Nice Surprise Near Waco

THere is actually quite a bit more trail mileage than is listed here.  When you enter the park near the boat ramp, the main trail/jeep track goes about 1 mile toward the lake, where it splits off.  If you go right, there is about a 3 mile loop around Lacy Point.  If you go left, the trail goes about 2-3 miles past a cultivated hay field to the mouth of Reynolds Creek.  Near the end of this trail, there is a nice new 4 mile loop, which the Corp of Engineers is calling "Paradise Loop."  It goes up Reynolds creek (through some nice old woods) and loops back through some cedar grassland.  There are several other side trails totalling at least 2 miles - probably more, so there is a good 11 miles of trails to explore here.

The nicest trail I have seen is the Paradise Loop.  As you enter the loop, there is some nice old bottom land woods with native trees.  Unfortunately, a lot of this is dying out since the lake has been raised 7 feet and this area floods quite often for extended periods, but there are still some nice old trees.  Upstream, Reynolds Creek becomes a true creek, and is quite nice.  There are at least 2 springs feeding the creek and some nice places to stop and enjoy the sound of the water.

There is a ton of wildlife at this park.  Both times I have been, I saw 10 or more deer, including a 10 point and a 12 point buck.  I actually saw a bobcat in the woods near the mouth of the creek, so that was exciting!

Overall, this is a pretty nice, quiet place to go near Waco, and there aren't many of those!  In the two times I went, I have only seen one person on the trail, and he was going in to fish on the bank near the boat ramp.  I didn't give a 5 for solitude only because there tends to be a lot of fishermen in loud bassboats near the mouth of Reynolds Creek.  Having said that, the fishing (both crappie and bass) is quite good around there, so take your pole if you want to try to catch something...