV park is obviously popular, as there were few vacant spots during our stay. However, there are not that many RV parks in the Petroplex, so competition is limited. Fruitless mulberry trees are plentiful in the park, so shade should be good during the summer months. There is a pool, laundry facilities, and clean restroooms/showers, and propane is available in the park. The office also serves as a convenience store that carries basic supplies.

Back of office. Laundry is to the right. Pool is to the left, out of picture.

Cabins such as these as well as tent sites are available in the park.

From the shape of the office, it appears that the park at one time was a KOA park. And the design is typical of KOAs. From my experience, KOA parks are pretty consistent at squeezing as many camping sites into a space as possible to maximize profits. Many KOA parks were designed years ago when RVs were smaller and slide outs were unheard of. Fitting modern rigs in those same spaces is difficult. It is nearly impossible to eke out room for both your rig and your vehicle in these smaller sites. Maneuvering your rig through the narrow lanes and then parking is also challenging.

Our neighbors were a little too close. Note their sewer hose near the tree, just beyond our back steps.

Although I was able to park our rig without much difficulty, I don't have a larger RV. I was barely able to fit my 30 foot trailer and 20 foot pickup in the space I was assigned. My neighbor was uncomfortably close. I watched as larger motorhomes and fifth wheels slowly wormed their way through the tight turns and narrow roadways.

Narrow roadways and tight sites. Notice the rear of the minivan is sticking slightly into the roadway.

The park was nearly full during our stay. Lots of folks from the oil boom are living here.

I was also disappointed that the park did not provide cable TV, at least to short term residents. I got the impression that a cable solution is available to long term residents. Fortunately, there are several stations in the Petroplex that can be picked up by antennae. The park also has non-potable water, so they warn you not to drink the water. They do claim it is safe for washing and cleaning. The park provides free bottled water to all guests.

A train track runs about 300 or 400 yards north of the park, and probably a dozen or so trains pass by throughout the day. Because the track crosses roads in the area, you can clearly hear the warning whistles at all hours of the day.

Were I to return to the area, I would look for another park. However, this is a reliable park, and I would stay again if I could not find anything better.