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Print Friendly MapNote: Per the city of San Antonio's website, "The Salado Creek Greenway shall be closed for all purposes each day at sunset and will reopen each day at sunrise." Additional park curfews can be viewed here.
The Salado Creek Greenway offers nearly 25 miles of paved trail along San Antonio’s east side. The trail is part of the city's sprawling Howard W. Peak Greenway Trails system, which forms an off-road loop around the heart of San Antonio together with the Leon Creek Greenway. Connecting at Eisenhower Park in the north of the city, the two trails form a route of more than 50+ miles.
The Salado Creek Greenway is divided into two separate segments as follows:
Segment 1: Eisenhower Park to John James Park
This northernmost segment runs for almost 18 uninterrupted miles, and offers some of the trail’s most scenic sections. The segment starts in the north in Eisenhower Park, where a new connector trail finished in fall 2021 forms a link to the Leon Creek Greenway on the city's west side. The pathway traces the Salado Creek through bluffs and hardwood forest. A highlight of the route is Voelcker farmstead, an archaeological site and historic set of buildings situated in Phil Hardberger Park. Named after a former San Antonio mayor, the park is an urban green oasis with native grasses and heritage oaks.
The trail continues to another worthwhile attraction, Walker Ranch Historic Landmark Park, which offers beautiful natural landscapes, picnic areas, a large pavilion, restrooms, and a playground.
Continuing east and south, the trail skirts the edges of the city's airport property before continuing through a series of lovely neighborhood parks; along the way, you'll be treated to hilltop views of the city skyline and airport. The path traverses over a scenic wetland area with the Morningstar Boardwalk, named in memory of Army Staff Sergeant Christopher Morningstar, and continues through dense woodlands.
About two miles south of McAllister Park, a spur will take you to Lady Bird Johnson Park, a community favorite with a swimming pool, skate park, softball and soccer fields, and basketball courts. Farther south the trails runs through Los Patios, a shopping and dining area, before heading under Loop 410.
On the other side of the busy roadway, the pathway offers a well-shaded retreat under towering pecan and oak trees as it winds through Robert L.B. Tobin Park. The park is a terrific spot for bird-watchers; you may see warblers, buntings, hawks, owls, and many other types of birds. It also offers unique faux bois art in its signage, picnic tables, and benches. The trail ends at John James Park, named for a surveyor who helped establish the city's boundaries in 1846. The park offers athletic fields, a playground, and restrooms.
Segment 2: Jack White Park to South Side Lions Park
Stretching about 7.5 miles, this southernmost section of trail continues along the creekside through even more of the city's parks. It begins in Jack White Park on the north side of I-35 and winds south through Pletz County Park, Martin Luther King Park, Comanche Park, and South Side Lions Park, offering the traveler many amenities and picturesque views of the forest and creek.
Segment 1:
The north end of the trail in Eisenhower Park offers parking (19399 NW Military Highway). Parking is available further south on the trail near the Voelcker homestead (1021 Voelcker Lane) in Phil Hardberger Park, as well as within Walker Ranch Historic Landmark Park (12603 West Avenue).
Plentiful parking is also available in McAllister Park (13102 Jones-Maltsberger Road), Ladybird Johnson Park (10700 Nacogdoches Road), and Robert L.B. Tobin Park (150 Ira Lee Road).
Segment 2:
Parking is available at Jack White Park (3803 Seguin Road), Martin Luther King Park (3503 Martin Luther King Drive), and South Side Lions Park (3100 Hiawatha Street).
There are a number of dangerous hills and turns throughout the trail. Perhaps a more experienced Rollerblade enthusiast could manage, however, not without a spotter.
Thank you for existing!!
I spent today walking about 4 miles of this path starting at Phil Hardberger Park. What I found was that walkers are pretty much taking their lives into their own hands because of some of the bicyclists. The vast majority of bicyclists do seem to be out for a leisurely ride but you have a handful that treat it as some sort of racing track. When I got back to where I had started there was even a bicyclist turning around a bend in the path doing 30mpg. A lady in back of me yelled out, "Hey, slow down!" A friend who was with her said that they (some bicyclists) do this all the time. I think I'll stick with Phil Hardberger Park.
