A New 5-000 Acre State Park Is Opening In North Texas Next Summer

Palo Pinto Mountains State Park will open next summer celebrating 100 years of Texas State Parks and offering 5,000 more acres to roam.

Elliot McGowan • February 2, 2023

Rendering of the day-use area and playscape at Palo Pinto Mountains State Park [From Texas Parks & Wildlife]

Big news, Texas. A new state park is underway.

We’ve gone on and on about how beautiful our state is and the many spectacular places to visit in Texas. Soon there’ll be another destination to add to the list: in the second half of this year, citizens will be able to experience a brand new state park in North Texas with the opening of Palo Pinto Mountains State Park.

Strawn is a small Texas town located around 75 miles west of Fort Worth. Here, a rather large – vast crop of land measuring about 5,000 acres – is being converted into the first new North Texas state park in 25 years.

The park was initially slated open in the second half of 2023 but has been postponed to summer 2025. Once open, visitors will be able to explore undulate hills and 1,400-foot-high peaks, as well as 18 miles of hiking, biking, and horse riding trails, four campgrounds – primitive and RV – and an equestrian center.

Rending of the Equestrian Campsites at Palo Pinto Mountains State Park — Rendering of the Equestrian Campsites at Palo Pinto Mountains State Park [From Texas Parks & Wildlife]

According to Texas Parks & Wildlife, “development will cover about 200 acres. The buildings will be light on the land and blend in with the landscape.”

“The park will have a visitor center, pavilion, playscape, equestrian campground, and camping loop. An accessible boat ramp and fishing pier will provide access to the park’s Tucker Lake. Backcountry trails will be open for exploration on foot, horseback, or mountain bike.”

“A lot of people don’t even realize this is here,” Park Superintendent James Adams told Dallas Morning News. “They thought this entire region was flat.”

Photo of Tucker Lake in Palo Pinto Mountains State Park — Photo of Tucker Lake courtesy of Texas Parks & Wildlife

Another big draw for the park will be Tucker Lake, a pristine area for fishing, swimming, and boating (excluding motorboats).

According to Dallas Morning News, the park has been a Texas Parks and Wildlife project in the works for the past 10 years.

Palo Pinto Mountains State Park is one of three new state parks in the works, along with Powderhorn Ranch on the Gulf Coast of Texas, and Chinati Mountains State Natura Area in West Texas.

“We want everyone to know state parks are for them,” said Texas Parks State Director Rodney Franklin. “We want to introduce a new generation to state parks

Rending of the Visitor Center at Palo Pinto Mountains State Park — Rendering of the Visitor Center at Palo Pinto Mountains State Park [From Texas Parks & Wildlife]

Organizers behind these parks aspire to accommodate the growing number of park visitors in Texas, which follows the state’s growing population that passed the 30 million mark last year making Texas officially the second U.S. state after California to reach a population of 30 million people.

More information can be found at tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/palo-pinto-mountains

[Featured image from tpwd.texas.gov]