Falcon State Park

Introduction of Falcon State Park

Falcon Dam was dedicated jointly by US President Dwight Eisenhower and Mexican President Adolfo Ruiz Cortines in 1953. This massive dam along the Rio Grande quickly created an 84,000-acre lake that serves both Mexico and the United States. In this part of Texas, cross-cultural cooperation is fairly common. This spirit is also responsible for the creation of landmarks such as Falcon State Park. It’s located on the Rio Grande’s American side, on the southwest shore of the Falcon International Reservoir.

Even after all these years, thousands of people visit Falcon State Park each year. Many people take advantage of the year-round mild weather by participating in a variety of outdoor activities. Others simply relax in their RVs near the water.

If you want to truly experience Falcon State Park, renting an RV is the way to go. There is plenty of space to store your fishing equipment, the vehicle has enough power to tow your boat, and an RV is a great way to experience outdoor camping without giving up all of your home comforts. This is particularly true in this park. It has over 100 parking spaces with rig hookups.

Falcon State Park Camping

The 130 RV parking spaces in the park are divided into two sections. Electrical and water hookups are available on sites 101 through 131. The RV dump station is located near the park headquarters, a short distance up the road. Sites 201–231 are full hookup RV sites with water, electricity, and sewer hookups. Each section has its own bathroom and shower facilities. When the great outdoors calls, each pull-through site (which are all pull-through sites) has a fire ring and picnic table. RVers get the convenience of an RV as well as the back-to-nature feel of a home-cooked meal over an open fire.

Falcon State Park Activities

Boating

The border between Mexico and the United States effectively cuts Falcon International Reservoir in half. You should check with the park rangers before venturing over to the Mexican side, but you should be fine. There is plenty of open water near the border, making it ideal for powered watercraft. Falcon State Park sits on a peninsula. Most kayaks, canoes, and other unpowered craft stay near the park’s inlet to the north or south. The boat launch is located between the two primitive campsites near the RV campground. There is plenty of parking close to the launch.

Fishing

Fishing from the shore is not required at Falcon State Park. You don’t even need fishing equipment because park rangers provide it for free. This lake used to be teeming with crappie and white bass, but droughts in 2015 decimated the fish population. But that’s okay because there are still plenty of catfish and largemouth bass to go around. Catfish frequently congregate near rocks, trees, and other partially submerged structures. Largemouth bass are abundant in the spring, fall, and winter, but less so in the summer. For catfish, try shrimp or stink bait, and for largemouth bass, try worms or spinners. Some anglers also target alligators, but that’s not our scene.

Hiking

Five sections make up a three-mile hiking loop trail. The entire trail forms a lasso around the RV campground, Butterfly Garden, and Recreation Hall area. Because the Lower Rio Grande Valley is mostly flat, the trail is mostly flat. The Desert Trail section of the loop trail is especially recommended. It’s the trail’s most isolated section, and it provides RV visitors with an excellent opportunity to explore Falcon State Park’s diverse plant life. The Verdin Trail section of the loop trail deserves special mention. It’s nearly as nice and much closer to the snack bar.

Geocaching

The shoreline around Falcon International Reservoir is mostly sandy, making it an ideal location for searching for buried treasure. There’s no need for an eyepatch, a peg leg, or even a shovel. You will, however, require a pencil and some small rubber balls or other geocache swag. Look for small metal boxes that resemble lunch boxes along the trail or hidden along the shoreline. Uncover your loot, sign the register, replace the prize with a new one, and proceed to the next location marked by a metaphorical X.

Falcon State Park Location

Falcon State Park is located on US Highway 83 between Laredo and McAllen. So it’s only a few hours’ drive from most of Texas’ major population centres, but it’s also a remote park where you can get away from it all.

Highway 83, like most of the other highways and byways in South Texas, is mostly straight and completely flat. It’s also a wide, well-kept road with two lanes and a service road in each direction, at least for the majority of the journey.

Falcon Heights is the nearest town, but with only 55 residents according to the 2010 Census, “town” may not be the best description.

There is one large parking area near the boat launch and another near the main lakeside picnic area within Falcon State Park.

Parking

Parking is available

Public Transport

Public Transport is not available