The park is popular with campers and local residents for its activities on the Frio River and the dances held nightly during the spring and summer.

In the early 1930s the park was built to save a portion of the hill country for the public, and to provide work for unemployed men during the economic depression.

The Civilian Conservation Corps built the park’s original improvements, which included a large pavilion and a concessions building.

The park was named for John Nance Garner, former Vice-President of the United States who lived and practiced law in the Concan area.

[2][3][4] The area came about in the Cretaceous age when the Edwards Plateau was formed when a section of land was lifted 2000 feet along a curving fault.

Today high mesas, limestone cliffs, deep canyons and clear streams fill the terrain.

Their name is derived from the length of time that they are leafless, since they shed leaves in the fall and don’t bloom until late spring.

The golden-cheeked warbler are birds that nest only in the mixed Ashe juniper and oak woodlands of Central Texas from March to July.

Activities at the park include hiking, nature study, picnicking, canoeing, fishing, paddle boat and kayak rentals (spring and summer), bicycling and miniature golf.

During the high demand on-season months of March to September, Day Use reservations are required before visiting the park to guarantee entry.