River Update 5/29/16: According to a visitor below, the tracks are hard to get to due to slippery rocks and under water right now. But because the water is clear, the tracks are visible.
If you've been to the tracks recently, please leave a comment below and let us know if the tracks are underwater with all the rain! Thx!
Also, big thank you to Wes for leaving the GPS coordinates in the comments below.
About a half mile west from the 183 bridge that crosses the South Fork of the San Gabriel River is a truly amazing sight! Approximately 12 (maybe 11) dinosaur footprints are embedded in the rock of the river bed.
If you haven't taken the time to hike down there, they are really worth seeing!
There is something amazing about looking down and seeing a trail of dinosaur footprints that are over 100 million years old! At this site there are no fences, no signs, nothing but a trail of prints on a dry riverbed.
You can walk alongside them and get a feel for the large size of the dino that walked there before you.
Based on the shape of the three toed prints, scientists believe they may have belonged to a carnivore called the Acrocanthosaurus. There are also supposed to be some Brontosaur tracks closer to the bridge. These prints are supposed to look like big circles... but I have never been able to find them. Regardless, it is a nice hike on the river bed. Although there isn't a whole lot of water in the river these days, there is still enough for frogs and fish and all sorts of creatures to enjoy.
Tips and Thoughts
* Although there are no fences or signs prohibiting access, please do not step into the dino tracks or they will deteriorate over time, and our next generation will not be able to enjoy them!
* To find these prints, go to Google maps and search for where the South San Gabriel River crosses 183 a little north of Leander. You can also use the approximate address: 601 S Gabriel Dr, Leander, TX 78641. This will take you to the parking spot (not the dino tracks!)
* Once you are on the river bed, head west. The tracks are about (and this is a rough estimate) a half mile west of 183. When looking back, if you can still see the 183 bridge, you have not gone far enough. The tracks are on the left hand side of the riverbank.
* This is a river bed... if it ever rains in Texas again, the river could potentially fill and the tracks would be unavailable. I'm not convinced we will ever be out a drought, but it could happen. So keep this in mind! Note added 1/15/2015: I took my father over the Christmas break. There was water in the river, but the tracks were on a higher ledge and they were dry. It would have to be a lot of recent rain, I think, to cover these tracks.
* This is not a park, nor a formal location. This is just a random spot in the river. So don't look for any signs, expect any restrooms or depend on any water fountains. But the river is state land, so access is permitted along the river bed.
If you visit and have some additional information to provide, please feel free to leave a comment!
Excited to check these out today!
ReplyDeleteWe're going to check them out today. Note that there is no such thing as a brontosaur, however.
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ReplyDeleteWe found 13 prints, Jan 2015. The last one is partly covered by silt/mud, exactly 4.5 feet from the previous print (all of the tracks are about 4.5 feet apart)
ReplyDeleteVisited the prints today and about 4-5 of them were a few inches under the water, but still visible. Pretty amazing stuff. My 4 & 5 year olds were impressed, as was I.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info, Wes! I will update the blog above! And great find Sean! This really is an amazing hike!
ReplyDeleteWas there today. About 5 or 6 were on dry land. Rest were under water. Totally worth the hike. A local told us the university of texas built an access trail directly above the prints. I'm not sure where you would park though. Riverbed hike was easy enough though. Did it with my 2 and 4 year old.
ReplyDeleteWe were there today couldn't see the prints - either we didn't walk far enough or under water. Has any one maped it with their gps. We will be back in the area in 2 weeks and would love to try again
ReplyDeleteN 30°37.016'
DeleteW 097°52.098'
Thank you!!!
DeleteAnybody have any more information on the "Brontosaurus" prints? Even though we aren't entirely sure Brontosaurus existed.
ReplyDeleteWent today and likely all were a few feet underwater. We may have seen one that was a few inches below but hard to tell.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the update Allie! We love the rain, but I imagine the river is pretty full these days. Maybe in a few weeks they will be visible again.
ReplyDeleteAnyone know if they are visible?
ReplyDeleteWent today and they are visible but just under water
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the update, Chris!
DeleteWent out today and 6 of the tracks are high and dry. The others are visible but just under the water
ReplyDeleteThanks for the update!!!
DeleteWith the water levels lower now, the prints are easy to find - they are about 20 mins walk from the bird, just past the big bend.
ReplyDeleteAlso it is not mentioned here, but there are a load of other types of dinosaur tracks on the river. The brontosaurus tracks are about 100 feet past the Acrocanthosaurus tracks, on the Lhs of the river. There are at least 20 footprints, walking side by side, obviously from multiple animals walking together in a clear direction. The prints are large and round. We also found 2-3 prints that were approx 5 times larger than the Acrocanthosaurus prints each one about 4 feet long - on the same river bed approx half way between the Acrocanthosaurus prints and the bridge. Every time we go there, we find more printes, it's an exciting place to go to!
ReplyDeleteThis is great. Thanks for the info. I have never seen any other prints. I'll have to look closer next time! Thanks for sharing!!
