Galveston Island State Park

The park spans Galveston Island from the Gulf to West Galveston Bay, six miles southwest of the city on FM 3005. Its 1,921 acres were Maco Stewart's cattle ranch, willed for a state park on condition that the state not take it over for thirty years. In 1970 state money and federal Land and Water Conservation funds bought out the heirs' life interest, and the park opened by 1976. Hurricane Ike damaged it badly in September 2008.

Crossing it, you pass through four zones of the barrier island in a short walk: two miles of sandy Gulf beach, dunes, coastal prairie, and the salt marsh and wetlands along the bay. Four miles of trail, boardwalks over dunes and marsh, an observation platform and photo blinds make it a good place to watch the shorebirds and waders that work the island. Paddling trails follow the bay shore, and no license is needed to fish from shore in a state park.

Campsites sit on both the beach side and the bay side, and horseback riding is allowed on the beach from November through February. The nature center opens on weekends from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and rangers lead programs on the island's plants and animals and host star parties.