McKinney Falls State Park - Austin, TX
Posted by: Groundspeak Regular Member WalksfarTX
N 30° 10.764 W 097° 43.280
14R E 623106 N 3339356
The Park lies adjacent to Onion Creek. The creek has formed 2 waterfalls as it cut into the volcanic rock. The park area was a creek crossing site for Native Americans, explorers, and early settlers traveling on the El Camino Real de los Tejas.
Waymark Code: WMQ4BJ
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 12/17/2015
Published By:Groundspeak Premium Member DougK
Views: 4
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It is a 726-acre park acquired in 1970 by private donation. It opened in 1976 on the former site of the Thomas F. McKinney homestead.

Kentucky-born Thomas F. McKinney settled in San Felipe de Austin in 1830 as one of Stephen F. Austin’s first 300 colonists. He played a role in financing the Texas Revolution, developing major Texas cities, and trading in cotton during the Civil War.

By 1850, McKinney was living on this property along Onion Creek, near a crossing of the historic El Camino Real.

Park Type: Overnight

Activities:
picnic, camping, hiking, biking, fishing and swimming. There is a recreation hall that can be rented for reunions and other get togethers.

Park Fees:
Park Entrance Fees: 1. If anyone in your vehicle has an Annual Texas Park Pass ($70), all persons in vehicle are free. 2. If you have a Texas Parkland Passport, 65+, you will pay a $3 fee. (You can obtain one free by showing proof of age.) 3. If you have no pass, you pay $6. Children 12 and under are free.

Background:
The Onion Creek Monster was found not far from the park. This fossilized mosasaur (an aquatic reptile that looks like a cross between a crocodile and a whale, with a huge head and giant teeth) is currently housed in the Texas Memorial Museum at the University of Texas at Austin. (Cretaceous Period). What can be seen is volcanic ash imbedded in limestone and it looks completely amazing.

Date Established?: 1976

Link to Park: [Web Link]

Additional Entrance Points: Not Listed
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