Journey Jotters

Like most people, our family has been trying out several hikes and trails, exploring nature in our backyards during this pandemic. Two weeks ago, the kids and I went to Limestone Quarry Park in Frisco. Our family lived in Plano for many years, and we were completely unaware of the existence of this park. But once I came across it, we had to find it and explore.

Located at 6300 Maltby Drive, Frisco, TX 75034, Limestone Quarry has a basketball court, BBQ grill, mosaic artwork, a pavilion, picnic tables, a vast playground area and is connected to the Taychas Trail. There are several reviews of the playground facilities online.

However, what was most appealing to me, was the creek that runs in the background, surrounded by limestone rocks and large trees with a small waterfall that seems to ebb and flow. The creek access is a narrow path behind a bench along the trail, and past the play areas. The path is muddy and filled with tree roots, so beware!

The water here runs so clear, and this place is serene. I would recommend going here once. The rest of the park has information about native prairie grass, large open play areas where we saw many young adults playing Frisbee. The mosaic artwork throughout the park is part of the Frisco Public Art program. Although several people were on the trail and in the park, it was large enough not to feel crowded.

Last week, we hiked the Taychas Trail, from Harold Bacchus Community park to the Limestone Quarry Park. The trail runs along West Rowlett Creek. It’s not one but a series of trails that run north from Lime Stone Quarry Park past Rolater Road, to Independence Parkway into Harold Bacchus Community Park, then north to Main Street.” The trail is 2.2 miles long and is perfect for both hiking, biking, and for family pets.

We parked at the Pinebridge Entrance to Harold Bacchus and picked up the trail from there. There is a trail map hung here (see first photo, up top). There are two pathways, looking at the map: one to the left and one behind. Mr. JJ wanted to choose the one behind, but we girls thought the one to the left was the right one since the sign pointed that way. We followed that, and it led to the Lawler Park community. Not having looked at the map correctly, I thought we would connect up with the trail eventually. Instead, it lead through to the Rolater entrance of the community. So much for being an excellent navigator!!

We could have walked down Rolater to pick up the trail but would have missed walking a good portion of the trail. So back, we went to the starting point and took the correct route. By then, we had lost close to an hour; the sun was starting to shine more strongly. But the family was in a forgiving mood and willing to walk. So we hiked to Independence Parkway and then walked south to Rolater Road. We crossed to the south side of Rolater Road, but there was no walk path. We entered the first community there at Bendbrook and crossed at Ridge creek Parkway to access the trail. Had we stayed on the northern edge of Rolater Road, we could have possibly located the head of the trail, but I still doubt it. There was a lack of adequate signage indicating the entrance to the trail.

Once back on the trail path, we enjoyed the walk despite the hot sun and the dwindling water rations. We stopped at the creek at Limestone Quarry Park and took in the views and refreshed ourselves with the cold water. Adequately rested, we walked back to Rolater Road along the trail. Then we walked west to the Lawler Park entrance and retraced our path to the trail, like we did earlier that morning. We chose this route again as it had more shade.

By the time we reached our car, the water was long gone, we were sweating like maniacs, and we had walked six miles in all. It felt amazing!!

The trail was completely paved and well-maintained throughout its entirety. The two issues we found with it: one, there wasn’t adequate signage information for first time trail-hikers, at least from the north end of Rolater Road. And two, the trail is cut off where it meets Independence Parkway and before it picks up from Rolater Road. Despite these issues, this is a nice walk during the cooler parts of the day. We saw people of all ages, children, families with pets using the trail.

Have you hiked the Taychas Trail before? If not, this is a good time to give it a try!