Guadalupe Trails (South and North)

There will be confusion because you have labeled this trail under Guadalupe Park. I live a few miles away and to the best of my knowledge, this "trail" does not have a name, it is simply known as the "Nature Trail".  It is on the Guadalupe River and is a pleasant and short walk through the trees. The confusion comes from the neighboring Guadalupe State Park which is about 20 minutes away on the other side of Bulverde. Some of the posts I read were refering to the trails at the State Park while the map and other posts were refering to the Nature Trail.  If you are going to visit the Nature Trail make sure you stop off across the street at the Canyon Lake Dam. While not an official trail, if you will follow the shore away from the dam you can hike your way over and around bolders, away from the summer time crowds and get to a seldom visited cove that is great for swimming or fishing.

A great place to hike in the summer because the water in the river is so cold coming out of Canyon Dam that the air temperature along most of the trail is a good 10-15 degrees cooler than in the parking lot.  And being that the water is icy cold, there was no one tubing in the river along the trail.  There are houses lining the other side of the river, but most of the time you don't notice them.

The trail is well maintained; there are a few benches provided, and steps built for the steepest parts of the trail.  Being that we had come to Canyon Lake to swim, I was only equipped with flip-flops for footwear, but I managed it just fine.  We happened upon this trail and despite my lack of appropriate footwear decided to hike anyway!  (Note to self: always, always, have a pair of hiking boots in the trunk!!) 

This hike was my kids' very first, and I believe the hiking bug bit them...they've been begging to hit the trails again ever since!

Great time of the year to go...there was no one there.