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Longhorn Cavern State Park
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Details
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| Trails: 2.00 Miles |
Elevation Gain: 200 Feet |
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 | There's more to Longhorn Cavern State Park than just the cave. (Click on map for larger view)
Maptech® USGS Topographic Series™, ©Maptech®, Inc. 603-433-8500, www.maptech.com/topo Copyright 2000 Maptech, Inc. |
Getting there: From Burnet, head south on US Highway 281. Turn west on
Park Road 4 to look for the park entrance on the left after about 6 miles.
The Hikes: Longhorn Cavern State Park's main attraction is the cave that
gives the park its name. The vast majority of the park's visitors make the trip to tour the
cave and spend some money in the well-stocked gift shop. What they largely overlook is the
short, but enjoyable, trail system within the park. At an advertised 2 miles, the trails
are indeed short, mostly easy but a great complement to the cave tour.
We started our hike at the trailhead behind the park's main visitor center, which also
provides access to the cavern. A small sign at the trailhead reads "Backbone-Ridge Nature
Trail". A portion of the trail features numbered stations of a self-guided nature tour.
A description of the plants described on the tour (which includes a park trail map) is
available in the visitor's center.
 | | The trailhead is located in back of the main park visitor's center. |
The Backbone-Ridge portion of the hike is well marked and very easy to navigate. Flat
terrain and a crushed gravel surface make the trail easy for most anyone to tackle.
Much of the park is completely covered in Cedar, usually spreading over the trail and
provided some shade from the Sun. Only occassionally do small patches of land
open up to the sky.
.jpg&size=small) | | Cedar and oak trees predominate in the park and often completely cover the trail. |
In addition to the ubiquitous Cedar, there is plenty of Live Oak, as one would expect in
this part of the state. The nature guide provides an opportunity to spot some less
common plant varieties and develop an eye for them. The Spanish Dagger, Twisted Yucca,
Durand Oak and Post Oak are just a few examples.
.jpg&size=small) | | There are occassional breaks in the tree cover along the trail, but heavy cover predominates. |
At the waypoint "3-Min. Loop" a short optional loop forks to the left of the trail. The
terrain here is quite rocky, contrasting nicely with the easier main trail. The self
guided nature trail does not include any stations in the 3-Minute Loop, but this optional
detour will empty right back onto the main trail.
 | | The boulder stream appears to be an occassional channel for water runoff. The boulders are washing down too, but at a much slower pace. |
The next fork in the road presents some options for the length and difficulty of the hike.
To the right, the Backbone-Ridge trail empties into the circular driveway of the park
that provides the return route to the trailhead. The last few nature trail stations are
also found along this portion.
<% displayUploadedImage "Left", "13-BoulderField.jpg", "150", "200", "Another shot of the boulders, looking ""downstream"". Note the Spanish Dagger plants growing amongst the rocks on the right.", "Photo" %>
To the left the trail the park refers to as the "1 Mile Hiking Trail" extends the hike and
provides slightly more of a challenge with its rockier terrain. Whereas the Backbone-Ridge
trail was always flat and easy to follow, the 1-Mile trail is rockier and occassionally
harder to follow. Look for orange paint on some rocks and trees to help guide the way.
 | | The largest open area along the trail. |
We encountered a clearing in the Cedar at the waypoint "Boulder Stream". The elongated
opening appears to be a sometimes stream when heavy rains come through. A stream of
boulders, all roughly the same height, litters the landscape and appear to be flowing
downsteam in geological time.
The trail dumps out onto the circular driveway at the waypoint "CCC House". This small
building was constructed by the Civilian Conservation Corps when they were building up the
park in the 1930's and 1940's. A short distance away, at the waypoint "Tower", stands
another CCC building. The observation tower provides some breathtaking views of the
surrounding countryside.
We recorded a hike of about 1 mile in one direction, not counting the shortcuts and side
trails (shown in blue on the topo map). If you double back to the visitor's center you'll
end up covering about 2 miles.
The visitor's center is quite nice when compared to many other state parks. The selection
of souvenirs and books is larger than one normally experiences and there is even a lunch
area where one can gear up before or wind down after hitting the trail. While there is a
$10.95 charge to take the cave tour, use of the park's other facilities is free.
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Logs
Have you hiked this trail? What did you think of it? Submit your own log entry to let others know of your experiences and to keep track your adventures. Only log entries that included a comment or rating are shown here.
User:
hawaiiantaz
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3/2/2008
[View Log Page]
Rating:  
Difficulty:
Distance: 2.00 miles
Duration: 30:02 (Hours:Minutes)
The trails were easy and short. Lots of trees, but not much scenery to be seen. Hiked with a friend... we were disappointed when we arrived and wanted to hike the caverns, but the only way to hike the caverns is with the guided tour, which costs $12 per person.
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User:
toobsox
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5/4/2007
[View Log Page]
Rating:
Difficulty:
Distance: 3.00 miles
Duration: 0:01 (Hours:Minutes)
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Quiet, short, easy
User:
figment
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3/6/2006
[View Log Page]
Rating:
Difficulty: 
Distance: 1.00 mile
Duration: N/A
This is an easy trail, and probably not worth the trouble unless you are already at the caverns or you are at Inks Lake. Very quiet, and the trail is well marked. The CCC exhibits and the cave are the main stars of this park, though.
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Inks Lake Hiking is Near By!
User:
jmitchell
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1/29/2006
[View Log Page]
Rating: N/A
Difficulty: N/A
Distance: 0.10 mile
Duration: N/A
Last i was at Inks lake I discovered that there were trails at Longhorn caverns also. I plan on taking advantage of hiking both location in one day sometime soon!
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Day Hike At Longhorn Cavern State Park
User:
Miles
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1/21/2006
[View Log Page]
Rating:
Difficulty:
Distance: 2.50 miles
Duration: N/A
I guess not many people know about these trails at Longhorn Cavern State Park! There was NO ONE on these trails! There is a lot of good hiking here, Geocaching, and history on the C.C.C. A great look out tower, you can climb, to a great view! Try a day trip at this site with your family, you'll love it! Take the Cavern Tour, then enjoy a picnic, and hike in the park! this is a great day trip from Austin!
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Free hike at a state park
User:
Austin Explorer
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3/16/2003
[View Log Page]
Rating:
Difficulty:
Distance: 2.00 miles
Duration: N/A
We knew that there were not many miles to be had at Longhorn Cavern State Park going in, which turned out to be true. However, the interpretive guide, ample shade and an interesting formation here and there more than kept us interested. We'll be back in the dog days of summer to tour the cave when the constant sub 70 degree temperatures will be a welcome change. This is one of the only free hikes you'll find in a state park!
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Caves
User:
maxrebo
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9/26/2002
[View Log Page]
Rating: N/A
Difficulty:
Distance: 2.00 miles
Duration: N/A
Actually, only went into the Caverns, I did not know that there are hiking trails, too. Will have to go back
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Caves
User:
maxrebo
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9/26/2002
[View Log Page]
Rating: N/A
Difficulty:
Distance: 2.00 miles
Duration: N/A
Actually, only went into the Caverns, I did not know that there are hiking trails, too. Will have to go back
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User:
Eveline
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2/22/1997
[View Log Page]
Rating:
Difficulty:
Distance: 6.20 miles
Duration: N/A
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