Guadalupe River State Park
This was my first solo move with the rig.
I left Richmond and headed west to Guadalupe River State Park with just the dogs while Sam was working to launch one of the Regent Seven Seas ships. I was a little tense going in. First solo drive, first solo check-in, first solo back-in.
Most of the drive was easy. The only rough stretch was a section of I-10 with concrete barriers tight on the right and fast traffic pushing past on the left. Texas highway speeds seem to treat 75 as the floor, not the ceiling. I stayed in the right lane, under the speed limit, and got through it with only a few "white knuckle" moments.
Once I reached the park, everything got easier.
Guadalupe River State Park was a good setup for doing this alone. The road bent naturally into the site, so backing in was simple. No tight turns, no awkward angle, no drama.
The site itself was well spaced and private. Trees and brush screened the neighboring sites, and the layout worked. Rig pad up front, picnic table on its own concrete square, then a gravel tent area in back where the dogs liked to stretch out in the sun.
For a first solo stop, it gave me exactly what I needed: room, privacy, and an easy setup.
🗺️ The Lay of the Land
- Location: Spring Branch, Texas · 29.8747, -98.5044 · [Google Maps]
- Official site: Guadalupe River State Park
- Landscape: Hill Country · limestone river canyon
- Vibe: Chill with plenty of riverside relaxin'
- Our stay & conditions: March–April 2026 · 4 nights · hot, dry start with warm nights, then a wetter, stormier turn near the end of the stay
🏕️ Camp Setup
- Site types: Back in RV sites · Walk-in tent sites · Group sites
- Arrival & setup: Easy
- Hookups: 💧 / ⚡ | 🧻
- Connectivity: 📶 AT&T ⚠️ | 📶 Verizon ⚠️ | 📶 T-Mobile ⚠️ | 📡 Starlink 🟢 | 📶 Park Wi-Fi ⟂
- Facilities: Restrooms · Showers · Picnic Areas
Legend:
🚽 = sewer at site · 🧻 = dump station
🟢 = solid for work · ⚠️ = usable with limits · ❌ = unusable
The rhythm there came together fast.
From our site, it was about a ten-minute walk down to the river, and that became the center of the stay. We went down two or three times a day. The dogs swam often. I got in a few times.
The park stayed quiet the whole time. Not empty, just lightly occupied. Enough people around to know it was in use, but never enough to change the feel of the place.
A lot of the stay was simple. River walks, dog swims, tidying the rig, getting everything ready for Sam's return. The drier Hill Country air made a difference too. Windows open, breeze through the rig, less humidity than what we’d been used to farther east.
This was also my first real stop in Texas Hill Country, and you could feel the shift right away. Different trees, different scrub, more exposed rock, a sharper and drier landscape overall.
It also ended up being the first park where I really got to use my new NIKKOR Z 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6 VR S lens, and it did exactly what I wanted it to do. A few walks turned into bird photography walks, and I came away with some images I was genuinely happy with.
One evening, the dogs and I took snacks, my Kindle, and the camera down to the river and stayed for a few hours while the light changed. I shot through golden hour, blue hour, and into astronomical twilight, then read between frames while the dogs settled in nearby.
That ended up being one of the best parts of the stay.
almost slipped and fell in the middle of the river trying to get this shot
🚴 On the Ground
- Activities available: ● 🥾 Hiking | ● 🚴 Biking | ● 🐕 Dogs | ● 🚣 Paddling | ● 🎣 Fishing | ● 🐦 Birding | ● 🏊 Swimming | ● 📸 Photography | ● 🏕️ Camp-centric | ○ 🧗 Climbing
- Trail mileage available: 🥾 13 mi | 🚴 13 mi | 🚣 5 mi
- Crowd level: Quiet
Legend: ● = available · ○ = not available
Park Highlights
Guadalupe River State Park feels distinct because the river explains almost everything about the place.
The gorge, shelves, and exposed banks come from the Guadalupe cutting down through very old sedimentary rock laid down more than 100 million years ago, including limestone, sandstone, and shale tied to the Trinity Group. The broader Hill Country landscape was also shaped by uplift and faulting along the Balcones Fault Zone, then slowly carved by water over time.
That is why the park feels so different from the Gulf-side parks. More limestone, more ledge and shelf, less softness in the terrain. The river is clearer, the banks are rockier, and the whole setting feels more cut and exposed.
The park itself is also fairly recent. Texas acquired the land in 1974 and opened the park in 1983, preserving a scenic stretch of Guadalupe frontage before it was lost to development.
The other thing worth understanding is flood risk. The same river that makes the park so accessible can also change quickly. Hill Country rivers are known for flash flooding, and the July 2025 Guadalupe flooding was a reminder that this is not unusual in the basin. It is part of how the landscape works.
So the appeal here is not just that the river is pretty. It is that you are standing in a landscape the river is still actively shaping.
San Antonio & The Alamo Sidequest
After the park, I moved to Stone Creek RV Resort so I’d be closer to the San Antonio airport for Sam's return.
She flew in Thursday night, and the next day we spent time downtown walking the River Walk, grabbing lunch, taking photos, and stopping by the Alamo.
The Alamo matters less because of the building itself and more because of what happened there. It began as Mission San Antonio de Valero in 1718, and during the Texas Revolution it became the site of the 1836 siege and final assault in which all the defenders were killed. Texas had declared independence during that same period, and the fall of the Alamo became a rallying point for the revolution that followed. Weeks later, Sam Houston’s army defeated Santa Anna at San Jacinto, and that victory cleared the way for the Republic of Texas.
That gave us a much better understanding of why the site carries so much weight, and it also helped connect the dots on who Sam Houston was and why his name keeps showing up across Texas.
⚡ TL;DR
- Park highlight: Easy river access paired with quiet, private-feeling campsites and a real sense of entry into Hill Country
- Best for: Low-stress camping, repeat walks to the river, swimming, and a simple base for photography or a reset
- Skip if: You want dramatic elevation, long-distance trail variety, or a more rugged backcountry feel
- Worth planning around?: Yes
Final Takeaways
Guadalupe River State Park ended up being a very good fit for this stretch.
It was easy to navigate, easy to settle into, and quiet in a way that let the stay find its own rhythm. The river gave the park its center, the campsite gave us privacy, and the Hill Country setting made it feel clearly different from the parks and campgrounds we had been moving through before.
For me, it also carried the added weight of being my first solo move with the rig. That alone made the stay memorable, but the park helped by not making anything harder than it needed to be.
I would certainly return.
