Ranger Notes
Check here for progress reports on the construction at Palo Pinto Mountains State Park!
Collaboration Through Conflict
June 2025
We have made a lot of progress over the past couple of months. It’s exciting to see all these projects coming together as the park comes to life. Every aspect has been carefully planned with conservation and accessibility in mind.
Exciting Progress and Many Thanks!
March 2025
Things are getting exciting at the park! Our headquarters is close to being finished, and is looking gorgeous! This facility will be the main hub of the park with staff offices, park information, check-in and checkout location, and an interpretive center.
Read more Exciting Progress...
How Far We've Come
December 2024
I have thoroughly enjoyed seeing this park take form over the last year. We’ve come a very long way since I started writing these Ranger Notes for y’all. When I first joined the team, Palo Pinto Mountains State Park had seven rangers. By the end of this year, we will have nine rangers. And we’re not stopping there!
Read more How Far We've Come...
Managing Natural Resources
September 2024
A lot goes into managing a park, even one that’s closed for construction. In addition to building gorgeous facilities for Texans to enjoy, our team also plays an important role in managing and conserving our natural resources.
A Park for Everyone
July 2024
At Palo Pinto Mountains, there’s a specific trail that I love to walk on. When I do, I am proud and excited to be here.
The trail I’m referring to is our Accessible Trail. This trail is designed for those who are differently mobile, giving everyone a chance to meander down a beautiful trail with stunning overlooks and the songs of golden- cheeked warblers and painted buntings above them.
Read more A Park for Everyone...
A Balancing Act
May 2024
Spring is well under way with fields full of wildflowers, trees full of migrating birds, and creeks full of rainwater. We’ve already received a decent amount of rain this year, and the flowers are loving it.
With the flowers comes the full force of this season’s pollinators.
Changes & Updates
April 2024
Things are warming up in the park! We’ve started having some nice evenings with brisk mornings.
The first of the early flowers have begun to bloom and pollinators are loving it.
Read more Changes & Updates...
Holiday Whirlwind
January 2024
Wow! Those holidays sure flew by. It’s been truly wonderful to see the support of our neighbors and the local community as we continue to push forward in making this park a reality.
Read more Holiday Whirlwind...
Building a Bridge
November 2023
As I make my way through the park, I see new roads, new RV slabs, a new maintenance building, and a new ADA accessible walkway to the fishing pier. I also see wildlife that has existed in this place for decades, remote hillsides and mountains, a historic brick oven, and old railroad trestles. It’s like this park will become a bridge connecting this landscape’s wild history with the inquisitive minds of future generations.
The Donut
June 2023
After glancing at the title of this note, you may be wondering, what donuts have to do with building a park. For one, they are a delicious treat for morning meetings, but there is a deeper connection. If you bear with me, I will clarify that connection.
Big Decisions
January 2023
This photograph shows construction crews preparing an area to set box culverts. The culverts will elevate the road so that traffic can safely cross this creek in almost any weather. Even though this creek typically has just a trickle of water flowing through it, these culverts will raise the road to about 15 feet above the creek bed.
The Duck
October 2022
Construction at Palo Pinto Mountains State Park is moving along. We have reached a point that most of the underground utilities have been installed. This is no small feat in this terrain. As you can see from the photos, most of the installation involves either trenching or boring through solid rock.
As I see the contractors toiling about placing all these lines it occurs to me that most of us, myself included, don’t typically consider all that goes into getting our utilities to us.
Establishing the Park's Personality
February 2022
I’ve worked at several parks throughout my career with TPWD. Each of those parks had its own unique personality – a character that became clear as you travelled throughout the park.
It wasn’t until I came to work at Palo Pinto Mountains that I realized how much effort it takes to bring the special quality of these places to the forefront of the visitor’s experience.
Read more Establishing the Park's Personality...
Building an Experience
October 2021
As work on the park continues, I find myself thinking more and more about the wildness of this place. How was life for the people who wrote the history of this area with their blood and sweat?
Read more Building an Experience...
Roadwork Begins
May 2021
Watching a new park come to life is an exciting thing for us. As work begins, you can almost hear the excited shriek of a child catching their first fish, or the awestruck gasp of someone catching their first glimpse of a Palo Pinto Mountains sunset.
A Park is Born
February 2021
Construction is about to begin here at Palo Pinto Mountains State Park! But what will this new park look like?
Donations welcome!
The Texas legislature approved $12.5 million in 2019 to build the park. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Foundation agreed to raise up to $9 million, using public and private dollars to construct buildings in the park. Building construction is on hold until this money is in hand.
The Texas Department of Transportation will cover road construction using funds dedicated to building and maintaining roads in state parks.
You can help write the next chapter in Texas state park history by donating at tpwf.org/palopinto. TPWF is TPWD’s official nonprofit funding partner.
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