Best Place to Mountain Bike

Forty-five minutes north of town on I-10 (at least the way we drive) lies Huntsville State Park, nestled among the Piney Woods of the Sam Houston National Forest. Here you can thrash and crash (well, if you're doing it right, it occasionally happens) more than ten miles of hike-and-bike trails for a $3 day-use fee. Following the perimeter of Lake Raven, these mostly single-track dirt paths are well maintained, with cute wooden bridges. There's nothing too technical here, but the roots of the skinny, towering trees can be challenging to negotiate, even when you're not busy avoiding the fine sand that gathers in deep pockets between the hills. After that long, fun ride, you can kick back in the parking area with the other bikers, clean up with a shower or, heck, go jump in a lake.