Places To Go

Hikers on the Longleaf Pine Trail

NPS Photo / Scott Sharaga

Many Places, One Preserve

With over 113,000 acres of public land, Big Thicket National Preserve is yours to enjoy and explore. We invite you to experience the preserve's special places.

 

Get info, maps, and much more at the visitor center.

NPS Photo / Scott Sharaga

Visitor Center

Start your trip at the Big Thicket Visitor Center. Centrally located in the Big Thicket region, it has information, maps, exhibits, a film, and much more. Park rangers there will answer your questions and can recommend things to see and do in the preserve.

Units of the National Preserve

Unlike most national parks, the preserve is composed of 15 separate sections of parkland called units. These units range in size from 552 to 24,828 acres and are spread out over seven southeast Texas counties. Look at the park map to see where each unit is located.

Developed units offer hiking trails, restrooms, picnic areas, and other facilities.

Primitive units generally do not have hiking trails or facilities and can be challenging to access.

Visit the page for each unit to learn more about what to see and do there:

 

Developed Units

• 

  Turkey Creek Unit

  Here you'll find many of the Big Thicket's scenic highlights, from carnivorous plants to cypress sloughs.

• 

  Hickory Creek Savannah Unit

  Explore a lush longleaf pine forest and look for carnivorous plants.

• 

  Beaumont Unit

  Just minutes away from Beaumont, see the bayou on paddling trails and at picnic areas.

• 

  Beech Creek Unit

  Explore a forest of beech trees on the Beech Woods Trail.

• 

  Big Sandy Creek Unit

  From longleaf pine uplands to flooded bottomlands, this unit has a wonderful mix of scenery and trails.

 

Primitive Units

• 

  Neches Bottom & Jack Gore Baygall Unit

  Swamps, baygalls, and sloughs abound in flooded lowlands along the Neches River.

• 

  Lance Rosier Unit

  Lance Rosier is the historical heart of the Big Thicket, home to dense patches of palmettos and swamps.

• 

  Canyonlands Unit

  Cliffs, gulches, and rugged terrain await you in the remote Canyonlands Unit.

• 

  Loblolly Unit

  The smallest unit of the preserve, the Loblolly Unit is home to pimple mounds, or mima mounds.

• 

  Waterway Corridor Units

  The 6 waterway corridor units offer great paddling and boating opportunities.

 

Ranger Recommendations

• Visiting the Big Thicket for the first time?
  Check out the Kirby Nature Trail in the Turkey Creek Unit. It's near the visitor center and gives hikers the chance to experience a variety of Big Thicket environments, such as a baygall and cypress slough.
• Enjoy different kinds of outdoor recreation?
  Try the Big Sandy Creek Unit. You can hike, bike, horseback ride, camp, hunt, fish, and more in this part of the preserve.
• Want to see carnivorous plants?
  The Pitcher Plant Trail in the Turkey Creek Unit and the Sundew Trail in the Hickory Creek Savannah Unit are your best bets.
• Looking to paddle a kayak or canoe?
  Visit the Beaumont Unit or one of the waterway corridor units.
• Want to walk through a longleaf pine forest?
  Try the Longleaf Pine Trail at the visitor center, the Pitcher Plant Trail in the Turkey Creek Unit, and the Sundew Trail in the Hickory Creek Savannah Unit.

Photo Galleries

View photos of the places to visit, sorted by unit and trail »