Kyle, TX Outdoor Activities

Bel Canto Farms owner Suzanne Warmack has been enamored of equestrian sports since she took her first horseback ride at 18 months of age, more than 40 years ago. Now, in a facility where two dressage arenas, a derby field, and a 75-foot round pen segment the grounds, she leads a team of three regular instructors whose combined experience in teaching and showing surpasses 60 years. Since the facility is also outfitted for full boarding and pasture boarding, horse owners who lack stables or whose stables have been overrun by iguana flash mobs can house their steeds there, selecting one of three stall sizes equipped with a constant supply of hay and water and fans in summer.

Quail Creek Golf Club’s 18-hole course invites golfers to enjoy the countryside charm of its rolling terrain as they swing their way past native tall grasses. A well-oiled short game pays dividends on this course due to the nature of the turtle back greens. The signature seventh hole offers a view of a large canyon that sits adjacent to the Blanco River, and the twelfth hole runs alongside the river itself. The same oblong pond stands in front of the greens at the adjacent ninth and 18th holes, providing a dramatic finish to both nines, as well as an opportunity for golfers to sacrifice their sand wedges to the water in a post-round gesture of respect for the course. The grounds include a driving range, and a Back Porch Bar & Grill where players can enjoy a frosty beverage, beer or burger, which can be ordered in advance so it is ready on the turn.

After rounds, players can drop by the Back Porch Bar & Bistro for a frosty beverage, beer or burger, which can be ordered in advance so it is ready on the turn.

Course at a Glance:

• 18-hole, par 72 course
• Length of 6,312 yards from the farthest tees
• Course rating of 70.2
• Slope rating of 121
• Four tee options
• Course layout

A bright, five-pointed star gleams above the Texas State University campus on select nights. Fixed atop Jackson Hall—a 12-story building that marks the campus's highest point—the star can be seen for miles throughout Hays County, letting fans know that it's time to celebrate a Bobcats victory and take out the pizza they started baking at half-time. Throughout the Bobcats' proud history, the Victory Star has had many occasions for beaming, as the school has won a litany of championships across multiple sports, including NCAA Div. II championships in football and men's golf and NAIA titles in men's basketball and men's tennis.

Run by Texas State University, the Aquarena Center introduces visitors to the lush diversity of the San Marcos River and its intricate system of waterways. Glass-bottomed boats set out for guided tours of the river or Spring Lake, gazing at the aquatic life and University midterm papers below. Above the springs that bubble up from the bottom, soft shell turtles and bluegill sunfish swim in the clear waters and songbirds survey the sky. Eight endangered species populate the lake, including beetles, three species of salamander, and surly mermaids. On land, visitors can explore gardens of native Texan plants or a hall of nature exhibit.

From 1927 until 2009, the Piper Aircraft company produced 144,000 airplanes. Of those, 90,000 are still flying. One is a 1978 single-engine Saratoga that can often be seen soaring over the hills and lakes of the Texas landscape.

Inside that Saratoga, the Air Tours Texas pilots lead up to five passengers on scenic tours and adventures, sharing scenic aerial views of Lake Travis, Canyon Lake, Austin, San Antonio, and Enchanted Rock with their awestruck human cargo. The group of pilots also offers sunset flights, stunningly romantic marriage-proposal flights, and copilot experiences that introduce aspiring pilots to flight basics.

Three-time Masters Champion Jimmy Demaret states, “I simply followed the natural features of the land” to explain the genesis of his brainchild, the Onion Creek Club. Here 18 holes of championship golf—designed by course architects Ben Crenshaw and Bill Coore—sprawl alongside tennis courts and a clubhouse with a fitness center and junior-Olympic-size swimming pool. The par-70 course’s claim to fame is having hosted the inaugural Senior PGA event in 1978, four years after the greens’ bermuda grass first whimpered under cleated feet. Its signature third hole invites golfers to play aggressively with their drivers in order to vault orbs onto a landing strip guarded by trees and a creek, or to grip their irons and aim for a narrow green that has notoriously uncommunicative air-traffic controllers.

In addition to the course and its accompanying driving range with 30 hitting stations, Onion Creek Club invites racket-wielders to take advantage of lighted hard and clay tennis courts. The clubhouse’s fitness center challenges muscles with Cybex strength machines, and its junior-Olympic-size pool allows 9 irons to slip into their bikinis and go for a splash.