DeleteToday, 7-26-15, the tracks on the left side as you are heading west from 183 are no longer under water. They were clearly visible because the tracks still held water, which made them perfectly visible against the dry surrounding area.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the update!
DeleteWe went today (7/27/15) and the tracks were visible - we hit them about 200 feet before the gps coordinates said we would, but that could been us. They were several feet way from the river at this point. We would suggest wearing water shoes and bathing suits because at the river level today, the kids were able to walk all the way up the river and avoid the scratchy plants on the path. Very fun!
ReplyDeleteThanks for the update! Last time we visited (in the winter) the creek was mostly dry. Sounds like it is even more fun now!
DeleteWe went today (8/2/15) and it was such a great trip. There was one point at the beginning of the walk where the water was up to our hips and over our four-year-old's head. Luckily we brought swim gear with us and our son thoroughly enjoyed using his goggles to see the fish in the river. We also took our dog with us, who loved running up and down the river.
ReplyDeleteWe used the GPS coordinates to get us near the tracks -- I almost missed them because I was walking down by the water! They are completely visible and dry. This was such a cool way to spend the afternoon, and the river was so gorgeous today.
We went today and it was awesome fun!! Little hot but tons of fun. It's amazing to find dinosaur footprints in a creek bed 20 min away from our house, no one around, just us, nature and 110 million old dino footprints. We know it was a meat eater with the three toes and it had a foot length of 18", foot width of 13" and a stride length of 10 feet approx. The dino was moving in a westerly direction at 265 degrees per my compass reading.
ReplyDeletePer our armature scientific research (conducted within the last hour of searching on the internet), we have read that a good estimate for a bipedal dinosaur's height is 10 times the foot length. Since the foot length is .4572 meters (18 inches) the height would be approx. 4.5720 meters (15 feet).
looking to check out this place this weekend. Just wondering where is the best place to park where i won't get towed or ticketed???
ReplyDeleteParked in the median and didnt get ticketed. Totally worth the drive from Kerrville. 4 and 7 year old were able to make the walk no problem. Followed GPS coordinates posted earlier and easily found the tracks. River was fairly high but 8 of the tracks were still visible and we stayed fairly dry.
ReplyDeleteIs the creek filled with water this time of year? We will be their in late July and are looking forward to seeing these footprints.
ReplyDeleteLate July is generally dry. You should be good. Right now, I am guessing they are underwater.
DeleteThey look good today 5/14/2016 they are in the water but not by much!
ReplyDeleteJust went today. It was hard to get to the prints bc of slippery rocks. The water was up so they were hard to see, but the water is very clear! And the cool water felt nice.
ReplyDeleteWent this past weekend and about half of them are dry now. The river is definitely higher than the last time I went, but it seems to be gradually going down. Just be prepared to walk through the water if coming via 183.
ReplyDeleteWent yesterday at noon with my husband and four year old. Parked by the bridge at 183 and walked the trail. Tracks are out of the water (or were before the storms overnight). I would not recommend going at the hottest part of a July day, but even though it was miserably hot, we had fun. Walked back through the water instead of along the overgrown trail, and was a nicer walk out than in.
ReplyDeleteSaw the tracks this morning...completely visible and out of the water. They are on the left side of the river bed right before the bend in the river. Really cool to see!
ReplyDeleteRebecca! Funny seeing you here :)
Delete~Amy Tomlinson
Went last weekend, there are brontosaurus tracks just past them as well, 2 sets - just before the river forks. Watch out on the track, we stood on a snake!
ReplyDeleteSaw them today. They are still there.
ReplyDeleteWe went today with our kids and all of the tracks were easily seen. Pretty amazing! Not sure the trail was accessible. Seemed to be overgrown and we were worried about snakes. But wading through the shallow water was not a problem and it was very brief before you could come up on dry land again. We parked in the median between North and South Hwy 183 right at the overpass to the river. Clear path all the way down to river bed.
ReplyDeletewas there today. tracks are visible but watch for snakes. i hear done rattle but didnt see it
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ReplyDeleteWe were there on Monday 17 Feb with the whole family. The path and hike in the river were fun although one should walk slowly and carefully because the wet rocks were very slippery. We found the dinosaur tracks exposed and mostly dry, and they were superb. We were thrilled to find them and to know they are close to home.
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ReplyDeleteI found these footprints first 40 years ago when I was hiking with my then boyfriend (later husband). I came upon them in dry south San Gabriel riverbed a mile from bridge.
ReplyDeleteWe were so excited, we went back for camera, and friends picked up our spelunking helmets and lights. As we entered back at almost dusk a ranger was coming out with another person and hollered across the creek asking why, I a young female was going into the woods with a group of guys? I hollered back, I found some dinosaur footprints! Never once did my 17 year old self think I should report to university of Texas or stop to show the ranger that night. He reported to news etc next week, had no clue who we were to give proper credit.
We were just excited kids. Glad to know they have been enjoyed by so many people.
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