Caddo Lake State Park, Texas

One of the few non-oxbow natural lakes in Texas, one doesn’t disappoint. Beneath Caddo Lake State Park’s soaring, silvery cypress trees you’ll find alligators, turtles, beavers, and over 70 different kinds of fish (so don’t forget your fishing gear). The best way to explore the park’s network of swampy bayous and sloughs is by kayak; rent one year-round from park concessions. Or explore the surrounding forests of oak and hickory on one of the park’s nature trails; look up to spot woodpeckers boring through bark or bats snatching dinner before twilight falls. If you came to Caddo Lake to rough it, set up a spot at one of the park’s four campgrounds. History buffs may want to rent one of the park’s ten log cabins, which were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s. Just watch out for bigfoot — local legend has it he likes to lurk around the lake. Or maybe that’s just one of Caddo’s cypresses casting shadows.