Guadalupe River State Park

We have been coming here for 20 years and always have a good time when the river is flowing real good or barely flowing at all. Right now the river is flowing good and the State Park is allowing to grill, the water is nice and cold and the scenery is beautiful. Being that it’s father day weekend it is very busy, but we arrived here around 6:30 pm which was perfect to go for a quick swim with my family and my two four legged friends. Tubing right now is fantastic, but there is always something to make it hard to relax due to annoying nats. I am drinking a couple of Coronas poured into my Yetti, cause their is no consumption of alcohol beverages allowed here unless rules have changed, but I couldn’t resist cause it’s so relaxing right now.

We get a Texas states parks pass every year. If you don’t have one, it’s a great investment and loads of fun. This park is pretty nice. It has a small section of trail by the river and a few camping sites as well. There are some beautiful spots to post up along the shore and enjoy our state.

Just leaving this park and we went for the hiking trails so that’s what my star rating is for. We did a couple of the small trails on the main side of the park and then drove to the Bauer side. We liked the hiking on the Bauer side better, but there were no river views on any of those trails. Beware of stickers/​briars on Little Bluestem Loop. Weather is perfect in late October for this park. We went on a weekday and only saw a few other people. Good for a day trip, and the drive out was nice. We will probably return but only occasionally. Seven miles later, it was a fun outing.

I have only been here for the hiking but this park is another great option around San Antonio. They have a few hiking options, many camping options, and some other amenities including river floating access and turnaround points.
Admission is $ 7 per adult if you are not an annual pass holder. If you are, you can enter for free with your pass. There are plenty of parks in the area that this $ 70 pass grants you access to.
Once inside the park, you will notice the dry grassland feel of the terrain. There is one main road that takes guests to their campsite, the visitor center/​discovery zone, hiking/​biking/​horseback riding trails, or river access point. The hiking trails on the southern side of the park have four main access points. There is one by the entrance to the park, one by the end of the road next to the restrooms, and two along the main road into the park. The distance, elevation change, and terrain are really not challenging or technical and the entire southern trail can be done by a fit person in under 1.5 hours. The trails include views of the river and cliffs, views of the grasslands, and plenty of birds. The trails are all well marked and I only usually see 2 – 3 other groups on Saturday mornings. The trails are great for taking in some rural nature.
Overall, I like this park. It is easy to get to. It is contained and maintained. The campers seem to keep to themselves and the terrain is different from the hill country. I am anxious to go back and check out the northern trails on the other side of the river.

Guadalupe State Park doesn’t fail to impress! Upon arrival, we were assisted by several very helpful rangers on where our campsite is and the weekend events. There is a wide selection of campsites and very accommodating to changing campsites to any vacant ones. We stayed in the Turkey Sink Bowl and each campsite is equipped with water, picnic table, 16 X 16 sleeping area (note: you are required to sleep in this area– not on the ground). Unfortunately we didn’t get to explore the majority of the trails, but an informative map is given to you at checkin for each one (there are about 10). We took a convenient trail to the Guadalupe River and enjoyed the sites and views along it for about 30 minutes. Our dog had a blast in the water! I’d recommend bringing water shoes as the water is low with lots of sharp rocks while crossing the river. Overall, this is our favorite camping spots compared to several others we’ve stayed around TX. We will definitely be back!

Worst camping I have experienced. I had a group of friends come out to this park to have a good time, we showed up at 2pm and set up camp. We got the tents, lights and propane tanks set up. Start checking out the land … We started cooking dinner around 8:30, sun set, it’s about 9:30pm at night now and a park ranger comes up and tells us we have to move our tents to a tent «slab» at 9:30 at night! We paid well over $ 100 to rent this land and we can’t have our tents on the slab of land we have rented. We had to have people move tents to the ROAD. They slept in tents on the road… After we paid $ 20 per site, $ 14 per person and $ 10 per car. I’ll never come here again.

Great place to go camping, hiking, fishing, maybe a little Kayaking. Mid September still a little toasty, but almost bearable.
The river is a great way to get relief. The low water levels and the nice cold water makes for a awesome way to beat the heat. The water is moving, clear and full of river rocks for a skipping competition.
Campsites are spread apart and concealing from other campers. Also the tree cover and the bedded ground limestone helps to prevent cut-​throughs.
For a state park it is rather large, lots of campsites. We were here during the week, but I can easily see that during the premium season this place is packed.
The Rangers and park staff keep up the park well. So be sure to say yes ma’am and yes sir or you might get a pretty snappy comeback. Considering the volume of people that can stay in the park I’m guessing that they don’t have a lot of patients for nonsense. I didn’t really enjoy my conversation with the office staff regarding the confusion over the website reservations, a bit rough for a before coffee conversation.
That being all said, the park is tucked away off of the beaten path, enough so you don’t hear highway traffic. A great place to get in touch with the hill country, I think we might start aiming for mid to late November when the fall will give some more heat relief.

