Greenlight: Resaca de la Palma State Park to open soon

The gate to Texas' newest state park should open to the public next month.

Pablo de Yturbe, manager at Resaca de la Palma State Park near Olmito, said the only hurdle remaining is software for the computers.

"As soon as we get it, we'll probably open," he said.

The target date is Oct. 15, "but we hope earlier," de Yturbe said. Grand opening will be Dec. 6.

The park was supposed to open several months ago, but the bidding process for culverts had to be redone because there were no bids. The culverts are critical to filling and regulating the flow of the resaca that snakes through the 1,200-acre park.

"The resaca is full now and everything is ready to go," de Yturbe said.

The interior of the park will be off limits to vehicles. Instead, visitors will be able to ride trams that will stop at several points to allow park-goers to get off or on.

Both trams hold 18 people and will run approximately hourly.

Resaca de la Palma will have 3.5 miles of paved trails and 6.5 miles of dirt trails. Two of the trails will be handicapped accessible.

There are several observation decks and a boardwalk overlooking the resaca.

The visitors center includes a park store, offices, restrooms and information desk.

Fourteen people make up the park staff.

De Yturbe said the park did suffer some relatively minor damage during Hurricane Dolly.

"We had trees down - that was the only damage - and that's been taken care of," he said. "We expected more water from Dolly, but only got 4 inches."

Resaca de la Palma will be the eighth World Birding Center site to come online. The final location, South Padre Island, should be ready to go in a few months.

De Yturbe said fall migratory birds are already being spotted at the park, including several species of warblers.

The park is also home to yellow-billed cuckoos, Altamira orioles, groove-billed anis, caracaras and all three kingfishers - green, ringed and belted.

In addition, it is home to bobcats, coyotes and even feral hogs.

Once open, the park's regular hours will be 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. daily, 365 days a year. There will be a pay station for those who arrive before 8 a.m. or after 5 p.m.

Entrance fee is $4, with children under 12 and seniors 65 getting in free.

De Yturbe also announced the addition of Katherine Miller as the park's new resource specialist, biologist and bird specialist. She will be available to answer questions park-goers have about resident wildlife.

To reach Resaca de la Palma, take Highway 77 south from Harlingen, exiting right on FM 1712. Then take a left on El Carmen Road to the park entrance.