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    Blue Elbow Swamp

    4.0 (1 review)
    Closed 8:00 am - 5:00 pm

    Blue Elbow Swamp Photos

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    8 years ago

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    Claiborne West Park

    Claiborne West Park

    3.7(3 reviews)
    3.4 mi

    Claiborne West Park is one of a few county parks in Orange County. Technically, it's in Vidor, and…read morethe Vidor city limits stretch just past this park to Cow Bayou. But really, it's located in the typical Piney Wood countryside of far eastern Texas, where the biggest sign of civilization is Interstate 10. Drive in, and there are so many picnic tables that I doubt they're ever all used. Walk a bit to the right, and you get to a medium-sized lake with trees in it, it screams "Louisiana" all over it. Keep driving, and you get to sports fields where you can play baseball, volleyball, basketball, football. The camping area is to the north, tents only in a semi-primitive setting Very large pavilion to the far west, enough for a cookout for several hundred people. And then you look north. The Piney Woods have several trails going through here, getting you deep into nature. With the thick underbrush and frequent flooding, this is a place where you need to stay on the trail. Popular with mosquitos. Clearly Claiborne West Park is developed for large crowds. And, when I first met this girl who is now my wife, we went to the Texas Barbecue Festival here. But now the rating gets taken down by one star: Although you can easily see the entrance from the freeway, getting to the entrance is difficult. Driving east, you'd need to drive one more mile to be able to get off I-10 and make a U-turn under the freeway to get to the north side of the freeway where the park is. Driving west, I don't know which exit to take, but it's before Cow Bayou; there is an exit in front of the park, and you can't turn right to get there. This inconvenient setup means that the park rarely sees big crowds, and you're likely to cuss up a storm trying to get to Claiborne West. This park has lots of potential, and is developed in such a way that big cities would love to have it. The road system surrounding the park makes it difficult to get to. Oh well, more for you to enjoy.

    Basketball, Softball, Football ,concerts. Family gatherings, fishing, running and disc golfread more

    Photos
    Claiborne West Park - Lil playground

    Lil playground

    Claiborne West Park - Trees

    Trees

    Claiborne West Park - Lake

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    Lake

    Village Creek State Park

    Village Creek State Park

    4.0(22 reviews)
    20.4 mi

    When there was no other campsites available on the website for TX State parks, I kinda grew…read moreskeptical that this one being so close to East Texas that I would have issues as I'm a minority. However, nonetheless, when I tell you this state park is a gem and an underrated one too you'll be surprised to know why. Let me tell you: With the Texas Parks pass, I booked a weekend stay from Saturday to Monday at campsite 36. The original cost was going to be $36, but with the pass it was only $15 total. The campsite wasn't a drive-in and it was only a short hike in. I was a bit worried about this since the person I went with normally camps at drive up sites and not so much primitive. Rest ensure, he was fine because the parking lot to our campsite was approximately 400 ft in and the pathway was sand. The only troubles we had was our lousy portable cart that had a lame leg. Our campsite was the most primitive since most of the others were close in proximity to the others and your neighbors were either across from you or adjacent from you. Thankfully, ours wasn't. All primitive campsites are off of many hiking trails and campsite 40+ are near the creek so that's a nice view. The campsite itself has a lantern post, fire ring, picnic table, and a base spot for the tent (away from the fire ring). It is prohibited to burn or ignite firewood collected inside the parks. So, please go to the ranger station to purchase firewood. My friend and I ended up going to Home Depot, they sell it for $6 and it burned very well and too quick. Oh and please don't go to the gas station to get theirs, we made that mistake and it was not only expensive, but the wood burned too quick. The mosquitoes are absolutely terrible, make sure you bring DEET bug spray, citronella candle, or something to keep them invasive buggers off your skin and ears! I must tell y'all, the restrooms are amazingly clean. Every morning they are cleaned with Pinesol and are spotless. Once you sleep throughout the night and your body starts to feel sticky, please hit the showers!! The water pressure is perfect flowing and the water can get hot. The floors can be cold. I wore my sandals. I can say those restrooms are by far the best I've occupied in a state park or any park owned by the state! There was no dead bugs lingering around or weird mildew odor. If you like to hike, check out those trails. I hiked early morning just before anyone else was up and had a thrill exploring nature. I seen some deer, birds, another watering hole, and wildflowers. The trails are well maintained. There was some obstructed paths due to water or creeks passing through, but that was the fun part trying to maneuver to the other side. I had to get creative with where I jumped off of to get on the main trail. The main creek water was murky due to the amount of tannins in it and the water line wasn't high, so I opt out of swimming in it. The ranger station is clean and well organized. They sell the state park scratch off maps for those of you who are into exploring all state parks like me!! A true nature nerd, eh? They even sell Village Creek SP merch like stickers. The rangers were pretty nice and didn't display any form of prejudice or discrimination. Definitely a smaller state park than the others. It is settled in a residential area like most SPs are, but it's kind of a good thing especially if you forget some food, there's a Wal-Mart less than 5 minutes away. I would recommend this state park to visit.

