Leg 1 -  Burkett Park > Burkett Trail > Potts Creek Trail > Playground Trail > Bell's Point

Leg 2 -  Bell's Point > Playground Trail (N) > park service road (NE) > Trailhead to Trailhead (S) > Burkett Trail > Burkett Park

Temp started at 49, ended at 70, Overcast then partly sunny, No wind then gradually a light SW breeze.

A very nice hike along mostly groomed, wet with morning dew, trails.  The cold air caused an unexpected fog/mist to cover portions of the lake as well as low lying areas of the park (Photo attached).

I saw white tail deer, a solitary hawk (unknown what kind), various birds including Meadowlarks and a lone javelina.  There was not much going on otherwise, it was just a peacful hike along easy to seeand traverse trails.

NOTES

Water, shade, info kiosk and dry toilets available at Burkett Park.

Water, shade and info kiosk available at Bell's Point.

Leg 1 -  Bell's Trailhead > Trailhead to Trailhead (S) > Dinosaur Trail > Upper Big Hill > service road (S) > Badlands > park road to River Bend Campground   3.4 miles

Leg 2 -  River Bend Campground > Lower Ghost Camp Trail > South Slick Rock > North Slick Rock > Trailhead to Trailhead (N) > North Scenic Loop > Trailhead to Trailhead (N) > Shady Trail > Bell's Trailhead   2.4 miles

Temp started at 46, ended at 65.  Sunny with a steady North wind.

A nice hike along groomed, damp trails.  Severe winds had blown through the past few days and there was debris on the trails that I removed.  Not much animal activity except for an Axis Deer buck I spotted at the beginning of the hike (photo attached).  Bird activity was minimal and the grasshoppers were not as plentiful as they were a few weeks ago.  At the River Bend Campground, I saw a Loggerhead Shrike and there was plenty of standing water in the river; unfortunately, the water was not flowing into the lake.

Quiet and peaceful but not much going on.

NOTES

Info kiosk and a bicycle repair station at Bell's Trailhead.  Water and shade available at the nearby campground.

Water, shade, and info kiosk at the Dinosaur Tracks Viewing Area.

Water, shade, info kiosk and dry toilets available at River Bend Campground.

Leg 1 -  Isabel Harte Day Use Area > Chaparral (S) > Red Dam Loop > Chaparral > Talley Valley (N) > Horny Toad > Nature Trail > park road to Isabel Harte > Chaparral   3.9 miles

Leg 2 -  Isabel Harte > Winding Snake > Burkett park > WS to LL Connector > Lanky Lackey > park road to Isabel Harte > Isabel Harte   3.1 miles

Temp started at 60, ended at 76.  Sunny with a steady light, SW breeze.

Pleasant hike along mostly groomed trails - portions of Red Dam loop were overgrown but still passable.  There was minimal bird and animal activity with the exception of seeing about 10 Scissortail Flycatchers at Isabel Harte. There were a few Monarch butterflies spotted as well as the numerous grasshoppers.

Nothing much else to say except it was as always, a good hike.

NOTES

Water and dry toilets available at Isabel Harte. Shade available at numerous sites.

Water, shade, info kiosk and dry toilets available at Burkett Park.

Leg 1 - Burkett park > WS to LL Connector > Roller Coaster Trail > West Potts Creek > East Potts Creek Trail

Leg 2 -  East Potts Creek Trail > Burkett Trail > Burkett Park

East, fitness hike along dry and easy to traverse trails.  A few portions of Roller Coaster wer a little more difficult due to loose stones and dirt on the downslopes.  No animal, bird or reptile activity seen.  I saw some spiders (photo attached) and lots of grasshoppers. 

A short but pleasant hike.

NOTES

Water, shade, info kiosk and dry toilets available at Burkett Park.

Leg 1 -  Playground parking area > Roadrunner Loop > Playground parking area     3.1 miles

Leg 2 -  Playground parking area > Horny Toad > Tasajilla Flats > Nature Trail > park road to Isabel Harte   2.6 miles

Leg 3 -  park road to Isabel Harte > Chaparral > Playground parking area   2.0 miles

Temp started at 65, ended at 80.  Overcast for Legs 1 & 2 , then mostly sunny.  Light breeze most of the time.

All trails listed have been recently trimmed and are easy to traverse.  There was very little wildlife activity although I did see a pair of Scissortail Flycatchers which was good.  I also saw a ring-collared snake early in the hike but otherwise the only other thing of interest was a Monarch Butterfly (photo attached).  They are due to arrive in a few more weeks as they migrate South so I was surprised to see only one today.

