Colorado Bend State Park

On the final day of our Hill Country Trip, we rose early. We enjoyed a good breakfast at the hotel: eggs, sausage, biscuits, waffles, pastries, yogurt, and some pretty good coffee. Hampton puts out a pretty good spread.

We left the hotel about 7:00 and drove north on US 281 through Burnet and on to Lampasas. After a quick pit stop at McDonalds -- love their coffee -- we were back in the car and headed west on Highway 580, weaving our way towards Colorado Bend State Park. We had never been to this park before. It is rather remote and off the beaten path, roughly about halfway between San Saba and Lampasas. In addition to being rather remote, my Google maps showed the road leading to the park to be natural surface, so I had avoided going there. When we had a trailer, I did not want to drag it down a rough surface road. On this trip, though, we were pleasantly surprised to find paved road all the way to the park. The main park road is also paved.

Just after crossing the Colorado River, we came to the Bend General Store and turned onto County Road 442, which would take us to the park. Soon after, we crossed Cherokee Creek at a low water crossing. From there, it is a pleasant drive of less than 4 miles to the park boundary.

Low water crossing at Cherokee Creek

Bluebonnet covered hills on road to park

Park entrance

Our plan was to hike the trail to Gorman Falls (see park trail map). The trailhead is near the park entrance, but we wanted to see the entire park, so we drove all the way to the park headquarters and camping areas, which are located 6 miles in along the Colorado River. The speed limit in the park is 20 mph, so it takes a while to drive this distance and then return. But the park scenery is really pretty.

We found the headquarters closed, but used the self pay station located there. Since we have annual passes, entrance to all state parks is free to us. We then drove through the campgrounds and day use area. The opposite bank of the river is pretty rugged, and we found the river to be slow moving. A number of people were camped there, most in tents although we did see 2 small travel trailers. There are no hookups that I saw, and water was provided at communal spigots. If you want to camp there, be prepared to rough it a bit. I also did not see any showers, and the restrooms we used were composting. I do not believe trailer dump stations are available, either.

This photo was taken near the HQ. You can see the Colorado River just beyond the grassy area. It runs along the base of the hills.

A closer view of the river. Notice how still it is.

Park HQ. What a lovely old tree!

I took this shot from a high point along the road about a mile or more from the park HQ. In the very center of the photo is a small gap where the river courses its way through the hilly countryside. Click to enlarge.

After checking out the facilities along the river, we retraced our route back to the Gorman Falls Trailhead near the park entrance. Another composting toilet is located at the trailhead. We put on our hiking gear, grabbed our hiking poles, and headed to the falls.

Gorman Falls Trailhead

Texas cannot boast of many waterfalls, so a trip to see the cascading falls at Colorado Bend State Park is a worthwhile adventure. To get to the falls requires a 3 mile round-trip hike over some rough and rocky trails, and there is a bit of a descent as you approach the falls. The falls themselves are very fragile, so they are off limits to swimming. Actually, the falls are considered a living waterfall, with a buildup of travertine that has taken ages to accumulate. I don't know much about such things, so if you are interested, please investigate online. The pictures you find online will also be much better than mine below.

We had considered hiking a second trail, the Slide Trail, which would take us to an overlook over the Colorado River, but as we neared the end of the Gorman Falls trail, we were just too tired. The trail is hard on your feet, as it is covered with rocks. I think the locals go out at night and sharpen to rocks for all the tourists. My feet would ache for the next couple of days as a result. Much of the trail is in the open sun, so on a hot summer day, it can be a hot hike. In fact, on this particular day, our temps reached into the 90s, so I was glad we got such an early start.

Slide Trail junction. Our trail goes right. Note all the rocks and how open it is.

There are wooded areas along the trail. The rocks are almost always there, though. All the rocks and roots make progress a bit slow.

Near the end of the trail, you can begin to hear the falls perhaps as much as a quarter of a mile before you get there. As you near the falls, you then notice poles embedded in the rock with connecting cables. These cables help on the steep descent. Donna is a bit skittish about steep trails and such, but she did a fine job on this day. I think I married a mountain goat!

Descent along steep trail with cables for assistance.

I can't really describe the falls. They cover a wide area, a cascade really, and the whole area is very shady. As a result, I had difficulty getting good pictures. If I got too close, the spray messed up my lens, so I ended up taking my photos from a ways back. We also spotted a true waterfall higher up the bluff, but it was difficult to view through the plant growth. I would encourage you to go online to get better pictures. It's really a lovely area, and I'm so glad we took the time and effort to visit it.

This was my first glimpse of the cascade. It is in the very center of the picture, framed by the small trees. The contrast of light and shadow makes things hard to see. Notice we are still descending as I snapped this shot.

This is a better picture, and it shows that the falls are really like a grotto, with sheets of water cascading down the rock surface.

This may be my best picture of the falls.

This zoomed-in photo shows the buildup that has occurred over years.

This is the upper part of the falls. I don't know if all if the falls are together, or perhaps more water was running during our visit because of recent rains.

The falls are next to the Colorado River. This photo is looking upriver.

At the end of our visit, we got to climb back up using the cables. It is not that steep of a descent, but it is all rock, so it can be very slippery. Good footholds can be far apart, and Donna had a bit of trouble stretching from one foothold to another.

Photo of another stretch of the cables.

Donna was glad to get away from those cables . . . and so was I!

I enjoyed seeing these yellow flowers  among the cacti and rocks. This is typical of the Hill Country.

The overall hike was not long, but it did wear us out. Back at the car, we changed into clean clothes and were delighted to get the A/C going.

We left the park and headed home, passing first through San Saba and then Brady. We stopped at a Mexican restaurant in Brady and had a late lunch (it wasn't very good, but I don't think we've ever had a good meal in Brady), then continued on home, arriving about 4 or 5.

We really enjoyed our trip, and are already planning our next venture.