Dig In Details

The Olmos Basin Park trail system consists of 8 miles of trails used by hikers, runners, and mountain bikers located in an 1,100-acre park in the San Antonio urban core. Currently, there is no wayfinding or educational signage in the park, and the South Texas Off Road Mountain Bikers would like to add signage to provide a safer and more enjoyable experience for trail users.

Despite being well-used by many types of trail users, the Olmos Basin Park trail system has potential to attract more community members. The lack of signage is cited as one of the main reasons more people do not use the trail system, which is often described as a spider web of intersecting trails that makes it easy for trail users to get lost. Funds for this project will go towards mapping, improving the trails, and installing wayfinding and educational signage at trailheads and intersections.

Olmos Basin Park is used regularly by local NICA middle-school and high-school mountain bike teams for practice. In addition, many of the trail users are neighborhood residents who hike, run, and bike the trails. The South Texas Off Road Mountain Bikers hope that by improving the trails and installing signage, they can increase the number of local residents who use the trails, observe and report problems on the trails, and volunteer to help keep the trails in good condition.

Poor health and socioeconomic vulnerability indicators for the population within a 5-mile radius of Olmos Basin Park show a need to increase outdoor recreation opportunities in the area. Improving the trail system with signage and making the trails more attractive to trail users of all skill levels will promote outdoor recreation and help improve the health of the community.