The San Antonio River Basin is a dynamic ecosystem with rivers, creeks and streams that can quickly be impacted by rain events and other weather conditions. Human activities within the basin may also affect water conditions.
The San Antonio River Basin drains an area of land 4,180 square miles. The basin extends from Kerr and Medina counties in the Texas Hill Country southeast toward the Gulf of Mexico. It drains approximately half of Medina County to the far northwest; the majority of Bexar, Wilson, and Karnes counties, which comprise the central portion of the basin; approximately one third of Goliad County to the southeast; and parts of Bandera, Kendall, Comal, Guadalupe, DeWitt, Kerr, Atascosa, Victoria, and Refugio counties.
The basin’s major watersheds are
Medina River Watershed
Medio Creek Watershed
Leon Creek Watershed
Upper San Antonio River Watershed
Salado Creek Watershed
Cibolo Creek Watershed
Lower San Antonio River Watershed
The map below shows how these watersheds drain toward the Gulf of Mexico.
The San Antonio River is the basin’s major river, flowing 240 miles from its headwaters in San Antonio, Bexar County, to its confluence with the Guadalupe River in Refugio County. Approximately 11 miles downriver of the confluence, the Guadalupe drains into the San Antonio Bay and the Gulf of Mexico.
As with all river basins, weather conditions in one part of the San Antonio River Basin can dramatically affect river flow in another part of the basin. Weather conditions may be sunny and warm in the central or southeastern part of the basin, but if rain or flood events have occurred upstream within the past few hours—or even days, paddlers, hikers, campers, and others recreating along a river, creek, or stream could be subject to the dangers of rising waters. Recreationists planning for a paddling trip in Goliad County, for instance, may find it helpful to know if recent heavy rains have occurred upstream in the San Antonio area. The river in Goliad County will have an increased flow within 2½ to three days of a heavy rain in San Antonio. Click on these links for flow information and weather conditions throughout the San Antonio River Basin.
Cultural
The San Antonio River Basin is home to rich and varied cultures. Payaya, Coahiltecan, Karankawa, Lipan Apache, and Tonkawa Indians; Spaniards; Mexicans; American settlers from the east; and German, Czech, and Polish immigrants are among the early peoples who shaped and settled the San Antonio River Basin. Plentiful water drew them to the basin, where their various cultures took root and still influence the basin’s communities, traditions, festivals and events.
History
Heritage Trails
Before the Europeans
The headwaters of the San Antonio River were a gathering place for Native Americans over 12,000 years ago, providing precious water in a semi-arid landscape and attracting game. When the Spanish made an expedition in 1691, they found an encampment of Payaya Indians beside a river they called Yanaguana. Other Coahiltecans, along with Karankawas, Lipan Apache, and Tonkawa hunter-gatherers, led a nomadic life throughout the River Basin, gathering mesquite beans, prickly pear fruit, pecans, and other wild plants and hunting deer, bison, and smaller mammals, as well as taking fish from the River itself.
The Spanish
The San Antonio River was also a lifeline for the next wave of human habitation. The Spaniards established presidios (forts), civil settlements and missions along the River in Bexar, Wilson, and Goliad counties and associated ranches in Medina, Bexar, Atascosa, Wilson, Karnes, and Goliad counties. These ranches provided cattle, horses, goats, and sheep to the missions.
The missionaries and their Indian laborers tapped the San Antonio River for irrigation, building a system of acequias that watered corn and bean fields.
Acequias (irrigation ditches) had been in use in the arid parts of Spain since the 8th Century, so Spanish missionaries knew just how to route San Antonio River water into dry fields. The acequia associated with Mission Concepción was said to be large enough to be navigable by small boats! Mission Espada’s acequia system includes a stone aqueduct that is considered the oldest still in use in the United States.
In addition to the river, La Bahia Road, which is the southern section of the great Camino Real or King’s Highway, connected the missions and stretched about 700 miles from Monterey, Mexico to Louisiana. Today, state highways 181 and 239, and farm-to-market roads 887, 2043, and 81 parallel parts of the old road.
Anglo-American and European Settlement Fertile soil, open range, and the San Antonio River continued to attract settlers from Nueva España in the 1700s, followed by settlers coming west from the United States in the early 1800s. German, Czech, and Polish immigrants established tight-knit farming communities throughout the area, including the first organized Polish settlement in the United States: Panna Maria in Karnes County. As the 19th Century progressed, so did the River Basin. Railroads were built, more settlers arrived, and large-scale agricultural production began.
Bexar County
The headwaters of the San Antonio River are in Bexar County, and the River is the reason for the area’s early settlement. Spanish soldiers established a presidio in 1716, making the first civil settlement possible in 1731. From 1718 to 1731, the missionaries established their five compounds and acequias to convert the Indians to Christianity and an agricultural way of life. When the first Anglo-Americans arrived in 1821, the little town of San Antonio de Béxar was home to about 2000 Mexican colonists and soldiers. In the 1830s the battle for Texas independence from Mexico began, marked by the fall of the Alamo in 1836 and ending with the defeat of Santa Anna at San Jacinto that same year. After Texas became a state in 1845, the number of European and Anglo settlers increased dramatically and the county’s population and economy accelerated. Today, San Antonio is the 7th largest city in the United States and its colorful history, charming River Walk, and restored missions make it a popular tourist destination.
