Top 10 Sights Along the San Gabriel River

Below, in no particular order, is my personal list of top sights along the San Gabriel River. These are all views that caught my attention and make the San Gabriel River a special place for me. I invite you to add to the list with your own observations.

Falls at Crocket Gardens – Knight Spring at Crocket Garden is one of the major springs along the North San Gabriel River. After emerging from a cleft in a limestone bluff, the spring runs a short distance before plunging over a cliff into Lake Georgetown. The spring and falls can be seen by hiking the San Gabriel River Trail from the Cedar Breaks Trail head.

Wildflowers Along the River – Wildflowers are abundant throughout the San Gabriel River valley. My favorite spots are along the North San Gabriel between Georgetown and Lake Georgetown and in Berry Springs Park. Among many spectacular flowers is the day flower (right) which grows in shady spots along the river.

Fall Color Along the San Gabriel River Trail – Rounding a curve in the river trail, my breath is taken away by the brilliant autumn colors—the yellow of cedar elms, scarlet of red oaks, and orange of sycamores—on a cool fall morning.

Alligator Gar – Peering down from a Farm to Market Road bridge that crosses the upper North San Gabriel River, I catch sight of a half dozen 6 ft long alligator gar, slowly nosing through the shallow water below like miniature submarines.

Waterfall on the North San Gabriel – One of my favorite sights is water cascading over this low water dam on the North San Gabriel River.

Dinosaur Tracks in the San Gabriel – Scientifically, one of the most spectacular sights along the San Gabriel River is tracks left by dinosaurs that walked the river banks 100 million years ago.

Georgetown Salamanders – Nothing makes my day more than turning over a rock in a spring along the San Gabriel River and catching sight of a Georgetown salamander.

Snowfall on the San Gabriel – An unexpected January snowfall blankets the riverside with a soft white cover, through which peak the tracks of numerous small mammals.

Golden Checked Warbler – This beautiful and endangered species, easily recognized by the bright yellow spots on the sides of its head, is common in Russell Park and Taylor Ray Hollow and other spots around Lake Georgetown.

River Bluffs – Among the most common and yet remarkably beautiful sights along the San Gabriel are the limestone bluffs that often tower 50 feet or more above deep water on a curve of the river.

Shin Oak

A distinctive trademark of the rocky uplands surrounding the San Gabriel River is Shin Oak (Quercus sinuata var. breviloba). This tree goes by a number of different names, including Shin Oak, Bigelow Oak, Scrub Oak, Scalybark Oak, Bastard Oak, and White Shin Oak. A small but beautiful tree, it commonly reaches only 10 to 12 ft in height, although occasionally larger trees of 20-30 feet in height can be found. Multiple stems of Shin Oak are usually found within a few feet of each other, the stems twisting upward in strange and interesting shapes. Its large multi-lobed leaves are light green in color, presenting a delightful contrast to the dark green foliage of the junipers among which it typically grows. The most distinctive characteristic of Shin Oak is its light gray, shaggy, and peeling bark, the origin of one of its other common names—Scalybark Oak.

Hiking the Good Water Trail, I often encounter Shin Oaks scattered among the junipers and live oaks. When I first observed these small trees, I wasn’t sure of the species. Their large, lobed leaves suggested they were part of the white oak group, and their scaly bark and multi-stemmed growth forms eventually revealed their true identity. I love seeing these small and interesting trees as I explore the bluffs and ravines that overlook the San Gabriel River.

The Mexican Buckeye

Last week, as my dog Molly and I walked the San Gabriel River Trail, I spotted one of my favorite trees, the Mexican buckeye (Ungnadia speciosa Endl.), also known as the Texas buckeye and canyon buckeye. Really more of a shrub than a tree, the Mexican buckeye is easily distinguished during much of the year by its reddish brown, three-lobed fruits that hang from the tree and that rattle when shaken. Inside are three large, lustrous black seeds. The Mexican buckeye grows along rocky ravines and bluffs above streams in Texas and New Mexico. The tree Molly and I saw on our walk was actually growing on top of a limestone boulder about 30 feet above the San Gabriel. In the spring, the tree has clusters of small, beautiful pink flowers, which eventually give rise to the fruits and seeds.

