River Bend Nature Center — Attraction in Wichita Falls

It was a warm spring afternoon when Debra convinced Kenny to take a stroll through River Bend Nature Center. “It’ll be relaxing,” she promised, dragging him past the hummingbird feeders and down the butterfly trail. Kenny, always more comfortable behind the wheel of his truck or under the hood, grumbled but followed, sipping from a to-go cup he claimed held sweet tea but probably didn’t.

The butterflies were out in full force—monarchs, swallowtails, and little white ones fluttering like confetti in the sun. Debra was delighted. Kenny, not so much. “They’re just bugs with good PR,” he muttered.

That’s when it happened.

A rogue butterfly—big, orange, and oddly aggressive—made a beeline straight for Kenny’s face. He swatted, stumbled, and let out a yell that echoed through the trees. “It’s in my ear! Debra, it’s in my ear!”

Visitors turned. Children pointed. Debra doubled over laughing.

Kenny, flailing wildly, tripped over a tree root and landed squarely in a patch of mulch, arms flung out like a fallen hero. The butterfly, victorious, fluttered off lazily as if it had done this before.

Back at the car, with a leaf in his hair and pride in tatters, Kenny vowed never to trust a nature trail again. Debra still tells the story—at every family gathering.

“Ask Kenny about the time he got jumped by a butterfly,” she’ll say, and Kenny just groans, knowing it’s a tale that’ll never,...

Dead in the winter, literally. We went in January and were surprised that even everything in the greenhouse was dormant; the trees had all lost their leaves with piles of dead leaves everywhere, the grasses and plants were all dead (and not cleaned up), etc. The only living thing was a holly-type of plant. We did get to see some very friendly prairie dogs with our guide Kevin (very informative) pick one up who loved to be scratched on her belly (see photo). We also got very close to a roadrunner. Other than the very small butterfly house with about 6 types of slow-flying butterflies (because of the cooler weather), not much to see. The inside insects, bones, fossils, turtles and snakes with guides were quite informative, and they had tables set up for kids to learn and make crafts. Very cool for rainy days, but I wouldn't want to pay full-price admission for that. They should consider charging half price in the winter months. We also walked the paved path which dead-ended at a stagnant "pond". Again, nothing to see but brown winter trees. Very small nature center but for only $5.00, what...

Visited with our 9 month old. It was extremely affordable and worth the money. The glass building was under construction but they’ve done a great job at modifying the exhibits. My husband and I enjoyed tapping into our inner kiddo and exploring with the microscopes! The bathrooms are extremely clean and all the enclosures were beautiful. The animals were out and about. The gentleman who helped us was very informative and walked us outside to see the pink bluebonnets which was so awesome! The nature walk is partially paved or you can go on the unpaved part. We stayed on the concrete and thought it was the perfect amount of walking and reading about animals. We discovered new bugs and learned things about animals we see every day. Ended with a trip to the gift shop for a cold Coke, tshirt, necklace, magnet, and stuffed animal for less than $70....