A RIVER RUNS THROUGH IT

A resort area since the 1920s, today visitors come to Concan to float the cool, clear waters of the Frio River in tubes or kayaks; to enjoy scenic drives through the Frio River Canyon; to watch Mexican free-tailed bats fly at sunset, and to explore the natural and built wonders of Garner State Park.

Southeast of Concan the Frio Bat Flight Tour runs from March through September. Frio Bat Cave is the spring and summer home of the second-largest bat population in the world, numbering 10 to 12 million. Garner State Park north of Concan is the stuff of legends and a namesake tune. Built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s, it’s one of the premier state parks in Texas. Ten miles of hiking trails wind through the park site’s rugged hills. Cabins, residences, and central buildings blend so well with the pecan trees and live oaks they almost go unnoticed. The young men working for the CCC also crafted massive stone fireplaces in most cabins—accommodations so popular they’re often booked a year in advance. Anchoring the park is the central concession building and the Pavilion, a concrete slab under sheltering oaks on a bluff high above the Frio. Generations of park visitors have flocked to the dance pavilion after a hard day of hiking, swimming or tubing on the Frio. The "Garner Dance" has become such a Texas tradition, that it was commemorated with a tune, the “Garner State Park Song,” which still finishes each night of two-stepping under the stars.