After Mexico won independence from Spain in 1821, the new government began secularizing the missions. Most mission property was distributed to the Indian inhabitants or sold to private parties by 1794. However, Mission Espíritu Santo remained in Franciscan hands until 1830.
Missions
Bexar County
est. 1718 Mission San Antonio de Valero (The Alamo)
est. 1720 Mission San José & San Miguel de Aguayo
est. 1731 Mission Nuestra Señora de la Concepción
est. 1731 Mission San Juan Capistrano
est. 1731 Mission San Francisco de la Espada
Wilson County
est. 1731 Rancho de las Cabras
Goliad County
est. 1749 Nuestra Señora de Loreto Presidio (La Bahía)
est. 1749 Mission Nuestra Señora del Espíritu Santo de Zúñiga
Wilson County
When the Spanish established the chain of missions along the upper San Antonio River, they also established ranches to supply cattle, goats, sheep, mules, and horses to the missions. Many of those ranches were in the area now known as Wilson County, where ranching is still a major part of the economy. Anglo-American, German, and Polish settlers began arriving in the 1850s and an act of the Texas legislature established Wilson County in 1860. After the courthouse burned in 1883 county officials hired the noted architect Alfred Giles to draw up plans for the present-day courthouse in Floresville. Today Wilson County is a leading producer of peanuts and, in the industrial arena, provides oil and gas field services and produces structural clay products and fabricated metal plate work. Tourists visit Jackson Nature Park near Stockdale, the historic Brahan Masonic Lodge in La Vernia, the Dewees Remschel House near Poth [by appointment], the Wilson County Jailhouse Museum in Floresville, the National Park Service’s Rancho de las Cabras, and the history exhibit at the Catholic Church in Kosciuszko.
An 18th Century Supermarket
Rancho de las Cabras (Goat Ranch) belonged to Mission Espada. It provided the Franciscan friars and their Indian converts with horses, burros, cattle, sheep, pigs and goats from 1731 to about 1794. Today, all that remains of the Rancho’s stone perimeter wall and chapel are some foundation ruins that can be seen where Picosa Creek flows into the San Antonio River.
Karnes County
In the late 1700s, rich land in this area and the San Antonio River’s reliable water source led to the establishment of big ranchos, which became targets for raiding Comanches. Despite the presence of a fort, Fuerte de Santa Cruz del Cibolo, at Carvajal Crossing on Cibolo Creek, continuing attacks forced the abandonment of many ranches. By the 1850s Indian raids were in the past and Anglo Americans began settling the area, along with Polish immigrants who founded Panna Maria, the oldest Polish settlement in the U.S. Helena became the county seat when Karnes County was established in 1854.
The original courthouse still stands in old Helena, but today Karnes City is the county seat, presiding over a prosperous county with an economy based on ranching, agriculture and, until the early 1990s, uranium mining and processing. Tourists visit the historic churches of Czestochowa, the “painted church” and museum at Panna Maria, Old Helena, and the city park and historic bandstand at Runge.
Goliad County
Evidence of Spanish settlement in the Goliad County area is preserved in the beautifully restored Mission Espíritu Santo and, across the San Antonio River, Presidio La Bahía. In the late 18th Century, the Franciscan missionaries converted and “civilized” the native Aranama and other Indians. The Presidio protected the Mission and La Bahía Road, a vital trade route. During the Texas Revolution, the Goliad area witnessed history, including the drafting of the Goliad Declaration of Independence in 1835, the surrender of James Fannin’s forces at the Battle of Coleto, and the subsequent infamous execution of the Texan prisoners. Goliad County is one of the 23 original counties established by the Republic of Texas in 1836. Today, farming and ranching is important to the county’s economy, and oil and gas production have also become major sources of revenue. The county attracts tourists to Goliad State Park, Mission Espíritu Santo, Presidio La Bahía, the historic Courthouse Square, General Zaragoza’s birthplace, Fannin Battleground State Historic Site, and the Berclair Mansion.
Where the San Antonio River trails to the coast, alongside are historical and recreational trails that mark a path in history and in nature, showing us the way to explore and appreciate the San Antonio River Basin.
Texas Independence Trail. Skirting San Antonio’s east side and paralleling the River, this roadway trail marches through the history of Texas.
The Coastal Birding Trail is the birder’s road to paradise. Texas is home to 600 species of bird. This trail offers good observation areas for birds in Karnes and Goliad counties.
Goliad Paddling Trail is the 6.6-mile heart of the Goliad community’s vision for a 58.1 mile, multi-day paddling trail on the San Antonio River. This inland paddling trail begins at the Highway 50 Bridge just west of downtown Goliad and ends at Goliad State Park, linking the San Antonio River Valley Historic District, the historic City of Goliad, and Goliad State Park.
