Guadalupe River State Park
Drive from Austin: 81 miles / 1 hour 30 minutes
Where am I? Spring Branch, TX / southwest of Austin
Sites we recommend: There are three camping areas within the park: Cedar Sage, Turkey Sink, and Wagon Ford.
Cedar Sage Sites: 3, 5, 9, 11, 33, 35; we stayed at 27
Turkey Sink Sites: 40,43, 44, 45, 50, 59, 66
The Wagon Ford sites are all about 100 yards away from the parking lot, so you walk your gear in. This area has the closest river access.
What to do: We spent most of the weekend on the river, kayaking and swimming.
Hike: There are quite a few trails within the park, but none with worthy destinations.
- Note: A great spot for hammock camping!
Camping at Guadalupe River State Park during Labor Day weekend was great.
It feels like Texas State Parks have filled up in record time this year. So when we found an opening at Guadalupe River State Park for the holiday weekend so last minute, we were shocked and excited. The weather has finally began to cool down making it manageable to spend the full weekend outdoors.
If you’re looking for a state park with a great swimming hole, Guadalupe State Park is a perfect option. Both days we were there, we explored different areas of the river. If you head downstream, it’s less crowded and a great place to set up hammocks, and watch the sunrise. We went down early Sunday morning to have coffee and enjoy the scenery.
If you have kayaks or canoes, there is a gated entrance that allows you to drive down about 10 yards from the water for easier launching. We spent all day Sunday a bit upstream from the launching point. We had a nice private oasis where Rye swam his heart out, and we enjoyed the sun and shade. When we checked into the park, one of the rangers told us they have a kayak shuttle service. Super helpful to know in case you want to start and end your paddle in different spots.
Majority of the campsites were spacious, with a ton of trees. This would be a great campground for a weekend of hammock camping. Although we stayed in the Cedar Sage loop, we took a look at the Turkey Sink area, which we’ll probably try and get next time. The sites seemed a bit more secluded with less sites right on the road (an important factor with Rye).
