Blanco State Park

{{Short description|Park in the United States of America}} {{Use American English|date=July 2025}} {{Use mdy dates|date=August 2023}} {{Infobox protected area | name = Blanco State Park | iucn_category = | image = Blanco State Park 12.jpg | image_caption = The Blanco River in Blanco State Park | image_alt = A photo of Blanco River in Blanco State Park | image_map = {{maplink-road|from=Blanco SP.map}} | location = Blanco County, Texas, United States | nearest_city = Blanco | coordinates = {{coord|30|5|22|N|98|25|26|W|notes=<ref>{{cite gnis|1330832|Blanco State Park|January 7, 2013}}</ref>|display=inline, title}} | area = {{convert|104.6|acres}} | established = 1934 | visitation_num = 87,980 | visitation_year = 2025 | visitation_ref = <ref name="Park visitation">{{cite web |author=Christopher Adams |publisher= |url=https://www.kxan.com/news/texas/most-visited-texas-state-parks-2025/|title=What is the most visited state park in Texas? Here’s the top 10 countdown for 2025 |work= |website=KXAN.com |access-date=February 13, 2026}}</ref> | governing_body = Texas Parks and Wildlife Department | website = [https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/blanco Official site] }} '''Blanco State Park''' is a {{convert|104.6 |acres|adj=on}} state park, along a mile of the Blanco River, on the southern edge of Blanco, Texas, United States. The park opened in 1934 and is managed by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department.

==History== Much of the early development of the park was done by the Civilian Conservation Corps company 854 between 1933 and 1934, including Park Road 23, bridges, culverts, retaining walls, dams, picnic tables, rock seats, and concession building (currently the group pavilion).<ref>{{cite web |title=The Look of Nature: Blanco |url=http://texascccparks.org/parks/blanco/ |website=texascccparks.org |publisher=Texas Parks and Wildlife Department |access-date=19 February 2026}}</ref>

On May 23-24, 2015, the park was hit by a catastrophic flood. The Blanco River rose thirty feet. The rushing water uprooted trees and scattered branches, silt, and trash in the park. Park rangers and volunteers repaired damages. The park partially reopened on August 1, 2015, and fully reopened on October 24.<ref name="TPWD history">{{cite web |title=Blanco State Park: History |url=https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/blanco/history |publisher=Texas Parks and Wildlife Department |access-date=19 February 2026}}</ref>

==Nature== ===Plants=== The park is hilly with mostly bald cypress, American sycamore, pecan and ashe juniper trees. Seasonal wildflowers include Texas bluebonnet, Engelmann daisy, Texas paintbrush, firewheel, stiff greenthread and stemmy four-nerved daisy.<ref name="TPWD nature">{{cite web |title=Blanco State Park: Nature |publisher=Texas Parks and Wildlife Department |url=http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/state-parks/blanco/nature |access-date=January 7, 2013}}</ref>

===Animals=== Among the animals seen at the park are white-tailed deer, raccoon, Mexican long-nosed armadillo, eastern fox squirrel and gray fox. Great blue heron, and green heron fish in the Blanco River. Red-eared slider, spiny softshell, and Texas river cooter sun on logs along the river.<ref name="TPWD nature"></ref>

==Activities== The park features camping, picnicking, swimming, tubing, hiking, and wildlife watching.

==See also== * List of Texas state parks

==References== {{reflist}}

==External links== {{commonscat|Blanco State Park}} * [https://texasarchive.org/2018_00760?b=541&e=565 Film segment about Blanco State Park in ''Vacation Trails: Hill Country and the Highland Lakes'' (1943)] on the Texas Archive of the Moving Image

Category:State parks of Texas Category:Protected areas of Blanco County, Texas Category:Civilian Conservation Corps in Texas