Sawmill Hiking Trail

Great hike but lower part of trail impassible due to flooding from Neches river. Still good for a 2 and a half hour hike. Lots of creeks and little ravines to cross. Lots of fallen trees across the trail. Trail runs along a creek with fast running water and white sand banks. Water looks pretty clear and cool. You really have to keep an eye out for the little yellow squares that mark the trail. Beginning of the trail to the left across the grass field from the shelter and restrooms... where it crosses a creek. Pretty hard to do without getting your feet and shoes wet. Mine got soaked on the way back. I would definitely do this trail again.

What a great Hike! Water runs next to most of the trail. I wouldn't rate it as easy though. Lots of ravines to go through - which was fun, but challenging.

great mountains but loose rocks

Signs say that it's closed due to Hurricane damage however the hurricane damage increase the difficulty level and made it a lot more fun.

Didn't actual hike but the lake part was great

I enjoyed the beach with the mountain views

I took my kids out to enjoy the hike, it was around 70 degrees on a mid January day...perfect temperature. The trail begins at the bottom of the hill after you enter the Boykin Springs Rec area. Completely single track and with little elevation change, the trail traverses along a creek for the majority of the hike. There had been some recent rains which left the creek moderately full and flowing. Due to the rain portions of the trail in lower areas were soggy or had standing water. There were a few bridges that have been washed out by high waters, some appeared to be more recent than others. I would recommend the expectation of wet shoes...especially if you have young kids with you. The washed out bridges would make it difficult for some people, depending on their ability. The hike is absolutely worth the effort once you reach the incredibly photogenic sawmill. My biggest criticism regards the trash left at the sawmill by people who think its a good drinking spot.

It was a good hike. The saw mill is really spooky. I wouldn't joke out there by myself. Also, there isn't really a waterfall. I'm guessing what everyone is referring to as a "waterfall" is near the beginning of the hike there is a small spillover on the creek. Pretty disappointing for my 9 year old daughter who was expecting much more.

Nice out and back trail along a small stream. Easy walk with a lot of woods, tall forest trees and water beside the trail.

Located in Cassels-Boykin Park and easy to get too. Well worth the hike.

Was a fun trail with creeks all along the trail. Enjoyed getting in the cold water and washing off for the walk. End results was a spooky mill that would be awesome to walk to during halloween

Great trail, easy to follow. Beautiful landscape with a small creek bed. Sawmill was a unique thing to see, trail needs a little work though, one bridge was washed away but dried up making it not too hard to get across :

Advertised sawmill and waterfall were beyond disappointing.

In addition to the picturesque waterfall and abandoned sawmill, this trail keeps you entertained with a few creek crossings and (lovely) landscape changes. As of September 2015, I wouldn't take the Bouton Lake trail that splits to the west along the train grade when the Sawmill Trail forks to head toward the Old Aldridge Sawmill. It's pretty dense with downed trees and overgrown brush .5 miles down.

Well marked easy trail. Good first hike for my kids. They loved the creek and all the bridges and liked exploring the sawmill.

Lots of fun. Really enjoyed the creek with the small waterfalls. Would love to go back and go swimming! The abandoned sawmill is worth the walk!

This was my 2nd trail ever, with my 1st trail being a very easy one. Needless to say, this trail was just what I needed. Great scenery, not too tough, and elevation in a few areas. My partner and I made it to the saw mill, which was very cool to see. The graffiti didn't bother me at all. The trail markers were somewhat scarce as we got closer to the mill, but not enough to lose our way. I recommend it!

This is a good solid 5 for me. It was easy to moderate hiking, very peaceful with a meandering creek that like to gurgled at certain points. It has plenty of elevation to add to a decent workout. Large trees crossed the path at times and it added to the overall experience of hiking. The sawmill lays about 3 miles in from the start. It consist of three large buildings which looks like Spanish architect. There is a lot of graffiti and as horrible as it is, it lend to the timeliness of the building. Prior to getting to the mill, you will come to a Y, just take a right and you will come up on it. It is located Angelina National Forest that borders on

Pretty trail to old abandoned sawmill. It's rathering disheartening to finally get to the sawmill and find it covered in graffiti. I mean, really... what kind of person chooses to hike through nature carrying a Walmart bag of spray paint in order to vandalize their destination? And the signage is awful. I cannot understand a government who flies the First Lady back and forth to Hawaii, yet cannot afford $100 in signs.... The first part of trail is decently marked, but the farther back you get, the fewer the signs. It's like the trail marking person ran out of yellow construction paper squares or staples! No trail maps and no signage at sawmill giving history or what the buildings were used for... Some of the bridges are broken also. However, the creek is beautiful and clear and nature does not disappoint.

Very nice, enjoyable hike.

One of my favorite local trails. I always start at the Boykin Springs recreational area. There are several small water falls on this trail which makes it that much more enjoyable. This is not a flat trail so I usually use a trekking pole for stability.

This day hike was a last minuet decision for me today. I was looking for something not to technical and a little less lengthy. This trail was AWESOME! while it isn't the longest hike it more than compensates with the natural site seeing available along the trail, and the old sawmill at the end of the id say about 4 mile hike is pretty inspiring, i just wish the local trash would have left their vandalistic spray paintings off of the historical site. The Boykin Recreational Area at the trail head is also pretty great with non primitive camping throughout and a large tank for fishing, canoeing, and swimming. There is water located at with in the Rec Area but the hike is a really short relaxing one, two or three nalgenes will provide you with more than enough hydration. if your looking for a fu day hike I highly recommend.