USFWS · Texas

Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge

Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge was established on January 4, 1994, with an initial purchase of 4,400 acres (18 km2). Since that time, the refuge has acquired additional acreage which now totals 30,000 acres (120 km2). The primary purpose of establishing this refuge is to protect a portion of the bottomland hardwood forest ecosystem along the Trinity River located in southeastern Texas. The refuge, which is a remnant of what was once a much larger natural area is a broad flat floodplain made up of numerous sloughs, oxbow lakes, artesian wells, and tributaries.

From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

National Wildlife Refuge29,403 acresUSFWSTX
Official page at U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service ↗
Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge
Photo by William L. Farr, licensed CC BY 4.0, from Wikimedia Commons.
4 fires
active
Rx Polk 9275 (prescribed burn) · 17 mi from the center · 900 acres
3 more within 50 miles
Incident details ↓

Facts

Where each comes from ↓
DesignationNational Wildlife Refuge
Managed byU.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
StateTexas
Size29,403 acres
FWS regionRegion 2
Center point30.34° N, 94.84° W
Night skyAbout as dark as the ground gets (Black Marble reading 12)

Boundary map

25 outlines

Boundary, simplified to about 0.005 degrees

The outline is the agency boundary simplified for display, so small parcels and inholdings may not show. The agency page has the authoritative map.

Weather by month

NOAA climate normals →
Weather by month near Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge40°50°60°70°80°90°January: 4.45 inches of precipitationFebruary: 4.29 inches of precipitationMarch: 3.76 inches of precipitationApril: 3.73 inches of precipitationMay: 5.25 inches of precipitationJune: 5.19 inches of precipitationJuly: 3.46 inches of precipitationAugust: 4.56 inches of precipitationSeptember: 5.10 inches of precipitationOctober: 5.75 inches of precipitationNovember: 5.39 inches of precipitationDecember: 4.60 inches of precipitationJanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDecJanuary: 49.8°F averageFebruary: 53.7°F averageMarch: 60.3°F averageApril: 66.0°F averageMay: 73.4°F averageJune: 79.4°F averageJuly: 81.6°F averageAugust: 81.9°F averageSeptember: 76.9°F averageOctober: 67.7°F averageNovember: 57.6°F averageDecember: 50.9°F average0 in2 in4 in6 inTemp °FInches
The line is the average temperature and the bars are average precipitation at Cleveland, 15 miles from the center point at 196 feet, station USC00411810 in the NOAA monthly climate normals for 1991 to 2020. Precipitation totals about 56 inches a year.

Large units span more than one climate. The station stands in for the center point, and the outer parts of the boundary can be warmer or colder.

Fire nearby

Within 50 miles · as of 2026-11-01
  • Prescribed
    Rx Polk 9275

    17 mi from the center point · 900 acres · 0% contained

  • Prescribed
    Rx San Jacinto 9568

    31 mi from the center point · 113 acres · 0% contained

  • Prescribed
    Rx San Jacinto 9587

    33 mi from the center point · 146 acres · 0% contained

  • Prescribed
    Rx Trinity 9616

    49 mi from the center point · 145 acres · 0% contained

Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge, and is measured from the center of a boundary that may be many miles across. Check the agency page for closures.

Explore

Nearby on the other atlases

National Park System units within 30 miles · Park Atlas
National Preserve · 23 mi
Big Thicket National Preserve
National Register listings within 15 miles · 8 in all · Register Atlas

Landmarks are listed first, then by distance from the boundary.

Guidebooks for Texas

We earn a small commission if you buy through these links. It does not change what we list.

  • Parking Lot Birding
    Jennifer L. Bristol, 2025
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Birds and other wildlife of south central Texas
    Edward A. Kutac, 2014
    Find at Bookshop.org
  • Best Tent Camping: Texas
    Wendel Withrow, 2018
    Find at Bookshop.org

Titles come from Open Library's catalog, matched by subject heading or by title.

Reference

Questions people ask

How big is Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge?

29,403 acres.

Source: How acreage is computed

Who manages Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge?

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

What state is Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge in?

Texas.

Source: How states are assigned

How do I get to Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge?

A point inside the boundary is at 30.340° N, 94.841° W. Big Thicket National Preserve is 23 miles away. The official page carries directions and the office address.

Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Is there a fire near Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge right now?

4 active incidents within 50 miles as of 2026-11-01, the nearest Rx Polk 9275 at 17 miles. Distance is to the reported incident point, not the fire edge.

Source: Fire nearby

Which national parks are near Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge?

Big Thicket National Preserve (23 mi). Park Atlas has fees, hours and alerts for each.

Source: Nearby on the other atlases

Are there historic places near Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge?

The National Register has 8 listings within 15 miles, including State Highway 3 Bridge at the Trinity River and Chambers, Thomas Jefferson, House.

Source: Register Atlas

Sources

  • Boundary, name: the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service refuge boundary layer.
  • States and territories: computed by intersecting the boundary with Census state polygons and coarse outlines of the territories and outlying islands. A place is listed when it holds at least one percent of the area. A boundary that touches no outline is listed under the nearest one.
  • Acreage: geodesic area of the published polygon. The agency’s official acreage can differ where the boundary includes water, easements or inholdings.
  • Photograph: the image Wikidata records for this refuge (Q14711383), the item linked to its Wikipedia article. Author and license come from the file page on Wikimedia Commons.
  • Description: Trinity River National Wildlife Refuge on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. The article was accepted because its title contains this unit’s name.
  • Campgrounds: the Campsite Atlas index of federal campgrounds, matched to this boundary at build time.
  • Night sky: NASA Black Marble (VIIRS, 2016 composite) sampled at zoom 6 around the center point.
  • Weather, alerts, air quality, river flow and earthquakes load live in your browser from NWS, AirNow, USGS and iNaturalist when you open the page.