This was an awesome camping trip with the fam. It was super hot when we visited in mid August. Our campsite was so beautiful. The river was not that far to walk to from our campsite. We went on a dark wings tour with a ranger. Which was very neat and so informative. The ranger called out to the Owls and they actually came to where we were. We took the dogs in the river, they loved the cool escape from the heat. We will plan another trip to this place beautiful park.

This park is pretty fun and amazing. It’s a well kept secret offering plenty of family friendly activities. The park offers several miles of water frontage. Activities include: picnicking
Grilling (pits available next to tables)
Tubing
Swimming
Fishing
Kayaking/​canoeing.
Bathrooms are available. They close them every couple of hours to re clean .
Park rangers were present checking on visitors. They offered trash bags to picnickers to help keep the park clean.
The park opens at 8am.
Children 13 and under are free.
Adults admission is $ 7.
Overnight Camping sites are available — not sure of the charge.

I went camping there this weekend. Lots of people. All campers are required to sleep on a concrete slabs. The park rangers are cool and courteous but the police patrolling the park will go through your stuff if your not at your campsite. Its probably not regular thing but some dude from another group camping was skulking around our site after everyone went to bed. Super creepy. Very beautiful area. Water was nice and clean and cold. I would totally visit again, just not camp. If your coming from the north and taking the 35, don’t stop at the outlets. It’s a trap and you don’t need any of that stuff.

Pros:
— Nice views of the river
— Tubing and river access. Bring your own tubes or buy one at a store nearby for $ 10 – 13. It’s the thing to do here!
— Close to civilization (Boerne, Bulverde, and New Braunfels, then Austin and San Antonio). Follow the brown signs along Hwy 46 directing you to the park entrance; don’t trust your Garmin GPS!
— I still had cell phone data access with T-​Mobile in the park.
— Pretty scenery of river cliff walls, river shore, and lush green meadows
— Lots of benches at useful spots to rest your weary legs
— Extensive trails around different types of terrain (limestone rocky, grassy, dirt, etc…)
— Nice campsites – even the primitive campsite «Wagon Ford» was very nice and had a restroom located nearby
— Relatively clean bathrooms
— Guided trail walks are nice. My hiking group did the Honey Creek tour and learned a lot from the park rangers’ talk. Check the schedule of events before you come.
— Trails are not hard to hike/​walk on – even a clumsy person like me made it through 8 miles without turning an ankle or falling.
Cons:
— Not much elevation gain
— Occasionally you may encounter a huge pile of horse droppings on the trail.
— Trail markers are present but wish they were labeled with the trail name.
— The first time my hiking group (Houston Area Trails and More) camped here, we found a lot of little caterpillars in our tent so check your sleeping pads and sleeping bags before you sleep.
Don’t wear shorts here if you’re hiking. Some of the trails had tall grasses and wildflowers that you have to wade through.
Try not to come hiking when it’s raining. Some of the trails may be muddy.
This is a very popular park (mainly at the Guadalupe River access area). Even on a rainy day, there were lots of families with little kids there.

Just came back again for Mother’s Day weekend. This time we stayed in the Wagon Ford walk-​in area. GREAT experience! Lovely open area for kids to run around in the middle of all the sites. It’s away from the parking lot so it’s great if you have littles. No showers here but it wasn’t a problem for us to drive to the next camping area up the road and use theirs. We loved the peaceful tranquility from all the wind blowing in the trees. Found a perfect spot for our hammock! (There were crazy amounts of caterpillars when we were there… almost a bit freakish. When you felt something crawling on you, it was a caterpillar.)

I visited this park twice in the fall of 2014, and both experiences were great! One trip included nine adults who spanned two sites, and the other included two families (with children) that spanned two sites. Both trips we practically had the park to ourselves! We didn’t experience any hassle with the rangers as mentioned in previous comments, but perhaps this was because of the low occupancy. That being said, we did follow most of the rules (e.g., kept our tents on the designated tent pads, shut off the music during quiet hours), but did consume plenty of adult beverages.
The cypress tress and their roots along the bank are amazing! There were a few different trails we explored, all of which were fairly easy to traverse (even with kids and a dog). Also, I was impressed with the bathrooms. Although there was no shower near our site, the toilets were kept clean.

This park has everything for everyone. Hiking, biking, and of course camping. We went hiking along the river on paths provided. Our campgrounds were had enough trees around us, to give the privacy we so liked. It’s a great park for everyone! We will be back.