The Salado Creek Greenway is beautifully scenic as it winds through the woods. From the birds chirping to the occasional deer, it is a peaceful place to connect with nature. And coming from Philadelphia (the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection) where we have Fairmount Park, the people of San Antonio are friendly, warm and welcoming, making this a must-visit space if you want to walk, skate, bike and/or exercise in your own way.
We rode the trail today. Some areas had some birds and squirrels. Nice loop around the lake and got some pictures of the ducks. Nicely paved. We are from northwest Iowa so was nice to ride our bikes in March!
The trail is beautiful and I love walking on it, however there is too much trash by and on the bushes. The maintenance workers cut the trees but leave the trash on the bushes and only contribute to its ugly image. Please try to maintain its beauty by cleaning it up.
What an incredible & fun trail for biking. It is well maintained, shady, and filled with beautiful vegetation. Enjoyed ourselves immensely! Well done San Antonio! (We started at Jack White Trail, Segment 3)!
First time here very shaded beautiful trail but we went on a Sunday extremely packed too packed for my liking packed with group bike riders walkers joggers strollers kids roller skaters it was very overwhelming for me since I’m a new rider I don’t care if I fall but I don’t want to hit no one and the path just doesn’t seem as wide as Leon creek and Medina and then I never wear my mask to ride but seeing how packed this trail was 2 miles in made me regret it immediately also this trail is for advanced riders that will yell at you if your slow or if you don’t know the correct lingo and also if your not wearing a helmet I know wearing a helmet is appropriate but it’s not required so to feel the need to yell at me just seemed a bit rude I had never been yelled at before lol
Finding decent trials for roller skating can be tough. I have skated the Salado Creek Greenway from the Oak Well Trail Head off Austin Hwy to McAllister and then McAllister to Phill Hardberger Park and it’s doable on roller skates. There are some hills, blind curves, and debris that you need to watch for but it’s manageable. There is lots of shade on the route and some exposed areas. Plenty of water is a must for south Texas heat and humidity. The trails are super slippery for skate wheels when there is even a tiny bit of wetness left over from rain. If you are comfortable t-stopping, plow stopping, staggering, and maybe even turning to stop on your toe stops, then you can manage this route. There are some places that I found I can practice going backwards down hills (for more control).
The Salado Creek trail from Huebner to 1604 is almost complete adding approximately 1.9 miles of paved trail. The Leon Creek Trail is complete to the Rim, so the realization of connecting these two beautiful trails is almost a reality.
HA! So I just deleted this long, detailed, glowing review of this excellent trail, then thought, "what the heck am I doing!!". Stay away and leave this gem to the locals that live on or nearby the trail, like myself.
But if you promise to come only once or twice to check it out, then bring your dog on a leash or your bicycle (road or mountain) or just your walking shoes...you will not be disappointed. It is exceedingly safe with daily Trail Stewards on bikes and the occasional quad runner with a park police officer, astonishingly beautiful, unexpectedly quiet, and you are guaranteed to come away thinking...wow, this was much, much better than I ever expected! Not perfect, but definitely worth a visit.
I'll leave it at that.
It was great ride to do from ljb spot. I went left for about 5 miles and then back past along the boardwalk for another 7 miles. It was awesome workout.
We always start at Hardberger Park. We ride the trail to Huebner Rd and turn around ride past the park to ride all the way to Holbrook near the National Guard. On this trail you do have several streets crossings to continue on the trail. When you get to Holbrook you are riding on the road and I normally turn around at the RR tracks. You can continue on this route to Jack White Park and continue down to SouthLions park. You are riding on the Frontage road to Jack White Park and the way back is a little tricky from Jack White and Holbrook road. That RR track is active and a stops on the Holbrook crossing then you are stuck until it moves forward. RT from Huebner Rd to the RR tracks is 32 miles. If you go all the way to South Lions & back add 18 miles to the 32
We rode 9 miles on the Salado Creek Greenway today. We got on the trail at Ladybird Johnson trail. The temperature was great for January but the scenery was still kind of bleak. I'm sure the trail will be gorgeous in a few months. Can't wait to use the trail again. Wonderful trail.