The seeds of the Mexican buckeye have been found in large numbers among Native American archeological sites, but experts disagree about whether the seeds were eaten, used as psychotropic substances, or worn as ornaments. The seeds contain compounds that are known to be toxic and there are anecdotal reports of people becoming sick and even dying from eating the seeds. However, several botanists claim to eaten eaten the seeds with no ill effects. Regardless of what the botanists say, I don’t recommend trying them!

Reference: Turner, M. W. 2009. Remarkable Plants of Texas: Uncommon Accounts of Our Common Natives. University of Texas Press, Austin.

Southwestern University Student Projects on the San Gabriel River

Last fall, I taught a First Year Seminar Course at Southwestern entitled A River Runs Through It: The Ecology and History of the San Gabriel River. Students in the course were required to plan and carry out a group research or creative project that focused in some way on the San Gabriel River. Another requirement was that the project include members of the community. Here are brief summaries of the student projects, written by the students.

Memoirs of the San Gabriel River
Bridget Miller, Jessica Perry, Elizabeth Marzec, and Erin Landry

Rivers are an essential part of civilization, both as a cultural hub and a resource. The San Gabriel River and Park is no exception. Despite being an extremely important river in Georgetown and Williamson County, there is very little documented about the river, especially personal tales. We realize that the San Gabriel River is a significant part of the Georgetown community and attempt to convince others of this as well. In efforts to prove the significance of the San Gabriel and collect a lasting oral history of the river, we interviewed residents from all over town, of all ages, to capture feelings and memories involving the city of Georgetown and more specifically the San Gabriel River and San Gabriel Park. We comprised the interviews into a documentary DVD. Through this project we have discovered the positive feelings of fondness that the community has for the beloved San Gabriel River and Park. We hope this film will help teach the residents of Georgetown about the history of the area and for them gain more appreciation for its rich history.

Fossils of the San Gabriel River
Kirby Crone, Kate Castles, Kristen McCollum, Kim Sump

The community as a whole does not know the history of the San Gabriel River and its past, so our group decided to teach them by means of fossils that are found in the region. We hiked along the river and in nearby areas and found nine different kinds of fossils. We classified the fossils and put them into three groups (commonly found, occasionally found, rarely found). We then designed a kiosk to put at the head of the San Gabriel River Trail that has pictures and descriptions of the fossils we found, an illustration of how fossils are formed, and a map that details the geological history of the area. Our project's purpose is to inform and educate the community about Georgetown's past and encourage children to become enthusiastic about science by means of fossils. Fossils commonly found included Turitella, and Texigryphaea. Fossils occasionally found consist of Ostrea, Protocardia, and Pecten. Fossils rarely found are composed of Pholyadomya, Loriola, Tylostoma, and Inoceramus. On one of our many fossil hunts, we went to Lake Georgetown. It was about a twenty minute walk through a forested trail until we got to the waters edge. Right as we were getting there the sun was starting to set, so we had to find fossils quickly. This was not a problem because when we looked down we realized the entire ground was just covered in various types of fossils. By going on each fossil hunt we have been able to see into a world that few have been able to explore. It is truly amazing to see what had been millions of years before our existence and hold that piece of history in your hands.

Analysis of Trash on the San Gabriel River Trail

Kevin Burge, Allard deJong, Alex Essex-Carmona, and Alexander Reinsch

On a hike along the San Gabriel River Trail, these students noticed litter along the trail. They decided to conduct a scientific analysis to better understand where along the trail litter might be a problem and how it might be better managed. An initial hypothesis was that litter was more likely to occur where there were fewer trash cans. The students divided the trail into sections. They collected trash along the trail, recording the number of pieces of trash found in each section and the type of trash collected. They also interviewed trail users to determine their impressions and attitudes about trash along the trail. Results of the study showed that the trail is relatively free of litter and trash. The amount of litter was not related to the presence of trash cans. Instead, areas that contained more litter were located near roads and streets, suggesting that most litter does originate not from trail users, but comes from passing vehicles. Adding additional trash cans is unlikely to decrease the amount of litter that occurs along the trail.