This is my first visit to GRSP and of course, the river is the star attraction here. I spent some time meandering around the river when I first arrived. The frontage and canyon is beautiful; picnic sites and beach sites plentiful. As expected, four years of drought conditions have slowed the Guadalupe to a crawl. Kayakers and canoers will definitely need to hone their portaging skills through this stretch. Great opportunities for photographers. Lots of paths along and above the river bank and since the river is low, you can cross it on stepping stones. I didn’t swim or do any watercraft activities, simply observed other visitors doing so. On this day, I was here for the trails,
The trails combined a total 5.3 miles and are comprised of typical Hill Country ranch land. Beautiful in it’s own right, but not spectacular. Trails are well-​kept with no challenging elevation changes, but beware; they are multi-​use for hikers, horses, and bikes, so use some situational awareness below and behind you. There was evidence of a recent and a planned controlled burn coming up. Lots of piles of cleared brush and some scorched earth. Trail heads have some signage discussing their burn policies.
There are 4 trails named as loop numbers. Loops 2 and 3 comprise the main arteries, Loops 1 and 4 are breakouts along those main trails. Most of Loop 2 could probably be handled with sneakers or walking shoes, but Loop 3 starts to get very rocky with lots of sharp limestone jutting out, especially as you near the river. My first rule of footwear is to always wear stiff-​soled hiking shoes or boots to manage expected (or unexpected) rocks. My 2^nd rule is to bring a spare pair of shoes for the ride home. I violated that rule this time around, but since it’s been dry, my vehicle interior was spared any take home gifts. If you are a biker, be prepared for lots of swerving and meandering and/​or a bone-​rattling, teeth chattering ride when you near the rocky areas.
I started and ended my hike on the east side of Loop 2 where the park road intersects the trails. When starting out, I headed north back towards the river. I only saw two groups of hikers, one bike rider, and only evidence of horses on my Saturday afternoon visit. Very quiet and peaceful until you near the Cedar Sage campsite spur. This is near the river where the kids wander out and do what kids do; make noise. Loop 3 overlooks the river on the northern stretch and has several scenic spots but it’s very overgrown, so panoramic photos aren’t going to be easily attainable. I also discovered the hawks like to hang out in the trees overlooking the river canyon. If I’d been a little quieter approaching the cliff, I probably could have gotten an up close and personal photograph.
All in all, it was great day and a good first visit. I don’t see myself making this a regular destination for hiking, but I’ll definitely be back for river activities. My rating is 5 stars for the facilities and people. Case in point; when visitors are checking in, they don’t let the line queue up at the gate shack; they come out to you and keep the line moving. A rarity in customer service these days. One of the things I love the best about being an adopted Texan is the state parks and their people. Sadly, Mother Nature has not provided the much needed rain to sustain and nourish the river and land. But I do remember an old commercial where «it’s not nice to fool Mother Nature», so I better not press my luck beyond giving her the minus 1 star — bringing my overall rating to a 4.

Great day trip from Austin. About an 1 ½ hours. Brought a picnic lunch and was pleasantly surprised by the clarity of the water.
–Multiple nooks and crannies to explore along the river trails and our dog loved it.
–Picnic tables were clean and well maintained.
–Enjoyed the sound of the river.

Camped at the primitive site. Bathroom was SPECTACULAR, though the hand dryer was an arctic blast (it was 31 °F that night). Nice walk along the banks, did some geocaching (boy scouts have placed several in the park). Lots of picnic tables by the river.

What I liked:
a few long paths to select for a nice walk
variety — there are spaces for camping, grilling, swimming, and hiking
many parking inlets at the foot of each hiking path
easy-​to-​follow maps
privacy — we went on a Saturday AM hike and ran into two people in three hours
tubing/​camping options
What would make it better:
Dog trash cans — I don’t want to carry a bag of poo for a 5mile walk on the path. If you want dog owners to keep the park fresh, please give them space to dispose of trash in more places.
Trail signs — there are a few that are misdirected

Nice time. I can see how this place can be really cool in the summer especially if the river is at higher levels. Can’t wait to check out more of the State Parks in San Antonio.

It’s Texas, it’s hot, people must flock to bodies of water at any and all costs!
I will recommend if we (and I mean TEXAS) are in a drought the river will not be very much fun. If we recently had awesome rain, the river will probably be A LOT of fun. So pay attention to the weather people!
The Guadalupe State Park has been around for years and most families hold their holiday traditions here. So be sure if you plan a trip avoid the Easter holidays and other holidays that bring people in large quantities outdoors. People get loud, messy and kids run crazy wild. Who has any fun when you can’t even hear the water rushing and birds chirping?! Hint: Not me.
Admission is something like $ 7 per adult, free for children under the age of 13. I’m not too sure about the camping rules. The park is open from 8 am to 10 pm, I believe. I’ve seen people bring their dogs and let them swim. I’m not 100% sure that’s allowed. I know 100% glass bottles and openly display of ADULT beverages is NOT allowed. Always check the website for details, naturally.
Any other time NON-​HOLIDAY, this park is the TITS!