When I arrived, there were 6-8 cars and trucks already parked (0810).  I saw five different people on the trails at various times so the solitude was not as good as usual.  BUT, when I finished my hike, everyone had gone!  Guess they got there, did their thing and departed quickly.

An unremarkable hike but as always, any hike is a good one.

NOTES

Water, shade, info kiosk, toilets and a bicycle repair station available at Playground parking area.

Water available at one spot and shade available at campsites at Isabel Harte.

Leg 1 -  Playground parking area > Chaparral > Red Dam Loop > Chaparral > Winding Snake > Burkett Park    3.1 miles

Leg 2 -  Burkett Park > WS to LL Connector > Lanky Lackey > Nature Trail > Horny Toad > Playground parking area   3.0 miles

Temp started at 74, ended at 85.  Sunny with fairly steady 5-10mph southerly breeze, humid.

Trails were dry but the humidity in the air and in the vegetation caused my shoes to get wet with morning dew.  Haze from the humidity was visible but the breeze kept me somewhat comfortable.  The trails are becoming overgrown with all the recent rains but still easy to see and traverse.  No wildlife and very few birds except for the juvenile Mockingbird and female (?) Hummingbird I saw on the Red Dam (photo attached).  The Hummer was zooming toward the Mocker but the Mocker was unconcerned and held his perch.  There are still lots of grasshoppers that will jump/fly away wuth every step you take.  The beebush is still blooming on the Nature Trail which makes hiking it very pleasant! Near the end of the hike on Horny Toad Trail, I noticed a "circle" of about 20 Black Vultures and Turkey Vultures in the air a short distance away but didn't see them land nor did I smell anything dead.  Perhaps they were just riding the currents as they looked for a meal.

NOTES

Water, shade, info kiosk, toilets and a bocycle repair station available at the Playground parking area.

Water, shade, info kiosk and dry toilets available at Burkett Park.

Leg 1 -  Burkett Park > Burkett Trail > Trailhead to Trailhead (N) > Flintstone (N) > Cougar Overlook     3.2 miles

Leg 2 -  Cougar Overlook > service road (SW) > Trailhead to Trailhead (S) > Burkett Trail > Burkett Park   3.2 miles

Temp started at 75, ended at 86.  Sunny, wind became steady at 5-10mph from South.

An easy hike along dry trails.  Had a LOT of rain (park had 7 inches in 24 hours) with lots of water in creeks that are normally dry.  OC Fisher Reservoir went from 5% to 7% but there was no real damage to the trails I hiked today! 

I saw a fox as I was driving in (photo attached), three groups of javelinas, lots of whitetail deer, turkeys and a cottontail rabbit.  Not many birds were out but there were quite a few grasshoppers and small lizards. 

Overall a good hike.

NOTES

Water, shade, info kiosk and dry toilets available at Burkett Park.

Shade, info kiosk and a bicycle repair station at Cougar Overlook.

Leg 1 -  Burkett park > Burkett Trail > Potts Creek > Playground > Bell's Point > Playground > Flintstone > 5 Points Junction > Flintstone (N) > Cougar Overlook   5.1 miles

Leg 2 -  Cougar Overlook > service road > River Bend (S) > 5 Points Junction > Turkey Creek > Potts Creek (W) > West Potts Creek > Roller Coaster > WS to LL Connector > Burkett Park    5.5 miles

Temp started at 66, ended at 86.  Sunny with humidity haze, light wind during leg 2.

An easy hikealong dry and easy to see trails.  A few trails are becoming overgrown but nothing major.  Javelinas, deer, Jack rabbits and some birds were spotted as well as a solitary grey fox.  Of special interest was the sighting of a feral hog at the North Concho River when I was at Cougar Overlook (photo attached). 

Not much was going on so won't make this a big report about nothing.

NOTES

Water, shade, info kiosk and dry toilets available at Burkett Park.

Water, shade and an info kiosk at Bell's Point.

Water, shade and info kiosk at 5 Points Junction.

Shade, info kiosk and a bicycle repair station at Cougar Overlook.

Leg 1 -  Burkett Park > WS to LL Connector > Roller Coaster > West Potts Creek > Potts Creek > Turkey Creek > 5 Points Junction > River Bend > service road (NNE) > Cougar Overlook   5.6 miles

Leg 2 -  Cougar Overlook > Flintstone > 5 Points Junction > Flintstone > service road (ENE) > Trailhead to Trailhead > Burkett Trail > Burkett Park  3.5 miles

Temp started at 75, ended at 81.  Sunny then partly cloudy.  Steady southerly breeze at 1-5mph.  Humid.

