Balmorhea State Park

San Solomon Springs rise at the foot of the Davis Mountains near Toyahvale, and they are among the largest springs in Texas. The Jumano and Mescalero used their water to irrigate corn and peach trees. In the 1930s the Civilian Conservation Corps enclosed the springs in a pool, and built bathhouses and the San Solomon Springs Courts, a motel that still takes guests.

The pool covers 1.3 acres, is up to 25 feet deep, and holds 3.5 million gallons. More than 15 million gallons of spring water flow through it every day, staying between 72 and 76 degrees all year, which makes it a place to swim in January as well as August and a favorite with scuba divers. There is no lifeguard, and swimmers under 15 must be with a responsible adult.

The springs are also a refuge. The Comanche Springs pupfish, whose namesake springs at Fort Stockton went dry, and the Pecos gambusia live in the cienegas, desert wetlands the park has restored next to the pool. Look at them and leave them be. The park has 34 campsites as well as the courts, and it sits a few miles from Interstate 10, between Pecos and Fort Davis. Swimmers pay only the park entry fee.