The 25 weirdest attractions in San Antonio that are worth visiting

Frank's Hog Stand
1112 S. St. Mary’s St.
A remnant of the classic 1920s chain of Pig Stand restaurants, Frank’s Hog Stand reopened in 2010 and served all-American eats. The restaurant has since closed, but the building remains the last pig standing — even when man has left.

Nessie
Tom Slick Park, 7400 TX-151
You don't have to go all the way to Scotland to glimpse the Loch Ness Monster, because Nessie is also in residence at Tom Slick Park. Artist Elizabeth Carrington took inspiration from the park's namesake for the sculpture — Tom Slick was known for his passion for cryptozoology, and went on expeditions to investigate both Bigfoot and the Yeti in the '50s and early '60s.

’Johnny Loves Vivian’ bench
B. Naylor Morton Research and Collections Center, Witte Museum, 3737 Broadway, (210) 357-1900, wittemuseum.org
Legend has it, American music legend Johnny Cash carved "Johnny Loves Vivian" into the wood of this bench along the River Walk when he was stationed at Brooks Air Force Base in 1951. The message, of course, was in honor of his first wife, Vivian Liberto, who he met at a roller skating rink and dated for three weeks before shipping out for a three-year assignment in Germany. According to the Witte Museum, Cash asked Liberto if she visited the bench in letters he wrote to her. It currently resides at the Witte’s B. Naylor Morton Research and Collections Center. According to the museum, to visit the bench, visitors can ask at the Walker Admissions Desk.

The Ashes of the Alamo Defenders
San Fernando Cathedral, 115 Main Plaza, sfcathedral.org
After the Battle of the Alamo, the remains of the dead Texians were burned in three funeral pyres on the order of Antonio López de Santa Anna. A year later, the Texas leader Juan Seguin allegedly buried ashes from two of the pyres at San Fernando Cathedral. After remains were discovered near the cathedral’s altar during construction work in 1936, they were attributed to be the those of the Alamo Defenders and entombed in a marble coffin.

Grave of Pat the Horse
Cunningham Gate of Ft. Sam Houston, Corner of Cunningham Ave. and N. Pine St., history.army.mil/museums/fieldMuseums/FSHMuseum/index.html
Located on the northwest side of Ft. Sam Houston near the Westfort neighborhood is a single, large grave, where the beloved Pat the Horse is buried. Pat was a cavalry horse in the U.S. Army in the early 1900's. When the army decommissioned its cavalry, Pat was in his 20s and was set to be euthanized, but the soldiers at Ft. Sam Houston lobbied Washington for him to be spared. The request was approved and Pat spent his retirement at the fort. When Pat died at the ripe old age of 45 he was honored with a grave with his portrait on the headstone.

Miraflores Sculpture Garden
1234-1366 E. Hildebrand Ave.
This decaying wonder near Brackenridge Park is hidden behind a fence but still visible from Hildebrand, guarded by a beautiful gate titled “Monumento a la Ciudad de México.” Created by local physician and art collector Aureliano Urrutia, the green space is full of sculpture, tiled benches and fountains, all falling into graceful disrepair. The garden is now owned by the City of San Antonio and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as well as designated as a State Archaeological Landmark by the Texas Historical Commission.

Government Canyon Dinosaur Tracks
12861 Galm Road, (210) 688-9055, tpwd.texas.gov
Home to South Texas’ only known dinosaur tracks on public land, Government Canyon State Natural Area’s Joe Johnston Route was marked by prehistoric creatures from about 110 million years ago when San Antonio was the shoreline of the Gulf of Mexico. The 5-mile round trip takes hikers on a rugged trail to Marker #19 where two types of dinosaur tracks can be found, the three-tip theropod and the rounded sauropod print.

Donkey Lady Bridge
Applewhite Road over the Medina River
You can’t live in San Antonio long without hearing a version of the story of the Donkey Lady. The story goes something like this: In the 1950s, a young woman attempted to save her children from a house fire (that some say was lit by her husband) — but failed. The event left her horribly disfigured, with her fingers and toes melted together to create hoof-like nubs and her head warped into an elongated, donkey-like shape. Afterward, she was banished to live in the woods. Ever since, the Donkey Lady has roamed the woods of Bexar County, crying out for her children and generally pissed off. Want to meet her? It’s said if you stand on a stone bridge in the Medina River Greenway and call her name three times, she’ll appear.

World's Largest Virgin Mary Mosaic
1315 Guadalupe St.
Jesse Treviño's spectacular mural La Veladora of Our Lady of Guadalupe features a 3D votive candle (veladora) with an eternal flame facing Guadalupe Street. Intended to serve as a beacon for the neighborhood, this mixed media mural is truly magnificent, and is even said to be the world's largest Virgin Mary mosaic.