More Dino Tracks on the San Gabriel

Yesterday, Marlene and I celebrated our 28th wedding anniversary by looking for dinosaur footprints on the South San Gabriel River. The previous weekend, we had located some great dinosaur tracks on the North San Gabriel (see Wading the San Gabriel post). This weekend, we headed to the South San Gabriel near Leander, where a well-known trackway exists.


We made our way down to the river, emerging upon a smooth bed of limestone that formed the river bottom. The river was down to just a trickle, but was clean and clear. Several other people were already there, also looking at the dinosaur tracks. A small boy threw rocks for our dog Molly into the river, which Molly promptly retrieved, much to the delight of both.

The trackway of dinosaur prints is pretty spectacular. Each print is about 10 inches long and separated from the next print by 3 to 4 feet. We counted 11 prints in all.

After examining the tracks, we hiked up the river a short ways, while Molly splashed around chasing small fish and swimming in the deeper pools. We topped off the day with a four-star dinner at Cafe Josie in Austin and then headed to Zilker Park to watch the outdoors performance of Beauty and the Beast.

Wading the North San Gabriel

Last weekend, my wife Marlene and I waded the North San Gabriel River with our dog Molly. It was a clear hot day, perfect for wading. We were in search of dinosaur footprints, which I had been told could be found on this stretch of the San Gabriel.

The river was beautiful--crystal clear water flowing gently over solid rock bottoms. As we made our way upstream, a heron flew overhead and cricket frogs called from the banks. Because of the sparse rainfall this spring and summer, the river was low, less than a foot in most places, which made wading easy. Molly had a great time splashing around, chasing minnows and small bass.

We walked for a mile and half and didn't see another person. Half a mile upstream we passed 40-foot cliffs. Great chunks of limestone, almost perfectly rectangular and looking like they were cut from a quarry, lay in the river bed. Further on we passed several deeper pools, where Molly was able to swim around without touching bottom. At one point, underground springs fed cool water into the river and the water temperature dropped dramatically. Vines hung overhead, providing natural swings over the water. As we walked upstream, we searched diligently for the dinosaur footprints, but without success.

After about an hour of walking, we turned around and headed back, convinced that the dinosaur tracks were either covered in mud, or worn away, or maybe never existed. I happened to look down, and there next to the river was a foot-long dinosaur print, perfectly preserved in the hard limestone. Several additional tracks, more weathered and less obvious, extended back in a clear trackway. Alone on the river, it was easy to imagine a dinosaur slowly lumbering across the muddy river bottom 100 million years ago, leaving the beautiful tracks that, against all odds, have survived to this day.

Shell House in Rivery Park

Prepared by Southwestern University Paideia Scholars Natalie Mahlberg, Amanda Mohammed, and Megan Mullins and Paideia Professor Michael Kamen. Artwork by Carlos Barron

Dr. Michael Kamen's Paideia class at Southwestern University researched and wrote the information contained in this post as a part of the San Gabriel River Trail Project (http://www.southwestern.edu/sgrtp/), funded by a Vision grant from the 3M Foundation. The text and graphics shown here will be put on Kiosk that will be placed in the park by the City of Georgetown.

The Shell family were early pioneers who lived along the North San Gabriel River just north of Georgetown. Remains of the Shell family home can be seen near the pavilion at Rivery Park. The Shell family moved to Georgetown and built the house in the late 1800s. During this time Jonas Montgomery Shell Sr. was elected district clerk and served for a year before becoming sheriff. After the 1921 flood, Jonas Montgomery Jr. raised the house on stones to avoid the house being severely damaged by future floods. Following this incident, a house fire was caused by wood heaters, which were used for heating and cooking until the addition of electricity in the 1930s. The surrounding land was used as a ranch where cattle, workhorses, and other livestock grazed. In addition, the family tended pear and peach orchards. They also grew a variety of vegetables in a garden that included corn, tomatoes, and peppers. A tank still stands today, which was built by Jonas Montgomery Shell Jr. in the 1940s in addition to a fence that was built as a coral for the horses and cattle.

The Shell family still resides in the Georgetown area: Sister Marguerite Shell Murray, and brothers Jonas (Son), Wiggy, and Sidney Shell all married and continued to ranch in the Georgetown area. The 263 acre property was sold in 1972, and traded hands several times before becoming Rivery Park.