A reservoir surrounded by live oaks, prickly pear cacti, and grasslands
Lake Brownwood is a 7,300-acre reservoir and recreation area made by a dam on the Pecan Bayou. Prior to the dam being built in the early 1930s, this tributary of the Colorado River tended toward the extremes—low water or rampant flooding. After the dam was completed, a storm filled the 95-foot deep (max depth) reservoir in six hours.
The State purchased the land for Lake Brownwood State Park in 1934 for $1, and the Civilian Conservation Corps developed the land into the park we all can use today. It's not hard to get our monies worth out of that deal.
My daughter and I visited in mid-October. Of course it was a beautiful, sunny, 95-degree day.
After some preliminary exploring we headed out to get a bit of hiking under out belts. We parked at the stinky fish-cleaning station, doubling as the trailhead for the Texas Oak and Council Bluff Trails. My daughter chose the Texas Oak Trail, which skirts along a short cliff near the edge of the lake. She made short work of getting down to the lake again.
The region hadn't gotten rain in months. To avoid sparking fires, there had been limited trail maintenance. The trails were not particularly overgrown by plants on account of the lack of water, but the spiders had sure made themselves at home. Because I’m a nice mom (and I don't like my hikes with a side of whinging), I offered to take the lead. I was covered in webs by the end of the hike.
Lake Brownwood resides within the boundary of the Edwards Plateau, making it officially a Hill Country park. But ,the area has a mix of other habitats. After we passed by the Council Bluff overlook area, the live oaks and prickly pears gave way to a grassland feel.
The prairie habitat was in full force on the Opossum Loop. We ended up on that small detour because my daughter wanted to see the bird blind. It wasn’t in great shape and seemed like a great snake home. I don’t love snakes.
On the way back we tried to head over to the Council Bluff Trail but somehow missed the branch trail. We ended up just doubling back on the Texas Oak Trail.
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