World’s Largest Cowboy Boots
North Star Mall, 7400 San Pedro Ave.
Native San Antonians might not pay any attention to the giant cowboy boots in front of North Star Mall, but there's more to them than you'd think. Made by the larger-than-life artist Bob "Daddy-O" Wade, these boots were installed at North Star in 1979 and officially made it into the Guinness Book of World Records as the World's Largest Cowboy Boots four decades later.

Robber Baron Cave
115 Camellia Way, tcmacaves.org/preserves/robberbaron
A hidden piece of San Antonio history is tucked away near Alamo Heights: the Robber Baron Cave. A trendy tourist attraction in the 1920s, the cave became subject to vandalization and other damage as its popularity — and the city's population — grew. Acquired by the Texas Cave Management Association in 1995, Robber Baron Cave was turned into a preserve to protect its unique geology and ecology, and the cave was closed to regular visitation, so you can’t easily get an inside look beyond looking at historic photographs. Every once in a while TCMA offers a guided tour, but there hasn't been one since 2019. However, you can visit the sinkhole where the cave is located and see the entrance.

The Picasso Benches
Blue Star Arts Complex, 1414 S. Alamo St.
Blue Star has plenty to offer — from art galleries and boutiques to bars and coffee shops. Oh, and some subtle badass Picasso benches. Right near the entrance to the Blue Star Arts Complex, you’ll find beautiful detailed bus station benches that pay tribute to the famed cubist artist.

Bracken Cave
26101 FM 3009, tpwd.texas.gov
In the summer, you can find the largest colony of bats in the world right here in San Antonio. About 20 million Mexican free-tailed bats live at Bracken Cave from March to October, making it one of the world’s largest concentrations of mammals. So many bats are found here because the cave is a maternity site for the species, so females gather here to give birth and rear their young.

Grotto
1277 Camden St.
Located at a bend in the San Antonio River between the Camden and Newell Street Bridges, this three-story sculpture made by Carlos Cortés is one of the most popular public art projects on the River Walk's Museum Reach.

The Ghost Tracks
2902 Shane Road
You can’t talk about urban legends in San Antonio without covering the Ghost Tracks. This long-dispelled myth is still a local favorite, and has repeatedly been voted Best Urban Legend in the Current’s Best of San Antonio poll. As the story goes, you can park your car at this spot on the train tracks and get “pushed” forward by some spectral helpers. As a bonus, if you put flour on the back of your trunk, you might even see their little handprints. The push purportedly comes from wee ghosts of children who met an untimely end in the early 1900s when a train rammed into a bus at the location. However, in 2003, archivist Matt De Waelsche traced the story's origin to a 1938 bus accident in Salt Lake City, Utah. Even worse, the tracks were "exorcized," if you will, by a construction project. When Union Pacific added a second track to the intersection, they levelled out the elevation, removing the downward slant that vehicles would gently roll down when they were supposedly being "pushed" by the ghosts. Turns out it was just a trick of physics the whole time.

Buckhorn Saloon and Museum
318 E. Houston St., (210) 247-4000, buckhornmuseum.com
Started in the 1880s and moved from the Lone Star Brewery to its current downtown location, the Buckhorn Saloon and Museum includes multiple collections, including “The Carnival of Curiosities” and “The American Sideshow.” The attraction is known for its copious taxidermy, a collection that’s as large as it is partly because the saloon’s original proprietors accepted horns, antlers and even rattlesnake rattles in exchange for drinks.

Giant Stag Made of Junk
4203 Loring Park, Converse
Built from various rusted metal parts — fenders and typewriters included — this Florentino Narcis creation stands 40 feet tall in the midst of a neighborhood in Converse.

Junk Yard Dog
1201 Somerset Road
This canny canine is made by the same artist as the giant cowboy boots which sit outside of North Star Mall. Bob "Daddy-O" Wade, who passed away in late 2019, built the pup out of cars in his junk yard: a 1966 Plymouth Fury, a Volkswagen Beetle and the hood of a Cadillac.

Cool Crest Miniature Golf
1402 Fredericksburg Road, (210) 732-0222, coolcrestgolf.com
Considered by some to be the oldest still-operating miniature golf course in the U.S., this amazing piece of Art Deco-style Americana is also home to the Metzger Biergarten, a bar and gathering place on the spot of the former home of Cool Crest's founders.

Phil Hardberger Park Land Bridge
8400 N.W. Military Highway or 13203 Blanco Road, (210) 207-7275, sanantonio.gov
The 150-foot long land bridge connecting Phil Hardberger Park from east to west opened December 2020 and is the first in the world designed for safe passage for both people and wildlife. Deer, raccoons, coyotes and humans can stroll across what is deemed the largest wildlife crossing in the U.S. to date. The land bridge can be reached via the park’s Northwest Military or Blanco Road entrances.