Trinity Trail at Lake Lavon - North Texas Trails

Review: The Trinity Trail at Lake Lavon is a 25 mile equestrian trail in Northeast Dallas. This is one of the longer natural trails in the area, with three trailheads. While this is an equestrian trail, hikers are welcome to enjoy the trail as well. While I have not hiked the whole trail (yet), the section I have done felt extremely remote and far from civilization. This is good spot to ’get away from it all’.

Distance: Over 25 miles

Area of Town: Northeast of Dallas, in Wylie and Lucas

Facilities: The official website does list the amenities at each of the trailheads, which include picnic tables, parking and bathrooms.

Suitable for: Hiking, Horseback Riding

Type of Trail: Natural Trail

Shade: Parts of this trail are completely under the tree canopy, other parts are open to the sun. Plan accordingly

Where to Park: There are multiple places to park along the 30 mile trail. Specifically you can park at Highland Park Trailhead, Brockdale Park Trailhead, East Winningkoff Trailhead and East Fork Trailhead

Official Website: Official Website

Nearby Trails: Heard Museum

The Trinity Trail at Lake Lavon is one of the longest trails in the area, with a whopping 25 miles of distance. One way! This equestrian trail is maintained by the Trinity Trail Riders, a volunteer non-profit organization dedicated to maintaining and protecting this beautiful natural resource.

Given the length of this trail, you are unlikely to do the entire trail in one day (that would be over 50 miles round trip), so I would advice planning ahead. You basically have two options: Head out from a trailhead and double back OR leave a car at one trailhead, and hike to a second parked car at your destination. Plan ahead!

Given the length of this trail, the write-up will tackle this in sections. Expect this review to change over time, as I come back to explore more of the area!

Highland Park Trailhead to Sycamore Loop

We started our journey at the Highland Park Trailhead, and went North. Per the official site, this is the most beautiful section of the trail, and it did not disappoint. The present at the end of the trail is the oldest Sycamore in North Texas, estimated to be over 200 years old! If you do this route, prepare for over 8 miles of distance to cover.

The trail meanders through both forest and prairie. It varied from wide and well marked, to some sections that are less obvious. We had to use our GPS tracker at one point to find our way back. I’d recommend using MapMyFItness or some other tracker, in case you get lost.

At the start of the journey the trail took us near a road and a housing development, with a barbed wire fence separating that from the trail. However as we continued north, the trail leaves civilization behind and pushed deeper into nature. You can really feel the stillness and leave the sounds of the city behind out here.

Poison Ivy abounds, so keep a close eye out for that. We passed a water treatment plant, which apparently does release water occasionally so parts of the trail can get a bit swampy. Be careful where you step. We also encountered some other damp areas including one wet spot where a feral pig and her piglets were rolling around. Not sure who surprised who the most, they scampered off into the forest after spotting us. Unfortunately before we were able to take a photo!

We did pass a picnic table, but that was about it in terms of trail amenities out here. We had to cross a creek at one point, until finally coming to Sycamore Loop. The loop borders Wilson Creek at it’s northernmost point. Keep an eye out for what appears to be a second trail intersection, this is where you will find the famous Sycamore tree!

Word of Caution: If you run into trouble out here, you don’t have many options! My hiking partner on this adventure was overcome by the heat, and while it all worked out, it was a bit nerve wracking at the time! There was no way to easily get out to a road or some other place for help. So keep in mind, this loop is very remote, so use caution and common sense! Bring all that you may possibly need (water, food, first aid supplies).