One of the Country’s Biggest Public Lands Victories Is Happening in Texas

Take it from me: The Lone Star State is in desperate need of more parks. As a native Texan and lover of the outdoors, I’ve explored most of the state’s public lands. To be honest, we didn’t have many parks to start with, and the existing ones have only become more crowded with the state’s rapid population growth in recent years.

So it’s a big deal that a state with deeply conservative politics is currently on a spending spree to buy up private property for public use.

Most notably, Texas Parks & Wildlife just announced the acquisition of Silver Lake Ranch, a 54,000-acre property in the Hill Country west of San Antonio. It will be Texas’s second-biggest state park, after Big Bend Ranch State Park. And that’s just the first major use of a $1 billion state fund created in 2023 to expand the state’s park system.

This pool of money — called the Centennial Parks Conservation Fund — was approved by Texas voters and funded with a multibillion-dollar budget surplus. That year also marked the 100th anniversary of the Texas park system, which hadn’t seen a major investment in new parkland since the 1960s.

That prolonged negligence of public lands placed Texas 35th in the nation for state park acreage per capita. However, the lack of public lands is even more significant given that Texas is the second-largest state in the country. Environment Texas, which played an instrumental role in the creation of the fund, celebrated the news.

“This is a milestone for all Texans and the wildlife who share our great state with us,” said Luke Metzger, the group’s executive director.

A Notable Win for Public Lands

Texas’s parks expansion is a welcome respite of good news for public lands advocates. In the last year and a half, the Trump administration and a Republican-dominated Congress have rolled back many protections for federal lands.

To name just a few: Minnesota’s Boundary Waters is now open for mining, a Pacific marine monument was opened to commercial fishing, and 2 million acres of federal land in Alaska are now available for oil and gas leases. Just last week, President Trump issued another executive order to expand the use of off-road vehicles on public lands.

So it’s worth celebrating that in the midst of all this, Texas — of all places — is intent on expanding public lands.

Silver Lake Ranch, seen in the photos above, looks like a notable addition to the state’s parks. Located about 150 miles west of San Antonio, the property has “steep canyons, rolling hills, and miles of river frontage along the West Nueces River,” Texas Parks & Wildlife said in a release. The land also includes the 30-acre, spring-fed Silver Lake, the property’s namesake. (Despite Texas’s size, natural lakes are extremely rare.)

It also boasts steep canyons and limestone cliffs, as well as other creeks and water features. There are even a few caves with ancient pictographs from native peoples.

“Near one of the most popular state parks in Texas, Silver Lake is sure to become a destination for park visitors and be the backdrop of memories made for generations to come.”

Other Parks Expansions in Texas

Though Silver Lake Ranch is the most notable acquisition, it’s not the first expansion of Texas parks since the creation of the Centennial Parks Conservation Fund in 2023. Several other significant additions have been announced over the last year and a half.

For starters, Texas has doubled the size of Enchanted Rock State Natural Area (a personal favorite of mine that’s also one of the few excellent climbing crags in the state). The state also added Bear Creek State Park. Considered a “sister park” to Garner State Park, this roughly 1,720-acre area includes prime property along the beautiful Frio River. There’s also Post Oak Ridge State Park, a 3,118-acre park in Lampasas that’s currently in development.

To be clear, not everyone in Texas thinks that using parks money solely for new acquisitions is a good idea. Environment Texas — the same group that helped realize the Centennial Fund — also released a report last month on the huge backlog of maintenance for state parks across the country. Texas, in particular, has $700 million of deferred maintenance projects, mostly from aging infrastructure and deteriorating facilities.

Regardless, it celebrated the purchase of Silver Lake Ranch as a major victory for Texans who want to get outside.

“The purchase of Silver Lake Ranch will mark the first major step in fulfilling the promise of the Centennial Parks Conservation Fund, ensuring Texans have more parks to explore and more natural treasures preserved for future generations,” Metzger said.