The sun is shining, and summer temperature are soaring. Most Texans do not need any extra motivation to head to the lake, but just in case you needed more reasons to cool off, Inks Lake State Park opened three new paddling trails in July. Bring your own boat or rent canoes, stand-up paddleboards, one- to two-person kayaks or paddle boats from the park store. Canoes and kayaks are $20 an hour and paddle boats are $15.
Park ranger Jamie Langham anticipates that the Devil’s Waterhole Paddling Trail will be a visitor favorite. About an hour round-trip, the trail runs through the park’s protected wake-free zone. It leads to Devil’s Waterhole, the park’s most popular swimming spot.
When your arms get tired, enjoy looking out at the layered rock formations surrounding the cove. The shoreline is full of outcrops of Valley Spring gneiss. While it may look like granite, gneiss (pronounced “nice”) is metamorphic and formed almost 1.3 billion years ago. It’s some of the oldest rock in Texas. Keep an eye out for intriguing wildflowers, mosses and ferns — the gneiss “islands” host their own unique microhabitats.
“It’s really cool to see, especially being in a kayak,” Langham says. “You get to see different rock formations that you don’t get to see just along the trail.”
For a slightly longer journey surrounded by mesmerizing trees, venture down the Stumpy Hollow Paddling Trail. It runs through a smaller cove, where the Colorado River flooded into a forest after the Inks Dam was built in 1938. Now just the treetops jut out from the water, creating what is known as a “ghost forest.”
Keep your eyes peeled for interesting wildlife. Large crawfish swim below the surface or hang out along the shore, red-eared sliders pile on top of rocks and logs and migratory pelicans soar through the air looking for fish. In the winter, the occasional bald eagle will visit from its nest at nearby Lake Buchanan.
To keep the cooling-off theme going after a day on the water, grab a snow cone at Kona Ice of the Hill Country across from the park store.
Love the Lake Life
From camping to swimming to hiking, Inks Lake State Park has something for everyone.
Sonja Sommerfeld | TPWD
Chase Fountain | TPWD
Chase Fountain | TPWD
Hiking: Enjoy nine miles of hiking trails through rocky, grassy or tree-covered terrain. If you follow the Devil’s Backbone Trail or the Valley Spring Creek Trail, you can see a waterfall along Spring Creek.
Swimming: Take a refreshing dip and explore the coves around Inks Lake. Be sure to visit Devil’s Waterhole, an iconic swimming hole where the lake meets Spring Creek.
Camping: The park offers nearly 200 campsites, ranging from primitive to full hookup, and 22 cabins (two of which are ADA-accessible). Many sites have lake views.
