Roadrunner Loop Passes San Angelo's Bison and Longhorn Herds

Roadrunner Loop gives the bison and longhorn note a real place on the map. The easy, three-mile hiking loop starts near the South Unit campground, passes a bird blind, and reaches the park's herd-viewing area. The animals stay in managed paddocks, with the trail providing a place to watch from outside their space.

The longhorns carry an official state connection. San Angelo State Park is one of four state parks where members of the official State of Texas Longhorn Herd live. Texas State Parks and the Texas Historical Commission manage that herd together, continuing a preservation effort that began when longhorn numbers had fallen sharply.

Bison share the San Angelo viewing area, giving the stop two different pieces of grassland history in one frame. They are not props to walk up to. TPWD tells trail users to give grazing longhorns plenty of room and not approach them. From Roadrunner Loop, the better view is the whole setting: big animals, open grass, and the low West Texas country beside O.C. Fisher Reservoir.