Angel of Goliad hike and bike Trail offers
two miles of birding and butterfly spotting along the San Antonio River. This multi-use trail connects historic downtown Goliad, Goliad State Park, and Presidio La Bahía.
Floresville Old Town Hike and Bike Trail is a 2.9-mile trail along an historic railroad right-of-way. Plans are underway to restore the old train depot for use as a museum and stopping point for hikers and bikers.
Mission Trail is a nine-mile trail linking San Antonio’s vibrant downtown to its five 18th Century Spanish missions. Visitors have a choice of driving the entire length or traveling portions accessible by hike and bike trail.
Natural
The Water Just as the San Antonio River is central to the area’s history, it is at the heart of the Basin’s natural resources. It provides the most precious of those resources: water. The River is formed by the conjoined spring waters of the Blue Hole and Olmos Creek and fed by 4186 square miles of watershed, including the Medina River and creeks with lyrical Spanish names: Alazán, Medio, Leon, Salado, San Pedro, Marcelinas, Conquista, Cibolo, Ecleto, Escondido, and Manahuilla.
The full course of the River flows 240 miles through Bexar, Wilson, Karnes, Goliad, and Refugio counties, converging with the Guadalupe River before finally spilling into San Antonio Bay on the Gulf of Mexico. Beneath the River Basin counties lie South Texas’ other water source, the aquifers: Edwards, Carrizo-Wilcox, Trinity, and Gulf Coast.
The Wildlife
The San Antonio River creates a rich riparian environment that provides a menagerie of South Texas wildlife with water and cover. Daylight may expose deer, nutria, beaver, turkey, quail, and dove to human sight, but nighttime conceals the activities of raccoons, opossums, bobcats, owls, coyotes, and rarely, pumas. A king’s ransom of avifauna attracts birders from around the world, eager to add a Crested Caracara or vibrant Painted Bunting to their life lists. While whitetail and bird hunting has always been an important part of the Basin economy, ecotourism is also making its mark, with birders, hikers, and river paddlers coming to Basin communities to pursue their interests. All the more reason to protect, preserve, and promote River Basin habitat.
The Land
Most of the San Antonio River Basin runs through a hardscrabble land of deep soil, scant rain, and short, tough, brushy vegetation. Balcones Canyonlands associated with the Edwards Plateau tip into the northern edge of the Basin with limestone hills, live oaks, and ash juniper. A swath of rich Blackland Prairie occurs a little farther south, providing a gently rolling, exuberantly fertile area for farming. To the east, Post Oak Woodlands make a slender inroad into northeast Wilson County and account for the hickory trees and gray squirrels found there. All the way to the south, as the River approaches the sea, it meanders through flat Coastal Prairies and Marshes, where the air is laden with moisture and the growing season is long.
This site is maintained by the San Antonio River Authority. Please click here if you have any questions or comments.
Fertile soil, open range, and the San Antonio River continued to attract settlers from Nueva España in the 1700s, followed by settlers coming west from the United States in the early 1800s. German, Czech, and Polish immigrants established tight-knit farming communities throughout the area, including the first organized Polish settlement in the United States: Panna Maria in Karnes County. As the 19th Century progressed, so did the River Basin. Railroads were built, more settlers arrived, and large-scale agricultural production began. 
Missions
In the late 1700s, rich land in this area and the San Antonio River’s reliable water source led to the establishment of big ranchos, which became targets for raiding Comanches. Despite the presence of a fort, Fuerte de Santa Cruz del Cibolo, at Carvajal Crossing on Cibolo Creek, continuing attacks forced the abandonment of many ranches. By the 1850s Indian raids were in the past and Anglo Americans began settling the area, along with Polish immigrants who founded Panna Maria, the oldest Polish settlement in the U.S. Helena became the county seat when Karnes County was established in 1854.
Just as the San Antonio River is central to the area’s history, it is at the heart of the Basin’s natural resources. It provides the most precious of those resources: water. The River is formed by the conjoined spring waters of the Blue Hole and Olmos Creek and fed by 4186 square miles of watershed, including the Medina River and creeks with lyrical Spanish names: Alazán, Medio, Leon, Salado, San Pedro, Marcelinas, Conquista, Cibolo, Ecleto, Escondido, and Manahuilla.
The San Antonio River creates a rich riparian environment that provides a menagerie of South Texas wildlife with water and cover. Daylight may expose deer, nutria, beaver, turkey, quail, and dove to human sight, but nighttime conceals the activities of raccoons, opossums, bobcats, owls, coyotes, and rarely, pumas. A king’s ransom of avifauna attracts birders from around the world, eager to add a Crested Caracara or vibrant Painted Bunting to their life lists. While whitetail and bird hunting has always been an important part of the Basin economy, ecotourism is also making its mark, with birders, hikers, and river paddlers coming to Basin communities to pursue their interests. All the more reason to protect, preserve, and promote River Basin habitat.