    Knew I would be in the area and wanted to check out their amenities. I was accompanied by my…read moremother, brother, and future sister-in-law. We took a rather short hike on one of the loop trails (roughly 1.2 miles). Thought the property was well maintained; however, the area seemed ripe for a proscribed burn to help prevent forest fires. The staff at the front desk were extremely friendly and helpful. Would gladly camp here in the future. If you're ever in the area, come visit.

    Photos
    Village Creek State Park
    Village Creek State Park
    Village Creek State Park

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    Golden Triangle Veterans Memorial Park

    Golden Triangle Veterans Memorial Park

    5.0(3 reviews)
    11.5 mi

    Incredible experience honoring those who served our country in the military. Thank you for the…read moresacrifice you made on our behalf. Freedom isn't free. There were plaques for each war celebrating those who served. Also, there were displays of a helicopter, a jet, a tank, and a torpedo to name a few. Please head out there to see what you are missing. You won't be disappointed! I was extremely pleased!

    I am a disabled Veteran who was an Army Paratrooper, My name is listed on these walls twice, and I…read moregrew up here.. so let that be known now as my review will contain some bias. While I served overseas my family and I helped have this Memorial and Honor sanctuary be built by donating what we could. This area of Southeast Texas started this project before it was nationally popular thing to be patriotic. They started building this place out of the respect of the community and the veterans that help this country everyday. Personally, I am honored to be listed among so many heroes. Personally, I am proud of the Veteran that lives on the site to protect it daily since some years back a bunch of local kids vandalized the place and tore up the grounds. Yes, they were caught and truly ridiculed by the community and they served their judicial sentence given; but the harm was done, and once again a Veteran stepped up to stand guard with honor over this local landmark. If you spend any amount of time out there you will learn many things and meet Veterans from many areas that travel here to see their friends and other tokens of memories gone by. If you spend enough time here, you will learn that the gentleman guarding the area served on a transport vessel... if you talk to him further you will learn that he manned the Anti-Aircraft gun on that vessel... and if you hold the conversation long enough he will show you a picture of that vessel he served on and point to the ACTUAL AA GUN from that vessel sitting right near the building and ceremony area. (how cool is that?) I have taken many pictures of this area, and this review is long over due, so please spend a moment to go here and respect the care and love that has been placed into building this area. It may seem tattered and weather beaten, but remember that the site has remained through many Hurricanes and floods, weather beaten winters and winds, and honestly.. as a Veteran... I would not want it any other way; spit shine and polish is saved for the parades, the weather distressed monuments attest to the true Veterans that make these places memorable and how they will never go away. God Bless ALL of our Veterans.. and God Bless the United States of America... "This We'll Defend"[U.S. Army Motto]

    Photos
    Golden Triangle Veterans Memorial Park
    Golden Triangle Veterans Memorial Park
    Golden Triangle Veterans Memorial Park

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    Folsom Hike & Bike Trail - Sunset at Folsom trail walking park beaumont Texas

    Folsom Hike & Bike Trail

    4.0(5 reviews)
    19.1 mi

    So you want to get in shape. This is one place to do that…read more What can you find at the Folsom Hike & Bike Trail? * Paved trail? Yes. * Unpaved trail? Only one short spur. * Hills? Kinda sorta; a mesa that appears to be manmade, and the only hill in Jefferson County. * Trees? Nope. * Views? Nope. Unless you consider looking at Folsom Drive to be a view. * Appropriate for a road bike? Maybe; it's only 1.4 miles one-way to a dead end. * Appropriate for a mountain bike? Maybe; I didn't see any signs prohibiting mountain bikes on the mesa. It's quite boring, though. * Streams or lakes? Nope. * Dogs? Yes. * Dairy Queen? Dollar Tree? Waffle House? Nope on all three. * Parking? On the small side, but adequate for the amount of use it gets. The Folsom Hike & Bike Trail is convenient for people on the West Side. And it works for my attempts to rebuild my cardio. And that's about it. If you want scenic diversions, or a course longer than 2.8 miles, go to Tyrell Park.

    1.4 mile one way, then 1.4 back. One long trail. Not a loop. Nice walking track. No trees. Bike…read morefriendly. Has a parking lot. Porta potty. Air pump. Long concrete trail. Has doggie waste bags. No outdoor equipment to play on. A few benches. There is a little dirt trail that takes you to a hill perfect for watching the sunset. Kroger, HEB, Walmart and other stores close by. Nice place to walk. No lighting so be aware. Has had thieves break into cars. Lock car doors!

    Photos
    Folsom Hike & Bike Trail - Folsom trail sunset

    Folsom trail sunset

    Folsom Hike & Bike Trail - Folsom trail is nice and all come Nureyev for 1.4 miles- Has a built in pump for your bike at the start.

    Folsom trail is nice and all come Nureyev for 1.4 miles- Has a built in pump for your bike at the start.

    Folsom Hike & Bike Trail

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    Blue Elbow Swamp - parks - Updated May 2026

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