Abilene State Park: Nature Trails (Blog Hike #987)

Trails: Elm Creek, Eagle, Oak Grove, and Bird Trails
Hike Location: Abilene State Park
Geographic Location: southwest of Abilene, TX (32.23316, -99.88261)
Length: 2.3 miles
Difficulty: 2/10 (Easy)
Date Hiked: February 2024
Overview: A round-the-park loop with good wildlife viewing opportunities.
Park Information: https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/abilene
Hike Route Map: https://www.mappedometer.com/?maproute=955548
Photo Highlight:

Hike Video: (coming November 22)

Directions to the trailhead: From Abilene, take US 277 south 20.6 miles to Farm-to-Market Road 89.  Turn left on FM 89.  Drive FM 89 east 7.5 miles to the state park entrance on the right.  Turn right to enter the park, pay the park entrance fee, and drive the main park road past the campground entrance to the parking area for the Elm Creek Nature Trail on the left.  Park here.

The hike: As you drive into this park from Abilene along US 277, it is hard not to notice the abrupt change in terrain from the relatively flat sparsely treed area around Abilene to the hilly semi-arid area near the park.  In fact, 529 acre Abilene State Park sits on the boundary between the Llano Estacado to the north and the Edwards Plateau to the south.  Thus, the imposing rocky hills start here and continue all the way south to Del Rio along the Rio Grande.

            The land became a state park in 1933 when the State of Texas acquired it from the City of Abilene, which accounts for this park's name.  The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) cleared land and built roads and buildings here, and the park opened in 1934.  The park is located on man-made Lake Abilene, a shallow lake that offers fishing and paddling.

            The main area of the park is located across FM 89 from Lake Abilene, and it contains the majority of the park's amenities.  On point, the main area offers multiple developed campgrounds with 69 total sites, several picnic areas, some athletic fields, and several miles of trails.  The park's longest trail is a 5 mile lollipop loop along Lake Abilene, but all you get to see on that trail is the lake.  The route described here forms a figure-eight route through the main part of the park, and it visits every point of interest in the park's main area.

Elm Creek Trail trailhead

            From the parking area, head west to begin the Elm Creek Nature Trail, which is the main area's longest trail.  The single-track dirt trail meanders through brushy forest dominated by elm and oak trees with some cedar trees mixed in.  Prickly pear cactus makes an appearance in the understory, and this area has very much a semi-arid feel.  The Pecan Grove Campground sits through the trees to the right, but the dense forest keeps it mostly out of sight.

Hiking the Elm Creek Trail

            At 0.4 miles, you cross an old (now closed) park entrance road as traffic noise from FM 89 can be heard to the left.  A few hundred feet later, you cross a wooden bridge over the outflow of Lake Abilene and reach a trail intersection.  As directed by a brown carsonite post, turn right to stay on the Elm Creek Trail.

Intersection with Buffalo Wallow Trail

            Soon you reach a small fishing pond known as Buffalo Wallow.  While I did not see any buffalo here, a wild hog ran across the trail as I was leaving this watering hole.  The next 0.4 miles heads east through a lowland area with wetlands on either side of the trail.  This section of trail could get quite muddy with enough rain, but I had no trouble keeping my feet dry when I hiked here.

Buffalo Wallow

            0.9 miles into the hike, you reach a parking area at the north end of the Elm Creek Trail.  We will eventually turn left here and do a short road walk, but first angle right, pass some picnic tables, cross a small creek on a stone bridge, and climb some stone steps to reach the CCC-built concession building and swimming pool.  Made of red sandstone, the stonework on display here is of the highest quality, and the red hue of the rock gives the cold stone building a warm glow.  This building is my favorite thing in Abilene State Park, so take a few minutes and have a trail snack while admiring the construction.

CCC-built concession building

            To continue this hike, backtrack to the parking lot, head north on the park road, then turn left to walk through a small campground and find the signed start of the Eagle Trail.  Built by the Chisholm Trail Council of the Boy Scouts of America, the short Eagle Trail heads back toward Buffalo Wallow before curving left to cross the Elm Creek Trail you hiked a few minutes ago.  After crossing a small stream on a wooden footbridge and just before the Eagle Trail ends at the Oak Grove Campground, turn left to begin the Oak Grove Trail.

Start of Eagle Trail

            The short Oak Grove Trail treads a narrow strip of woods between its namesake campground on the right and the small stream you crossed merely minutes ago on the left.  At 1.7 miles, you reach the end of the Oak Grove Trail.  Angle left to begin walking the campground road, then angle left again when you reach the campground bathhouse to begin the Bird Trail.

View at bird blind

            The short Bird Trail gets its name from a bird blind located near the trail's south end.  When I came to this blind, I saw many common birds including cardinals, finches, chickadees...and also a lot of squirrels.  I passed the man who fills these bird feeders on my way out, and he related to me his frustration of unsuccessfully trying to avoid feeding the squirrels.  When you reach the campground entrance road, cross the road and angle left to begin the Connector Trail, which returns you to the main trailhead in only another 0.1 miles.