Spring to Falls

At Colorado Bend State Park Texas, there is a constant spring that flows from the base of a limestone cliff, forms a creek which flows through the park, and eventually falls over another cliff and then down into the Colorado River. On Sunday afternoon I decided to hike up to the source of the spring, and then follow it down to the bottom of the falls. From the parking area, this was about 3 hours of hiking, climbing, and shooting photos.

Once you make it to the trailhead for the Gorman Spring Trail, it is a half-mile hike along the creek up to the spring. The spring emerges from the rock into a shallow pool that feeds the creek. The remains of an old pump and some pipe are still present, left over from when the park was a private ranch. The photo below was taken from just above the spring and shows the pool and the creek flowing into the distance.

Walking back down the shady trail along the creek, you might spot some wildlife as this is a prime source of water in the park. I mainly saw birds and fish on this hike, but on previous hikes have seen other animals. One of the fish that lives in the creek is the Guadalupe Bass, a rare fish which only lives in creeks and rivers in Texas. They are relatively well protected in this creek as it is isolated from the river by the falls and there is no fishing allowed in the creek. I did see a water moccasin snake along the creek, which would be a concern for the fish.

The photo below shows one of the two crossings along the creek where one must navigate some stepping stones to continue up the trail. The other option is to just walk through the creek and get your shoes soaked, but it is more fun to risk slipping and falling on the wobbly stepping stones.

Once I was back down to the trailhead, it was a short rocky hike over to the Gorman Fall trail which climbs down to the bottom of the falls and the river. I think this trail travels nearly as much distance vertically as it does horizontally so you have to do some climbing. When you get to the steepest part of the descent, there is a cable fence to hold onto as you make your way down the slippery rock face. This trail is not for people with mobility issues, but a middle-aged man with a 40 pound camera backpack can generally make it down and back up without too much trouble. The next photo looks down the trail with the cable fence. It’s steeper than it looks.

About halfway down this descent you may catch sight of the top of the falls. It is much easier to see in the winter months when the foliage is barren as in the photo. You can see a guard rail or fence at the top in the photo below. There is no publicly accessible viewpoint at the top of the falls, though perhaps there used to be until that one guy did something stupid.

Proceeding down the steep and slippery rock face, you eventually come to the base of the falls. I’ve been to this waterfall on days when it was barely trickling, but it was flowing nicely on this day. The waterfall is quite shrouded in trees and brush though so it is hard to get one big view or photo. I climbed up into an area to get a partially unobstructed view of the water and get a photo of the bottom part of the falls. The spring water slowly leaves deposits that create interesting rock formations behind the falls and I think it makes an interesting photograph. I sure would love to trim that big branch out of the way.

Instead of trying to get the entire scene in the shot, I decided to try to take some photos of different features in the falls. The running water does form some interesting looking rocks. The one on the right below reminds me of the monster from Alien.

From the base of the falls there is a short creek that dumps the spring water into the Colorado River that then flows down through Austin if it can make it past half a dozen dams. Not exactly Niagara Falls, but it’s what passes for a waterfall in these parts. I made my way back up the cliffside and up the rocky, stumbly trail to the parking lot a few minutes before sunset. It takes me about an hour and half to drive out to this park, but I alway enjoy being there.

49 thoughts on “Spring to Falls”

  1. Wow, a 40 lb pack! You are dedicated. Perhaps you can fit a chainsaw into your pack, next time, and take care of that tree branch. What’s an extra 10 or so lbs?

    I love the photos. It may not be Niagara Falls, but it’s still beautiful. More isn’t always better, even with waterfalls.

    Liked by 2 people

            23. It’s hard for me to keep a straight face, doolally! One ballooon?? Only one? And oooh yes, it’s so hard to keep up. Let me help you. I gave you gold stars for your clever title. I get told that it’s nice to be “deservedly appreciated”…. Tippy gives you gold stars and you thank him AND give him gold stars in return, not one gold star, but gold starS. While I get one, solitary, lonely red balloon. Does that help explain it now? Do you see a problem there? 😜

              Liked by 1 person

  3. Wonderful shots of the Falls, makes me want warm weather, so we can go back to the Falls here.
    Your pictures reminds me of the Bridal Veil Falls in the Poconos.
    I wouldn’t make across slippery rocks with 40 pounds on my back. Glad you were agile enough. 🙂
    Is this where we came on our first trip to Texas? I can’t keep all the parks straight. LOL!

    Liked by 2 people

      1. I thought it was, but I knew we didn’t see the falls. I remember now, you mentioning the falls but you said about the climb. Considering that I still had a goose egg on my head from falling at the airport, I was more leery of trying that trail. An easy trail sounded more relaxing. Maybe next time.

        Liked by 1 person

  5. The title is nice, and at least you didn’t add, “And Making a Splash”! I always enjoy hiking about preserves and state forests. Although I will admit I am not carrying 40 lbs. and certainly no tripod. But the occasional monopod can come in handy, as does the pack for a resting place to place the camera and lens. Nice photos, Jason.

    Liked by 1 person

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