Valley Nature Center

I am stunned at how much there is to do and see here! We came here just to walk around the trails outside, but stumbled on to Jurassic Camp. Insanely fun! Even got to hold a snake. The trails outside are very well maintained and perfect for a nice walk. Not too long, not too short. The pond with all the turtles was a highlight. Driven by for years and never knew that it was more than a kid's park. Nice little gem in the middle of such an urban area!

Very deserving of it's name, the valley nature center truly is the valley's nature center. Everyone who is coming down here for ecotourism or locals getting into it should start here, as the center breaks down the diverse ecosystems and wildlife of the lower RGV for everyone to understand. They have an attractive collection of captive animals and the indoor center itself is very clean and following all COVID-19 guidelines. The park itself is not huge but there are plenty of meandering trails, with a great assortment of rgv flora and fauna living there. What stood out to me the most was the sheer amount of turtles and lizards here. I spotted two brown anoles, two rose bellied lizards, one earless lizard and one spiny tailed lizard just on one cactus complex. You'll find plenty of lizards scurrying about, spotted a ribbon snake as well in there. As someone who actively engages in hiking and enjoys exploring the various natural sites in the LRGV, I find it kind of criminal that I did not start here first. Coming from someone that's been to nearly every state park, world birding center, national wildlife refuge, nature sanctuary/preserve and hiking area in the valley, I HIGHLY recommend that everyone new to it start here. I'm sure even experienced south texas naturalists will appreciate and enjoy this beautiful nature center in the middle of weslaco. Entrance fee is a very reasonable $5 and frontera audubon society along with estero llano grande state park are just a few blocks away.

Great staff makes the experience fun. Thank you. The museum of indoor area was limited but well designed and interesting. They have turtle food for 50 cents, which is a must with kids. Unfortunately we went shortly after the big freeze of 2021 and many plants were damaged. There were many birds, especially chachalacas. They have small water features throughout the area that are a great place to find birds drinking. The bridge art the beginning of the park was well built and the pond was full of several species of turtles. I also saw frog eggs on the moss close to shore. The trails are limited due to the size of the park, but they have fully utilized that area. I plan to go again with my toddler grandson.