Smith Visitor Center inside McKinney Falls State Park is an amazing place to visit and learn about the history, ecology, and geology of the park. We always make it a point to visit Texas state park visitor centers for their wealth of information and this is no exception.
The newly renovated visitor center was opened in 2021 after being closed for nearly 8 years due to flooding. The center also has exhibits about the catastrophic flooding of 2013 when many of the park attractions were destroyed. It is a great place to spend some time on your visit.
While the park is open daily, the Visitor Center is open Friday through Sunday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wondering how to reach the Visitor Center? Once inside the state park and past the Ranger Station, follow instructions to the Visitor Center. The building is accessible with 1 ADA parking lot by the front entrance, a ramp to enter, and all accessible exhibits. Here are some of our favorite exhibits at the center:
Bat Cave
The Bat Cave is a pretty cool and exciting exhibit that highlights the Congress Bridge urban bat colony in Austin as well as the bats that live in the state park. It explains how bats, other nocturnal creatures as well as migratory birds use the night sky to find their way while flying. Artificial light can be really disruptive to these creatures as well as affect our natural body rhythm. The exhibit highlights the importance of reducing light pollution and ensuring dark skies even in urban areas.
Park Geology Exhibit
This exhibit is a must if you love volcanoes. Did you know the long extinct Pilot Knob volcano in southeast Austin shaped the landscape of McKinney Falls State Park? The volcano’s frequent eruptions deposited a layer of volcanic tuff over the limestone layers in the park.
When waters of Onion Creek and Williamson Creek flowed over the creek bed, it eroded the softer volcanic rock and formed chutes in the limestone to create the two dramatic McKinney park waterfalls. The park’s many limestone ledges such as the one at Rock Shelter trail are formed in the same way: by erosion of the softer volcanic tuff underneath the limestone.
El Camino Real Exhibit
McKinney Falls State Park was an important stop on the El Camino Real de los Tejas National Historic Trail. The trail connected frontier Spanish missions in Texas and played a major role in settling the state. The visitor center has a great exhibit tracing this ancient route through Texas.
The exhibit also highlights important missions on the trail. A trail crossing was just downstream the confluence of Onion Creek and Williamson Creek, near the Lower McKinney Falls. In fact, you can still see hoof marks, wagon ruts, and other impressions on the rock while on the trail to Lower Falls.
2013 Flood Exhibit
A particularly interesting exhibit is the one on Halloween 2013 floods that extensively damaged many of the park structures including the Visitor Center. The dam and Gristmill built by Thomas McKinney were destroyed in a similar flood way back in 1869. In 2013, the creek rose over 40 feet and was easily four feet high in the Visitor Center. 2015 floods also caused extensive damage to the building. The exhibit highlights the destructive force of storm waters.
Thomas McKinney Exhibit
The state park was once the home of Thomas McKinney, one of the founding fathers of the Republic of Texas and one of Stephen F Austin’s original 300 colonists. The exhibit narrates how he developed the area and built his ranch as well as a gristmill on the land.
It also explains how he used the local durable limestone to have enslaved people build many structures around the park including the Old McKinney Homestead. The exhibit also explains his affinity for racehorses and interest in breeding them. You can also see a small scale model of the gristmill.
Prehistoric Creatures and Wildlife Exhibit
The center has fossils of the animals that once lived here several million years ago. With the help of these exhibits, it’s easy to close your eyes and imagine prehistoric marine creatures swimming in the shallow inland sea that once covered this part of Texas. It also has excellent information on wildlife that calls the park home today including spotted deer, white tail deer, bats, armadillos, frogs, hawks, turtles, and painted buntings.
Observation Deck
The center has a large outdoor observation deck. In winter months, when the trees are bare you can enjoy a great view of the Upper McKinney Falls from here. You can also spot the park wildlife or rest at the picnic tables on the deck. There are also some interactive exhibits on the deck.
Junior Ranger Activities
The Visitor Center has an excellent activity for the kids involving engraved designs on exhibit panels. Kids have to create rubbings of the designs to find all things related to the park. Our kids had a great time searching for the rubbings.
Kids can also borrow a Junior Ranger Activity Journal at the Visitor Center. They can also borrow a Junior Ranger Explorer backpack – these packs have tools such as binoculars, magnifying glass, field guides to animals and birds in the park, pencils, crayons, and a journal. Our kids love asking for one and using it on hikes. Be sure to return the backpack when you’re done. You can even borrow a life jacket at the visitor center.
After you visit the center, be sure to check out the trails and activities in the park. The Onion Creek Hike and Bike trail begins right here outside the Visitor Center while the Rock Shelter Trail begins at the backside of the Visitor Center. These trails will take you to park attractions such as Upper Falls, Lower Falls, Old Baldy tree, Prehistoric Rock Shelter, and more.
Further Reading: 9 Awesome Hikes and Trails at McKinney Falls State Park