We decided to start our exploration of the Hill Country with the town closest to us, San Marcos, about 15 miles north of New Braunfels. The town sits along the Balcones Escarpment which divides Texas into uplands and lowlands. For years San Marcos, like New Braunfels, has been a vacation destination, also a result of water recreation. Aquarena Springs, the second-largest spring in Texas, bubbles up from a subterranean lake along the fault zone and forms the headwater of the San Marcos River. Anthropologists tell us that the Clovis Indians lived around the springs and river at least 13,000 years ago. As a result, this area is reputed to be the longest continuously occupied site in the United States.
San Marcos is home to Texas State University, which began life as the Texas Normal School before growing into Southwest Texas State Teachers’ College and then Southwest Texas State University. The university first came into national prominence as the alma mater of Lyndon Johnson after he became president in 1963. Today it is a campus of 40,000 and home of the Southwestern Writers Collection.
Attached is a picture taken in January in a city park along the San Marcos River. As you can see, the river is clear, no doubt owing to the river bottom being limestone instead of mud. Judging from the signs around the area (“no lifeguard on duty”) this is a free place to cool off on a hot Texas day.
San Marcos is home to Texas State University, which began life as the Texas Normal School before growing into Southwest Texas State Teachers’ College and then Southwest Texas State University. The university first came into national prominence as the alma mater of Lyndon Johnson after he became president in 1963. Today it is a campus of 40,000 and home of the Southwestern Writers Collection.
Attached is a picture taken in January in a city park along the San Marcos River. As you can see, the river is clear, no doubt owing to the river bottom being limestone instead of mud. Judging from the signs around the area (“no lifeguard on duty”) this is a free place to cool off on a hot Texas day.
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