Lake Holbrook Beach

Mineola, Texas

Verified · 3 independent sources · top-verified

WATER: lake
ACCESS: Designated swim area
FEE: Free
SEASON: Varies by conditions

About Lake Holbrook Beach

Lake Holbrook Beach is a Wood County-operated public access area on Lake Holbrook, a 653-acre flood-control reservoir on Keys Creek (a Sabine River tributary) about 3 miles northwest of Mineola, Texas, giving the area a public swimming hole and a lake to swim in. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department's official lake access page identifies a designated swimming beach near the dam, alongside two free public boat ramps. The lake sits adjacent to the Lake Holbrook Estates residential lake-home community.

Lake Holbrook is an earthfill-dam reservoir on Keys Creek, impounded in 1962 for flood control and recreation, with a surface area of roughly 653 acres and a maximum depth of about 30 feet. The beach area sits near the dam on the lake's south/west shoreline in rural Wood County, ringed by the Lake Holbrook Estates subdivision of lake-home lots.

Swimming at Lake Holbrook Beach

The official Texas Parks and Wildlife access listing identifies a 'swimming beach near the dam' at Lake Holbrook as one of the lake's public facilities, distinct from its two boat ramps. A lower-confidence aggregator source (beacheverywhere.com) describes a natural sand-and-grass shoreline with calm lake water, no lifeguard on duty, and no clearly marked swim zones -- consistent with a simple, informal county lake beach rather than a developed swim facility.

How to get to this swimming hole

The site sits at 261 Co Rd 2264, Mineola, TX 75773, on the shoreline of Lake Holbrook near its dam. TPWD's official access page routes visitors to the lake's two public boat ramps from US 80 west of Mineola via CR 2231/CR 2260 (south access) or FM 1799/CR 2298 (west access); the swimming beach is described as being near the dam.

Parking: TPWD lists free parking for 10-20 vehicles at each of the two public boat-ramp access points; a separate park-listing aggregator (Pacer) notes a parking lot on-site at the recreational area itself.

The walk in

No real hike here. The water is a short walk from where you park. This is a drive-up lake beach/recreation area, not a hike-in spot. TPWD's official access page gives driving directions only (via CR 2231/CR 2260 for the south access, or FM 1799/CR 2298 for the west access) to reach the boat ramps and the swimming beach near the dam; a park-listing aggregator (Pacer) mentions generic 'walking/hiking' as an on-site activity at the small 3-acre park but gives no trail name or distance, so that claim is not treated as evidence of a required hike.

Plan your visit

Bringing kids

OK with supervision

It's a calm county-lake beach (good for wading with supervision), but per a lower-confidence aggregator (beacheverywhere.com) there is no lifeguard on duty and no clearly marked swim zones, and the shoreline is described as lightly maintained/natural rather than a developed swim facility.

Parking

Free

TPWD lists free parking for about 20 vehicles at the South Access point and 10-15 vehicles at the West Access point (both no-fee); a park-aggregator listing (Pacer) separately notes an on-site parking lot at the 3-acre recreational area itself.

Restrooms

Yes

TPWD's official Lake Holbrook access page lists restrooms at the South Access boat-ramp area; restroom presence specifically at the West Access point or right at the beach itself was not confirmed.

Hours

TPWD lists both public access points as open all year with no seasonal closures. A separate lower-confidence aggregator (beacheverywhere.com) states sunrise-to-sunset access, which was not corroborated by an official source.

On the water

TPWD's official access page confirms two free public boat ramps at Lake Holbrook (and explicitly notes no public fishing piers), which indicates motorized/trailered boat access is supported at the lake, but no official source enumerates which specific craft types (motorboat, kayak, canoe, paddleboard, jet ski) are permitted or lists any restrictions (e.g., horsepower limits, no-wake zones, electric-only areas). Left unassigned per the no-guessing rule rather than inferring watercraft types from ramp presence alone.

Backstory

Lake Holbrook was formed by an earthfill dam on Keys Creek, a Sabine River tributary, with impoundment beginning September 15, 1962 and the dam completed that November. It is owned and operated by Wood County for flood control and recreation. The surrounding Lake Holbrook Estates subdivision's homeowners association has since been dissolved, though its covenants and restrictions still apply to lots there.