Fodor's Expert Review Franklin Mountains State Park

Within this spectacular desert mountain park's 37 square miles are more than 100 miles of hiking, mountain-biking, and horseback trails, the southern section offering amazing views of the city below. This is a good place to get up close and personal with native species like foxes and kestrels and bluebirds, as well as plants found nowhere else in Texas, like the stout barrel cactus.