A quiet hike along dry trails.  No wildflowers except individual blooms here and there.  Not many birds out although I saw a male Painted Bunting which was nice.  A somewhat rare sighting for me was a Texas Spiny Lizard (photo attached).  Usually, I hear them scamper up a tree and can never find them.  This one scampered up the tree and held still long enough for me to get the picture then he was gone.

Another oddity - at the southern end of Flintstone, I saw movement out of the corner of my eye and a large pale brown snake shot into the brush making a hissing sound.  I don't know if the hissing was an actual hiss or noise made when he rubbed against some bark.  In any event, he went his way and I went mine with no photo.

NOTES

Water, shade, info kiosk and dry toilets available at Burkett Park.

Water, shade, and info kiosk available at 5 Points Junction.

Shade, info kiosk and a bicycle repair station available at Cougar Overlook.

Leg 1 -  Bell's Trailhead > Trailhead to Trailhead (S) > Dinosaur Trail > Dinosaur Tracks Viewing Area > Dinosaur Trail > Upper Big Hill > Badlands > River Bend Trail > Service road (NNE) > Cougar Overlook     6.3 miles

Leg 2 -  Cougar Overlook > Javalina Trail > River Bend Trail (N) > service road (NNE) > Ghost Camp > Lower Ghost Camp Trail > River Bend Camp Area > Lower Ghost Camp > South Slick Rock > Trailhead to Trailhead (N) > North Scenic Loop > Trailhead to Trailhead (N) > Shady Trail > Bell's Trailhead    3.5 miles

Temp started at 69, ended at 80.  Sunny with no breeze gradually became partly cloudy with a little breeze.

A ncie hike along the North Shore!  Recent rains have brought some water to the previously dry North Concho River and made the trails slightly wet in some places and dry in others.  Vegetation growth has slowed a little and almost all the wildflowers and cactus blooms are gone; however, I saw a few beebush starting to come out.  There were lots of male Cardinals singing and I saw a grey fox on the Badlands trail.  Grasshoppers of all colors and sizes were abundant and it seemed every step I took meant a handful or more flew off in front of me.

More importantly, there is actually some flowing water (photo attached) where it has been dry for way too long.  A good hike overall!

NOTES

Info kiosk and a bicycle repair station available at Bell's Trailhead.  Water and shade available in the nearby campground.

Water, shade and info kiosk available at the Dinosaur Tracks Viewing Area.

Shade, info kiosk and a bicycle repair station available at Cougar Overlook.

Water, shade, info kiosk and dry toilets available at the River Bend Camp Area.

Leg 1 -  Playground parking area > Horny Toad > Tasajilla Flats > Nature Trail > Lanky Lackey > WS to LL Connector > Burkett Park     3.9 miles

Leg 2 -  Burkett park > Burkett Trail > Potts Creek > West Potts Creek > Roller Coaster > WS to LL Connector > Burkett Park              3.6 miles

Leg 3 -  Burkett Park > Winding Snake > Chaparral > Red Dam Loop > Chaparral > Playground parking area                                         3.4 miles

Temps started at 80, ended at 90.  Overcast then partly cloudy with a constant 10-15mph southerly wind.

A nice hike but a large number of people at the park.  The trails have been groomed recently so they are in very good repair.  I arrived early in the morning and saw a few deer but not many birds.  As I hiked i saw a few more birds including a large raptor in the distance.  A small group of four young turkeys were on Lanky Lackey but didn't want to be photographed.  I also saw a young rattlesnake who decided the best place to take a nap was right in the middle of Winding Snake trail (photo attached).  He was pretty well camoflaged in the dirt and if I had not been looking where my feet went, would have stepped on him.  I was able to use a stick and persuade him to get in the brush.  Really surprised a biker hadn't run over him.

Otherwise, it was a nice long stroll through the park. 

NOTES

Water, shade, info kiosk and a bicycle repair station at the Playground parking area .  THE TOILETS ARE CLOSED AT THE MOMENT.

Water, shade, info kiosk and dry toilets available at Burkett park.

Temp started at 72, ended at 69.  Overcast and some light rain, northerly winds at times were strong but mostly non-existent. 

Not much to say about this one - saw a fox on Javalina, a hummingbird and a raccoon at Shady Trail.  Hike cut short by potential bad weather but I hiked along the river trails and came back almost the same way.