I was excited about this trail because I have wanted to visit Bonton Farms for awhile, and the trailhead is just across the street. Getting there was interesting because 175 East is shut down, so you have to go through some side streets, but it wasn’t overly complicated.
When you pull up to Bonton Farms, the trailhead is just off to the left. There were a handful of cars, but I suspect many of the were there for fresh food and meat at the storefront.
If you look at the map when entering the trail, it shows that you need to go alllllllll the way to the left and then back to the right. I like following maps, but you can see a very clear trail that heads up as the path curves to the left that I soon learned was a shortcut. We weren’t in a hurry, so we took the long way around, but took the shortcut on the way back.
On the way in, we met four people who were just finishing up. I asked them what to expect, and they said it is a pretty clear path on the way in, and they took some of the side trails, but a woman suggested not to take the side trails.
If you are coming with little ones, there are some unpaved trails, but the rest of the path is paved, so you could bring a bike or scooter for a smaller child. My 5-year-old son was happy to walk.
I would HIGHLY suggest using bug spray. There are many water sources here and I saw a few mosquitoes.
We strolled down the highly shaded, paved path until we ended up at a gate with a sign that said: “Authorized personnel only beyond this point.” But I couldn’t help myself. I wanted to know what was beyond the sign. And I’m so glad I did.
About 20 steps later we were able to see the Trinity River, and it was gorgeous. I’m guessing the reason it is sectioned off is the sidewalk started to crumble next to the river. You can read more about the failing sidewalk from the Dallas Observer.
Since the walk seemed pretty short to get to the Trinity River, I decided to try the trail on the way back … I should have listened to the woman at the beginning. While it was fun to explore off the paved path, and I swore I thought I knew where I was going, we ended up backtracking to the paved path because we basically got stuck in mud and I started getting worried about snakes (many signs mention this is a snake habitat) and I wasn’t quite sure where I was.
Some of the reviews I read online said these trails aren’t maintained very well, but I have to disagree. There are plenty of signs along the way, but it was too wet for us to really figure out where to go.
I had hoped to stop at Bonton Farms on my way out, but our walk took longer than expected and they were already closed. I guess I’ll have to go back.
There are lots of other options for exploring that I want to come back again. Maybe next time we’ll stop at Bonton, get some food to go, and walk to William Blair Jr. Park.
Length: 1 mile from start of trail and back, link to trail map
Read more about the trail here, posted in 2014.