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Celebrate the start of 2025 with a New Year’s Day hike at these Texas State Parks

Explore Texas State Parks through hikes, paddling, polar plunges

Old Baldy at Garner State Park (Photo Courtesy: tpwd.texas.gov)

SAN ANTONIO – Jan. 1 marks First Day Hikes, a nationwide program that encourages hiking on New Year’s Day.

Luckily, the Texas Parks & Wildlife Department will host several events so people of all ages and skills can explore Texas State Parks.

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The events will include ranger- and self-guided walks, bike rides, paddling trips and polar plunges at dozens of parks, according to a news release.

TPWD broke its First Day Hikes participation record in 2024 when 8,729 people visited Texas State Parks.

“One of the many reasons that I love Texas is the nice weather that we can have even in the winter and there is no better way to spend a beautiful winter day than walking with friends and family at a Texas State Park,” parks Director Rodney Franklin said in the news release. “Each year, thousands of Texans turn out to a nearby state park to ring in the new year with a First Day Hike and I always look forward to seeing the photos of smiling folks enjoying parks on January 1.”

Here are the state parks hosting special events on New Year’s Day.

  • Abilene State Park
  • Atlanta State Park
  • Balmorhea State Park
  • Bastrop State Park
  • Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park
  • Big Bend Ranch State Park
  • Big Spring State Park
  • Blanco State Park
  • Bonham State Park
  • Brazos Bend State Park
  • Buescher State Park
  • Caddo Lake State Park
  • Caprock Canyons State Park & Trailway
  • Cedar Hill State Park
  • Choke Canyon State Park (Calliham Unit)
  • Cleburne State Park
  • Colorado Bend State Park
  • Cooper Lake State Park (Doctors Creek Unit)
  • Cooper Lake State Park (South Sulphur Unit)
  • Copper Breaks State Park
  • Davis Mountains State Park
  • Daingerfield State Park
  • Devil’s Sinkhole State Natural Area
  • Devils River State Natural Area
  • Dinosaur Valley State Park
  • Eisenhower State Park
  • Enchanted Rock State Natural Area
  • Estero Llano Grande State Park
  • Falcon State Park
  • Fort Boggy State Park
  • Franklin Mountains State Park
  • Galveston Island State Park
  • Garner State Park
  • Goose Island State Park
  • Goliad State Park & Historic Site
  • Government Canyon State Natural Area
  • Guadalupe River State Park
  • Hill Country State Natural Area
  • Honey Creek State Natural Area
  • Hueco Tanks State Park & Historic Site
  • Huntsville State Park
  • Inks Lake State Park
  • Lake Arrowhead State Park
  • Lake Bob Sandlin State Park
  • Lake Brownwood State Park
  • Lake Casa Blanca International State Park
  • Lake Corpus Christi State Park
  • Lake Livingston State Park
  • Lake Mineral Wells State Park & Trailway
  • Lake Somerville State Park (Birch Creek Unit)
  • Lake Somerville State Park (Nails Creek Unit)
  • Lake Tawakoni State Park
  • Lockhart State Park
  • Lost Maples State Natural Area
  • Lyndon B. Johnson State Park & Historic Site
  • Martin Creek Lake State Park
  • Martin Dies, Jr. State Park
  • McKinney Falls State Park
  • Meridian State Park
  • Mission Tejas State Park
  • Monahans Sandhills State Park
  • Mother Neff State Park
  • Palmetto State Park
  • Palo Duro Canyon State Park
  • Pedernales Falls State Park
  • Possum Kingdom State Park
  • Purtis Creek State Park
  • Ray Roberts Lake State Park (Isle Du Bois Unit)
  • Ray Roberts Lake State Park (Johnson Branch Unit)
  • Resaca de la Palma State Park
  • San Angelo State Park
  • Sea Rim State Park
  • Seminole Canyon State Park & Historic Site
  • Sheldon Lake State Park & Environmental Learning Center
  • South Llano River State Park
  • Stephen F. Austin State Park
  • Tyler State Park
  • Village Creek State Park

Click here for details on those events.

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