Did You Know the Only Natural Lake in Texas is Right Here in ETX?

Did you know the only natural lake in Texas is only about 1.2 hours from Longview, Texas, and less than 2 hours from Tyler, Texas?

Well, if you grew up in the East Texas area, you may have known that. Even though I'm a native Texan and have lived in East Texas since I was a tween, I wasn't aware of that. I found it particularly interesting given that we live in such a lake-centric area. I love getting out on one of our East Texas lakes and feeling the daily stresses just start to slide off my psyche that butter on a hot roll.

Granted, I'm not much of a fisherwoman. But I do love getting out on the water in a number of other capacities. And the more I'm learning about the history, and legends, not to mention interesting things to do on and around the alleged ONLY natural lake in the State of Texas, I want to plan a visit.

Caddo Lake and Bayou's 25,400 acres rest on the Texas and Louisiana border.

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More specifically, Caddo Lake is located in the northern part of Harrison County, as well as the southern part of Marion County--at least, the Texas part does. According to Wikipedia, Caddo Lake was named "after the Caddoans or Caddo, Native Americans who lived in the area until their expulsion by the United States in the 19th century."

One of the things many people find interesting, if not enchanting, about Caddo Lake, is the flooded cypress forest draped with that Spanish moss. The photos always grab my attention. There's something both romantic and haunting about them. I imagine drifting through silently as the sun goes down and thinking about...well, whatever kinds of thoughts one might have in that setting.

What types of activities can you do when visiting the Caddo Lake area?

In addition to melancholy pondering, there are plenty of other ways to enjoy the visit. If you're interested in fishing, Texas Parks and Wildlife says there are about 70 species of fish in the lake. It's also a home for alligators, so please be forewarned. Especially if you decide to follow one of the paddling trails through the area. There are also cool places to stay, shop, and learn more about the area. You can check out more details in case you'd like to make a plan here.

CBS Sunday Morning shared a lovely video about the area about a year ago. You can watch that below:

What's your favorite place to visit in the great state of Texas? If you're looking for a few more ideas, we can help. Check these out:

The 9 Best NATURAL Lazy Rivers in Texas in Which to Cool the Hell Off

If you're interested in tubing, swimming, or just sitting on the bank and listening to the water flow by, you'll find a great Texas river destination here.