This has to be my favorite park in Texas in terms of variety! It has paddleboats, a train you can…read moreride, areas to fish and swim, a playground, and multiple walking trails. We stayed here two hours longer than we expected to because we lost track of time. Had an amazing time!

Wow just wow. Great great park. I can't even explain it to you how great this park is! We came here…read morejust to have a nice walk or stroll and what a pleasant surprise! We were walking and just impressed with how beautiful the greenery, water, and ducks were. Upon walking more we discovered a little paddle boating area. For $20 we had such a great time! It was so calming. And as we floated around on our paddle boat we heard the calming bells of the train that goes through the park. Such a calming experience all around. We caught up to the train and took a ride, so nice as the wind blows through the train. We got to see a baby deer! And some squirrels. So pretty! Upon our little train route you can see this park has everything! They have a park, pool, basketball court! Anything you could want. I would totally recommend we had such a great time!

This is a really nice park. It is well maintained. The walking paths are paved but they are…read moredesigned in a meandering kind of way. Virtually no straight lines when you're walking around this park which makes for a really nice experience. The park is on a hill. For those people who may like to walk or jog with a little bit of an incline it is very nice. But if you are looking for a more leisurely stroll then parking near the Natural Recreation Center will allow you to do lapse around the pond without too much of an incline. In the mornings you can find a lot of people there walking their dogs. The playground is that the summit of the park. It is very nice and has a water area for hot days in the summer time to cool off. All of the structures at this park are very nicely designed. The pavilion would be a fantastic place to host an event along with the open amphitheater that's a long sided.

Fischer Park is a neighborhood favorite that embraces the natural landscape and critters. The…read morewalking trail winds through trees, around the lakes, and flowers too! This is not an athetics park which is wonderful! There is a splash pad at the top of the hill with swings and a jungle gym.

Very helpful and informative shop. I arrived being completely unfamiliar with the river and Cody…read moregot me up to speed on the local spots and helped with what flies were working, including what the local float guides were reporting. I had a great experience. Pretty exceptional among the dozens of fly shops around the country that I've stopped at.

Great access point to the river, quite a few honey holes within a half mile either direction. I…read morethink it's great that the owner allows access for a very reasonable fee. For $10/angler you can have one heck of a day!

My best tips: -Come…read moreas soon as they open to beat the crowds. Like 10am latest if possible -BYO snacks and drinks and lots of water! -sunscreen a must and multiple times. You will get burnt. Maybe consider a water shirt to keep cool. -the float will be 3hrs + and can get packed in the river -water shoes such a plus Overall, love coming tubing here and always have a good time with friends!

What an awesome place for a float!! We had a great time and the service was fantastic. Thank you…read moreCody, Nicole, Cheyenne, Valance and Pete-we'll be back for another float. Thank you for your hospitality! -Louise, aka big Lou :)

This park is absolutely amazing on many levels. Well maintained and gorgeous trees on the east side…read moreis the view of the lake that is better than the Oasis on Lake Travis. Always free always free and a perfect spot for families or couples. The children love it and you can see the entire panorama of Canyon Lake. Everyone is always happy there and there is a special feeling about the place of freedom. It truly makes it a joy to be an American and to have such special peaceful and accessible spots for the ones you love. Often views of sailboats and skiers in front of the backdrop of a glorious Hill country sunset with beautiful Cascades of Guadalupe hills rolling into the lake. The park is well maintained and safe. Parking is sometimes a walk because it is such a popular location for everyone from college students to children and senior citizens walking along the dam for exercise. The spot is truly a joy that should be embraced by everyone in Central Texas. To the east you have a view of the gorgeous Canyon valley and the activity below on the river. Oftentimes you will see fly fisherman in the river which is remarkable for the ambiance of Central Texas and quite a pleasant surprise. Put this location on your list for a beautiful spring day and make some memories with your family!

Overlook Park and Dam at Canyon Lake (about 50-60ish miles from both Austin and San Antonio) is the…read morepublic park I visit most often since joining the CL community in June 2020. At least a couple of times per month, we make our weekend run over the dam from North Park and bask in the seasonal beauty of the big blue lake, the variety of plants on the slopes and forest, and the joy of other visitors taking it all in. Who knows how long it will last in these troubled times for public works, but today, the park remains free to enter from dawn to dusk. The enforcement of parking and capacity limits is by Comal County Sheriff's Office (CCSO), while the authority for the water and 1964-built dam falls on the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department Game Wardens, and the Guadalupe - Blanco River Authority (GBRA). Finally, the Water Oriented Recreation District (WORD) helps with safety signage and waste management around the park by providing free litter bags to make it as easy as possible for visitors to pack out their trash. The park technically doesn't promote swim access, and there is no lifeguard or buoy barrier system for protected swim zones, but you will see many swimmers and floaters in the cold water around the rocky shore during warm weather. The closer to the dam you are, the more likely you'll see fish swimming in the clear water, so bring your snorkel and enjoy. Keep in mind, depth drops off steeply down to 120 feet, so if you're not a strong swimmer, a life vest or other safety provisions may be in order. Certainly, keep an eye on your kids at all times. If you want a coveted spot for the day at the shoreline, you're going to need to plan ahead. Pack up your provisions, chairs, shade tent, what-have-you and get to the park as soon as possible after dawn to secure a parking spot. You'll need your goat feet and maybe an all-terrain wagon to get down the rocky trails to your place at the water. The shore is entirely limestone, so you typically won't be able to use stakes for a pop-up; plan to weigh down with something else, as Canyon Lake gets VERY windy. Restrooms are at the far southeast end of the park, near the Gorge overlook. You'll also find porto-johns near the dam gate and disabled parking spots. If you're still there by sunset, you'll hear the sheriff's deputy over a PA system asking you to leave. There is no camping or overnight parking allowed. Note that this park is also home to USACE headquarters for Canyon Lake. Their visitor center is open Mon-Fri, 8a-4:30p except for federal holidays. A few times per year, special events may open up an opportunity to drive across the dam's paved path (a.k.a. the Verada Real). These spots are secured through a charitable donation to the DAM Community Alliance (damcommunityalliance.com) and tend to sell out fast. Otherwise, only pedestrians, strollers, and bicycles are allowed on the paved path. Dogs should be on leash and poop should be picked up, please, for the love of all that is holy. More to come....

