Garner State Park

About Garner State Park

Garner State Park is a recreational park in northern Uvalde County that covers 10 acres along the Frio River. The park is a popular destination for hiking, biking, fishing, camping and other outdoor activities. There is also a hiking trail, picnic area, amphitheatre and water park, as well as a playground.

Gorges and streams offer travelers a different pace from the highway, and the limestone cliffs carved by the Frio and its tributary, the Guadalupe, are brushstrokes in a geological painting of fascinating terrain.

The rock formations in the area date back to the Early Cretaceous and were deposited in a warm shallow sea that once covered Texas. The Glen Rose bedding was deposited on the shifting edges of the Cretaceous Sea, where dinosaurs roamed and left traces in the sand. Then the Jurassic Sea spread over Texas and deposited the limestone of the Edwards Formation in its soils.

The Glen Rose litter was found in the area by geologists from the University of Texas at Austin, Texas State University, and the Texas Geological Survey.

Garner State Park is located in the northern part of Uvalde County and covers a 10-hectare river line on the west side of the Rio Grande, north of San Antonio.

The park was bought in 1934-36 and named after George H.W. Garner, who was vice president of the United States from 1933-41. The original improvements to the park were made by the Civil Conservation Corps (CCC) in the 1930s and 1940s.

The park is located on the east side of the Mississippi River, north of Fort Inge, the state's largest lake. Nearby is the Lost River State Park, which houses a number of historic sites. Also nearby are Fort Inge (founded in 1849), Fort Lewis and Clark (founded in 1749) and Fort Leavenworth (founded in 1856), both founded by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the United States Navy.

Current conditions, including fire bans and water levels, may vary from day to day and from day to day. For more information, contact the Garner State Park Public Information Center at (613) 562-4357. Tent fees vary, and new access roads must be on the new parking lot on the west side of the park, not the east side.