Lone Star Hiking Trail: Central Section

Sam Houston National Forest (Stubblefield to FM 945)

The middle of the Lone Star Hiking Trail is its longest section. Wikipedia’s Central Area runs about 60 miles from Stubblefield Recreation Area on Lake Conroe, past Huntsville State Park, through the Four Notch area, and southeast toward Evergreen, ending with a road walk along FM 945 to a trailhead at South Butch Arthur Road.

Thru-hikers describe road walks, a subdivision dam, and an Interstate 45 crossing here, along with the 9.2-mile Four Notch Loop and the Big Woods section.

The hike

Nutty Hiker’s 2019 thru-hike gives the best day-by-day picture. Leaving Stubblefield, the first mile had many creek crossings. Around the midpoint of her day came a roughly two-mile road walk past fenced private land, then the Camelia Lake dam and spillway on a private lake inside a subdivision. “The trail crosses right over the spillway so precaution needs to be taken when crossing it as it is slippery,” she writes. She camped at Alligator Branch Swamp after mile 33, because the guidebook’s suggested sites were blocked by downed trees and widowmakers.

Backpacking Routes puts Huntsville State Park about a mile off the trail from eastbound mile 35.6, with a seasonal camp store, and says hikers can mail resupply to the Huntsville post office, though reaching it takes a shuttle, a hitch, or an extra 6-mile walk.

Next comes Interstate 45, a 1.5-mile walk along the service road and a park road, and the Phelps section, which Nutty Hiker calls the driest stretch for water. Loose dogs chased her near the second Phelps entrance, and Backpacking Routes’ author reports three dog encounters on road walks and recommends caution.

The Four Notch section, with the 9.2-mile Four Notch Loop in the middle (Wikipedia), was mostly mud in March 2019. Nutty Hiker lists campsites near miles 46.5, 48, and 50.5, reliable water at a creek past mile 48 and near the Four Notch Loop junction around 49.5, and a pond between miles 51 and 52. In Big Woods she found more mud, downed trees, and flooding near mile 60, and the same day included a five-mile road walk with no shade, so carry extra water. Wikipedia says the section ends with the road walk along FM 945.

For the stretch west of here, see the Lake Conroe section; the trail ends in the Winters Bayou and Tarkington section.

Tips

Check the closure order first. The 2024 flood closure order is still posted (see the notice).
Carry extra water through Phelps and on the FM 945 road walk.
Watch for loose dogs on road walks.
Cross the spillway carefully. It’s slippery.
Plan hunting-season nights around designated camps from Sept. 26 to Jan. 8.
Look up for widowmakers. Backpacking Routes warns of large branches hung in the canopy.

Camping

The Forest Service says camping is permitted anywhere along the trail except from Sept. 26 to Jan. 8, when overnight camping is allowed only in designated areas; Texas Highways says those are hunter camps and 12 designated primitive hiker sites. The forest-wide occupancy order (08-13-00-25-001, through Dec. 31, 2027) limits stays to 14 days in 30, bans camping within 300 feet of developed parking, and caps sites at eight people and two tents. Parts of this section cross private land and road rights-of-way, so camp only on national forest land.

Inside Intel: No camper accounts recommending a specific site were found. At the end of her Four Notch and Big Woods day, Nutty Hiker found the hunter camp “clean and nice” but about a mile off the trail, and suggests the on-trail hiker’s camp shortly before mile 60, about the same distance away, if you don’t have a ride.

Trail facts

Distance: About 60 miles including the Four Notch Loop (Wikipedia)
Route type: Point to point
Difficulty: Moderate (length, road walks, mud)
Campsites: Dispersed most of the year; designated camps Sept. 26 to Jan. 8
Water: Creeks and ponds, scarce in the Phelps section; treat all water
Permits: None found for the trail
Dogs: Leash no longer than six feet
Trailheads: Stubblefield Recreation Area; FM 945 at South Butch Arthur Road
Last verified: October 12, 2026

The Lowdown

Boiling murky water in the Phelps section:

One 2019 thru-hiker found the only water near Phelps was a roadside creek by pastures and said to filter and boil it. See the backpacking stoves testers rate.

Compare the top 5 →

Where this comes from

This page draws on the sources below, along with other guides and trip reports. Links go to the original pages.

Before you go: This page is based on published trail guides, trip reports, and reviews, along with official park and agency information where we could find it. It’s meant to help backpackers discover new trails, not to replace current, official information. Conditions, closures, permits, campsites, and water sources change, and some details here may be out of date or wrong. Confirm everything with the managing agency and check current conditions before you head out, and don’t rely on this page alone for safety or navigation. Backcountry travel involves risk.