Little Ponderosa is by far the best place on the river for tube rentals. Super friendly staff that…read moretreats you like family. We have rented from them several times and won't use any other place!

We had a great orientation to the Guadelupe River this season and can't wait to go back. Little…read morePonderosa made it really easy to check in (one driver's license for all of us instead of having to fill out tons of paperwork) and almost immediately we were taken to the drop off spot. As this was our first time with this company we didn't understand that the tubes in the back of the carrier were for us, nor did we know we were the only people going in the bus. The driver was a bit snarky when we were asking questions about where our tubes were and there was an unfortunate exchange of rudeness between us. Additionally, we wanted to do the two hour run, but since the water is high and swift it only took us an hour and 20 minutes, which was a disappointment. I would have done the four hour run instead (which might have also been shorter) had I known it was going to be such a short experience. We had a great time on the water and none of us wanted to get out! We were greeted by the Ponderosa guy who took our tubes immediately and fetched out keys without us having to wait in line again.

Ryan at Rhino Outdoor Adventures is a professional, caring and honest outfitter, guide and hunter!!read more

From the owner: Professional Outfitter and Guide Services! Hunting and Fishing is our game, let us find yours!!read more

Ryan was fantastic and made our time on the river memorable. He is very communicative and easy to…read morework with on scheduling and accomodations. His skill and knowledge is outstanding.

Myself and a friend had a great time fishing and slowly rafting down the trout section of the…read moreGuadalupe River with Ryan. Sometimes fishing guides can be a bit intense and drill sergeant like, not Ryan. Ryan was knowledgeable, patient, and relaxed. I highly recommend this guide service and would fish with them again.

Rockin'R River Rides had a nice set up. They do seem to nickel and dime you a bit. $15 for parking,…read more$25 for a cooler float tube which is what the going rate per person is. They have an air conditioned portable bathroom trailer that is decent. 6 stalls in the women's room and they were fairly clean. The summer heat had them smelling a little funky, but I'm not sure what can be done to fix that. The staff was friendly. The school bus ride back to the starting point after the float was nostalgic. For a moment, it took me back to feeling like we were on a school field trip. We definitely see ourselves coming back but at least bringing our own floats for our coolers to cut down on the expense. We had a large group with 2 coolers so it was $50 just to bring our coolers along.

They really do know how to nickel and dime you! It was about $23 per tube, plus another $16 for…read moreparking. The staff was pretty nice and helpful, though. They do have a decent size portable bathroom, which was nice. My only complaint is that they should keep the water on inside them a little longer. We got back to the beginning around 4:30 and went to use the bathroom before heading out, but the water was already turned off. The float itself was actually painful. There are SO many rocks that you constantly hit and scrape your rear end against, and it gets pretty uncomfortable after a while. I'm not sure if I'll be back to this location just because this particular section was so rocky. Overall, it was fun, but definitely bring some extra money and be prepared for a rocky ride!

Took a short hike on my lunch break after eating in my car. I hiked about a mile down an elevated…read moretrail, which ended at another park. Also took a short walk down to the river on a trail that was fairly steep. The main trail is paved and easily handicapped accessible. There are placards on the trail, displaying wildlife, early inhabitants, etc. it was pretty interesting . The park also has an old farmhouse and area around the house with display set up and placards describing each item, nice trip through history.

Nice little green space tucked away across from a subdivision near I35. There are two parks side by…read moreside with a playground, splash pad, pavilions, and clean bathrooms. The trail map shows two very short trails (.04 and .05 miles), but we managed to get in 4 miles by veering off the dirt trail onto unmarked trails. The main paved trail is shaded about 50% of the way and the dirt/rock trail is not shaded at all (unless you veer off into the woods like we did). There's a small creek that runs along the dirt trail so we saw lots of people fishing. (The water is gross so it's not suitable for swimming.) Lots of parking and some historical buildings to see. Overall a great find--we'll be back.