River Recreation

Discover birding and birdwatching with the Mission Reach Avian Study and learn about the more than 200 bird species documented since 2015. Check out this recreational video for tips before you go!

As more people enjoy our public parks and trail systems, the San Antonio River Authority (River Authority) is encouraging the public to consider the following information when recreating along the project. The wildlife along the San Antonio River is to be enjoyed, from a distance.

• Please remember while recreating along our public parks and trail systems, animals will naturally want to avoid direct human interaction and contact, so please give proper space to all animals. If you are respectful of their space, animals will be respectful of your space.
• Please take only memories and photographs away from the public parks and trail systems. The wildlife, including the native grasses, wildflowers and trees, are there for all to enjoy, and equally important, they are there for the health of the habitat. Please do not take any species, be it plant, animal, bird, insect, amphibian or reptile, from the project.
• The River Authority encourages fishing to be done by catch and release, and all Texas Parks and Wildlife and City of San Antonio regulations for fishing and wildlife protection apply. This includes a prohibition on feeding free-ranging alligators and other protected species.
• Please do not feed the wildlife. The wildlife that live in and along the river do not need support from human sources. Feeding human food to animals not only can hurt the animals, because their digestion system cannot properly process the food, but it can also bring more animals into the habitat than the habitat can naturally support. This in turn brings more animal waste into the river, which adds bacteria to the water making it unsafe for human contact recreation, such as swimming or wading. Additionally, feeding the animals can make them dependent upon human food, which may lead some species to search for food in trash cans and picnic sites instead of in their natural habitat.
• Please keep your pets on a leash when visiting our public parks and trail systems, and please pick up after your pet as well. Pet waste along the trail systems is not only unsightly for other visitors, during rain events, it can be washed into the river and therefore, add bacteria to the river.
• Parents and child guardians, please monitor your children to keep them safe on the hike and bike trails, paddling trails and while exploring the shoreline of the river. For the safety of both the public and the wildlife, recreational visitors to our public parks are encouraged to stay on the hike and bike trails to avoid unexpected encounters with wildlife that live and forage in the tall native grasses and along the shoreline of the river.
• Please report stray dogs and cats to 311.
• Please report sightings of snakes, alligators, nutria or feral hogs to the River Authority. This can be done by contacting us at (210) 227-1373.

Please remember that certain species, such as snakes and alligators are native to the San Antonio River Watershed, and they are an important part of a healthy ecosystem. As mentioned above, please respect their space, and they will respect your space. However, it should be known that the River Authority is monitoring these and other species and will consult with local, state and federal agencies as necessary to determine the best management practices related to managing these species. The River Authority will take action to remove certain species when the need arises.

The River Authority encourages all who recreate along our public parks and trail systems to enjoy these safely. “Sharing the trail” means more than just having pedestrians and bicyclists giving each other enough space to recreate safely; “sharing the trail” also means for humans to respect the space of the other species which live in and along the river so that they, too, may once again safely thrive along the San Antonio River.