I've run and biked the trail between Heubner and Ft Sam several times and really enjoy it! On long bike rides (round trip almost 35 mi if you detour through McAlister Park) it's nice to stop at MoMak's (just North of McAlister Park) for munchies and beer :) I biked the whole South segment from Lions Park to the Jack White trailhead today and it was beautiful and peaceful! I just wish there was a good way to connect the two segments of the trail around Ft Sam - that would make it 5+ stars.
I just discovered Segment 3 from Jack White headed South. Parking is under thick, tall oaks. One of the best bike rides and nice and long... Thick, tall trees most of the way, gentle hilly bike path with neat turns, and salado creek next to you. Like another reviewer, I was approached by park police about the curfew. I agree this is annoying as he honked his park vehicle horn to track me down. Why isn't curfew posted? Maybe approaching people like this gives the park police something to do. Otherwise, probably in the top 2 most enjoyable rides.
Rode the segment from Jack White Park just North of IH 35 to Roland Ave and back on a Thursday. Great trail and a wonderful ride. Where the path cuts through deep woods, the city above disappears. Parks along the way provide a rest stop w clean porta-potties. Saw Parks and Rec folks maintaining the trail as well as police and Park Security riders. Special place. Thanks
At approx. 5pm Nov. 22, 2015 a small group of us began our nightly walk on the green belt and about 6pm we were stopped by the park police stating that there was a curfew at sundown and we could be ticketed for being in violation. None of us were aware of such curfew and nowhere along the route is anything posted that mentions said curfew. We got on the trail right inside McAllister Park off Wurzbach Pkwy. entrance and walked down to Bitters Recycling Center and then turned around to head back. If there is such a curfew, it should be posted in plain view for walkers/bikers alike to see along the trail. Wondering if anyone else has had a similar experience. If the park is open til 10p, why can't you walk on the trails til then and why isn't it posted ANYWHERE that there is a curfew? Thanks
Great route for a bike workout!
rode this trail this weekend...started just past 2 bros. bbq to south side lions park..alot of fun!! plenty of scenic wooded areas, nice boardwalk,. tricky area was by the armory @ hywy 35 near ft sam houston.. asked some riders for help and they showed us a way to get on by the parks and rec station and continued our journey towards the end @ SSL park.. 45 miles round trip..highly recommend this trail.. very ez,flat, few hills allllll fun!
My wife and I ran segment 1 on 10/26/2014; our first San Antonio Greenway run. We were really impressed with this trail. There was a ton of wildlife and the elevation changes throughout segment 1 were hardly noticeable.
There a couple of intersections with other trails that could cause some confusion, so be intentional about slowing down and making sure you are staying on the green way. One of the highlights of this trail is when you are close to West Avenue, you can smell Two Bros BBQ. Unfortunately we were only halfway through our run and could not take a BBQ break - but it was really tempting.
Most of this trail is shaded. So even on "warmer" days, the sun exposure is limited (and welcomed).
We will be back and look forward to running some of the other segments.
Note: We ran about .5 miles past the end of segment 1 to ensure we ran slightly over 10 miles. Technically, the trail is not open where it runs underneath 281 but there is a concrete path for a half mile or so.
First time riding this trail, and I have to say after riding both segment 2 and 3. It was fun and the scenery was fabulous. It took 2 hours round trip of leisure riding and even got to see about 10 whitetail deer along the way. Awesome ride and would recommend to anyone. I'm not in the greatest shape and if I can do it anyone can!!
I really enjoyed this part of the trail the description provided by Traillink is on target what is left out is that it is quite easy to continue on to south of Rittiman Rd(for about a mile?) with a devoted bike lane separate from street traffic. Very safe. Then if you are willing to ride the sidewalk on Rittiman Rd you can cut through the light traffic of Terrell Hills to catch the bike lanes on Broadway. or if you can provide a driver's license at the gate you can ride through Fort Sam Houston cutting through to Bradway Enjoy!
I highly recommend this trail!
You can ride a steady (no hills) 6 mile round trip if you head south from 410. There is construction, but all you have to do is turn around. :)
Folks on the trail are friendly. The trail is wide enough for walkers, joggers and bikers.
I really enjoyed the scenery.
Thanks San Antonio Parks and Rec!!
~Lindakay
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