South Shore Playground parking area to Burkett Park and back
San Angelo State Park
- 1/15/2021
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Rating:
Difficulty:
Solitude:
Distance: 7.00 Miles
Duration: 2 hours, 50 minutes
Out - Playground parking area > Chaparral > Red Dam Loop > Chaparral > Winding Snake > Burkett Park 3.5 miles
Return - Burkett Park > WS to LL Connector > Lanky Lackey > Nature Trail > Horny Toad > Talley Valley > Chaparral > Playground parking area 3.5 miles
Temp started at 31, ended at 50. Sunny, no clouds with NW wind increasing from 5mph to 15mph.
Temperatures gradually warmed above freezing which caused the change in trail conditions so the trails were frozen when I started and muddy when I finished the hike. I spotted a number of whitetail deer and a lone javalina. Also seen were a couple of red tailed hawks as well as numerous smaller birds. Nobody else was on the trail so it was a solitary, pleasant, and peaceful hike.
NOTES
Water, shade, info kiosk, toilets and a bicycle repair station available at Playground parking area.
Water, shade, info kiosk and dry toilets available at Burkett Park.
North Shore Bell's Trailhead to Cougar Overlook and Back
San Angelo State Park
- 1/9/2021
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Rating:
Difficulty:
Solitude:
Distance: 10.20 Miles
Duration: 5 hours
Out - Bell's Trailhead > Dinosaur Trail > DInosaur Tracks Viewing Area > Dinosaur Trail > Upper Big Hill > Badlands > River Bend Trail > service road to Cougar Overlook > Cougar Overlook 6.0 miles
Return - Cougar Overlook > Javalina > River Bend (N) > service road to Lower Ghost Camp > Lower Ghost Camp Trail > River Bend Campground > Lower Ghost Camp Trail > South Slick Rock > Trailhead to Trailhead (N) > North Scenic Loop > Trailhead to Trailhead (N) > Shady Trail > Bell's Trailhead 4.2 miles
Temp started at 29, ended at 41. Foggy, frosty and overcast majority of the time but gradually cleared a little. Little to no wind.
A cold, frosty and damp hike for the most part. The trails were covered in frost but otherwise easy to see and traverse. A few deer were out but very skittish and ran as soon as they saw me. Not many birds out except for Loggerhead Shrikes - I saw six at various places on the hike.
A cold, grey day but it was nice to hike in the relative quiet.
NOTES -
Water, shade, info kiosk and a bicycle repair station available at Bell's Trailhead.
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 Campground.
Park Mid-Section Burkett Park to 5 Points Junction Figure 8
San Angelo State Park
- 1/5/2021
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Rating:
Difficulty:
Solitude:
Distance: 8.90 Miles
Duration: 3 hours, 40 minutes
Out - Burkett park > WS to LL Connector > Roller Coaster > West Potts Creek > Potts Creek > Playground > Bell's Point > Playground > Flintstone > 5 Points Junction 5.0 miles
Return - 5 Points Junction > Turkey Creek > Potts Creek > Burkett Trail > Burkett Park 3.9 miles
Temp started at 32 and ended at 50. Sunny with little to no wind.
Uneventful hike along frosty and damp trails. After the scheduled weekend hunt, the animals were pretty scare. I saw a lone doe as I drove in then spotted a small herd of five deer about two hours later - when the herd saw me from a distance, they went running! Later, a lone javalina burst from the brush about 20 yards in front of me and quickly disappeared. I saw a few birds here and there but it was just the usual suspects.
The trails were easy to see and traverse so although there wasn't much wildlife about, it was still a good way to stretch the legs for my first hike of 2021!
Total miles hiked (prior to this hike) - 3038.1.
Total hikes logged (prior to this hike) - 380
Average distance (prior to this hike) - 8.0 miles
NOTES
Water, shade, info kiosk and dry toilets available at Burkett Park.
Water, shade and info kiosk available at Bell's Point.
Water, shade and info kiosk available at 5 Points Junction.
South Shore Roadrunner Loop and Playground to Isabel Harte and Back
San Angelo State Park
- 12/18/2020
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Rating:
Difficulty:
Solitude:
Distance: 7.50 Miles
Duration: 3 hours
Leg 1 - Playground parking area > Roadrunner Loop > Playground parking area 3.2 miles
Leg 2 - Playground parking area > Horny Toad > Nature Trail > park road to Isabel Harte > Chaparral > Playground parking area 4.3 miles
Temps started at 44, ended at 50. Overcast then partly sunny. Winds from SW increased from 5mph to 15-20mph at the end of the hike.
Easy hike along dry trails. Wind kept almost all the animals in their shelters except for one pair of deer (photo attached), Scheduled hunt coming up in a few weeks - best of luck to the deer. Some birds were out so I saw Meadowlarks, Black Throated Sparrows, White Crowned Sparrows and others. No exciting events just a nice hike on a windy day.
NOTES
Water, shade, info kiosk, toilets and a bicycle repair station at Playground parking area.
Water, shade, and toilets available at campsites along the Roadrunner Loop.
North Shore Bell's Trailhead to River Bend Campground Figure 8
San Angelo State Park
- 12/12/2020
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Rating:
Difficulty:
Solitude:
Distance: 6.30 Miles
Duration: 3 hours
Route - Bell's Trailhead > Shady Trail > Trailhead to Trailhead (S) > North Scenic Loop > Trailhead to Trailhead (S) > Badlands > park road to River Bend Campground > Lower Ghost Camp Trail > South Slick Rock > North Slick Rock > Upper Big Hill > Dinosaur Trail > Trailhead to Trailhead (N) > Bell's Trailhead 6.3 miles
Temp started at 44, ended at 55. Partly cloudy, then mostly sunny with intermittent winds at about 10 mph.
Easy hike along familiar, dry trails. Large numbers of people were camping as well as being on the trails. Consequently, no animals and only a few birds were spotted while hiking.
Good that people are using the park but too many of them are leaving trash; by the end of my hike, I had picked up a fairly large bag of items found on or near, the trails. If you bring it in, pack it out!
NOTES
Water, shade, info kiosk and a bicycle repair station at or near, Bell's Trailhead.
Water, shade, info kiosk, and dry toilets available at River Bend Campground.
Water, shade and info kiosk available at Dinosaur Tracks Viewin Area on Dinosaur Trail.