Rising from the desert, this mountain mass contains portions of the world's most extensive and significant Permian limestone fossil reef. Also featured are a tremendous earth fault, lofty peaks, unusual flora and fauna, and a colorful record of the past.
A splash of blue stands out against limestone cliffs. The honking of a great blue heron, interspersed with the descending trill of a canyon wren, can be heard off in the distance.
Big Bend National Park is a land of borders. Situated on the boundary with Mexico along the Rio Grande, it is a place where countries and cultures meet. It is also a place that merges natural environments, from desert to mountains.
The Preserve consists of nine land units and six water corridors encompassing more than 97, 000 acres. Big Thicket was the first Preserve in the National Park System established October 11, 1974, and protects an area of rich biological diversity.
Set in the rugged beauty of the Davis Mountains of west Texas, Fort Davis is one of America's best surviving examples of an Indian Wars' frontier military post in the Southwest.
Contrasting spectacularly with its surroundings, Lake Meredith lies on the dry and windswept High Plains of the Texas Panhandle.
Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park tells the story of our 36th President in a unique and encompassing way.
Padre Island National Seashore, encompassing 130, 454 acres, is the longest remaining undeveloped stretch of barrier island in the world, and offers a wide variety of flora and fauna as well as recreation.
Four Spanish frontier missions, part of a colonization system that stretched across the Spanish Southwest in the 17th, 18th, 19th centuries, are preserved here. They include Missions San Jose, San Juan, Espada, and Concepcion.
Hagerman National Wildlife Refuge, a haven for migratory birds and other wildlife, lies on the Big Mineral Arm of Lake Texoma, on the Red River between Oklahoma and Texas.
Muleshoe NWR is the oldest national wildlife refuge in Texas. It was established by Executive Order on October 24, 1935. Located on the high plains of west Texas, Muleshoe was established as a wintering area for migrating waterfowl and sandhill cranes.
Gaze across the rippling marshes and ponds of San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge and it's easy to imagine Texas as it was before settlement.
The chorus of thousands of waterfowl, the splash of an alligator going for a swim, the rustle of wind moving through coastal prairie, the high-pitched call of a fulvous whistling duck are just some of the sound you may hear when visiting Anahuac National
Over a century ago, one million Attwater's prairie-chickens graced the Texas and Louisiana gulf coastal prairie. Each spring, males gathered to perform an elaborate courtship ritual.
"I hear him over there!" Birdwatchers exclaim in hushed whispers as a black-capped vireo pops up from the shin oak thicket.
The south Texas landscape is a unique blending of temperate, subtropical, coastal, and desert habitats. Mexican plants and wildlife are at the northernmost edge of their range, while migrating waterfowl and sandhill cranes fly down for the mild winters.
Step into a rare tropical world at Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge. Spanish moss drips from trees. Noisy chachalacas welcome the morning dawn. A malachite butterfly flits from the shadows.
Bayous weave through a seemingly endless expanse of cordgrass, reptilian eyes at the water*s surface witness the ever-changing variety of waterfowl, and the call of the clapper rail reverberates through the marsh.
The thunder of 40, 000 snow geese taking flight, the salty breeze off the Texas Gulf, or the sight of a 12-foot alligator loafing on a muddy bank make a trip to Texas Mid-Coast National Wildlife Refuge Complex a sensory banquet in any season.
Once buffalo grazed the shortgrass prairies you see today at Buffalo Lake National Wildlife Refuge in the Texas Panhandle. Once a lake reflected the clouds. The buffalo have vanished. The lake has dried.
Lake Texana is formed by Palmetto Bend Dam which is feature of the Palmetto Bend Project. The lake provides over 11, 000 acres of water surface and 125 miles of shoreline. Accessible from numerous roads. Several boat ramps and camping facilities.
Choke Canyon Dam and and reservoir are features of the Nueces Project. The reservoir provides a water supply for Corpus Christi, Texas. Recreation at this reservoir is managed for Reclamation by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.
Twin Buttes Dam and Reservoir, San Angelo Project, are immediately upstream from the Nasworthy Reservoir, about 6 miles southwest of San Angelo, Texas. Twin Buttes Dam controls the flows of the South and Middle Concho Rivers and Spring Creek.
Historical sites include the old "Charter Oak" on the Leon River, near the City of Belton, and the Stage Coach Inn in nearby Salado. Tour Miller Springs Nature Area located below Belton Dam.
Area settled by early German immigrants.
When complete, will impound the South Sulphur River in Delta and Hopkins Counties.
Centrally located in the heart of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex just minutes from DFW Airport, Grapevine Lake offers a variety of outdoor recreation opportunities.
Joe Pool Lake is a 7, 400-acre impoundment located in the southern portion of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.
The Heard Natural Science Museum and Wildlife Sanctuary in nearby McKinney features natural history exhibits and nature trails.
Just north of Dallas, popular Lewisville Lake is a 29, 592 acre lake with unlimited outdoor recreation opportunities. Over 20 parks surround the lake and offer camping, hiking, picnicking, horseback riding, boating, and golf.
Nearby points of interest include Bluebonnet Trails, Independence Day Trek and Salt Grass Trek.
Historical sites include the Stage Coach Inn in nearby Salado. Stillhouse Hollow Lake is located near the Fort Hood Army Base, which has several points of interest for the military buff.
Points of interest include Cameron Park, fourth largest municipal park in the U.S., and the Nation's oldest suspension bridge (1870) still in operation.
See the reconstructed Fort Graham, traces of the Old Chisholm Trail, and the dinosaur tracks at nearby Glen Rose. From Whitney, 5 mi SW on TX 22.
Points of interest in this majestic "Big Thicket" region of Texas include 4 National Forests and an Indian Reservation.
Located 4 mi W of Georgetown via FM 2338, the lake is easily accessible from the Austin area. The dam impounds the San Gabriel River in the Hill Country of central Texas.
These normally dry reservoirs are on the west side of Houston on both sides of I-10 at TX6. They contain the largest municipal park in the Nation and provide a unique recreational experience for the metropolitan area.
Benbrook Lake is located in the scenic open countryside of rolling hills and prairie meadows southwest of Fort Worth, Texas. Conveniently accessible from the Fort Worth / Dallas metroplex, the lake is only 2.
The best kept secret of the Fort Worth District. Home of the state record crappie!
Wright Patman Lake is located in the beautiful piney woods of northeast Texas. The lake includes about 30, 000 surface acres of water and 50, 000 acres of land.
This 29, 350 acre rural lake is just a few minutes from the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex and is a great place to get away from city life. Visitors can enjoy boating, fishing, camping, hiking, and horseback riding in several Texas State Parks.
Operated by The U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, Granger Lake is one of Central Texas*s best kept secrets. Known for great white bass and crappie fishing, it also offers excellent hunting opportunities on the 10, 000+ acre wildlife management area.
The second most popular Corps lake in the country (after Lake Sidney Lanier, GA). Old Fort Washita is maintained as a museum by the Oklahoma Historical Society. A regional visitors center is planned for the lake.
Located in east Texas, the National Forests in Texas are comprised of the Angelina, Davy Crockett, Sabine, and Sam Houston National Forests, and the Caddo-Lyndon B. Johnson National Grasslands in northeast Texas.