Monday, July 20, 2015

#kevsTexasswimmingholeTour

Last year after leaving Texas and having swam in multiple amazing swimming holes, I came across a list of Texas' top 10 swimming holes. Some I'd already been to, but there were plenty I'd never heard of. So in May of this year, my first project was to tour the finer Texas swimming holes.
I altered these maps & used them as a road map
 

1st stop was the San Solomon pool at Balmorhea State Park - spring fed pool with catfish, turtles, & a high dive

the long drive south to Big Bend National Park

inside Big Bend, just a few feet from the Rio Grande & 'ole Mexico...

lies an abandoned hot springs that really hit the spot. with a swim in the Rio, we're up to 3 holes.
sunrise in Big Bend National Park

Ingram Dam makes a semi natural water slide
the River Rat rides again _ spot #4
Schumacher Crossing - picturesque series of waterfalls #5
popped the river rat at Hunt Crossing (#6)
the good stuff above the dam is private property... Wagon Wheel Crossing (#7)
too shallow to swim - The Flats (#8)
many pools up on top of Enchanted Rock (#9)

The Slab had lots of deeper channels in it. (#10)
broader view of the main cliff at Devil's Waterhole and some locals taking the plunge (#11)
 
Spicewood Springs in Colorado Bend State Park (#12)
I show up in Lampasas excited to swim in the historic Hancock Pool - but I find it closed for a wedding

I was so pissed that I jumped in Sulphur Creek (#13)
but as luck would have it, I spotted the original pool along the creek as I was drying off (#14)
there was a fence all around it, but I saw a way in and ran up the stairs on the left and leapt off

after skating the Marble Falls skatepark, I skated down to the lake & jumped in (#15)

the fence was down as the Barton pool staff was preparing for a flood
Initially I went to the other bank of the spillway and swam, then snuck into the pool area and jumped in. And I'm glad I did because while I was there the far end of the pool started to flood and the closed it down and it was closed for the rest of my time in the area. (#16 & #17)
  
off the top turnbuckle into Jacob's Well (#18)
the BlueHole in Wimberly where you can climb the leaning trees and jump in (#19)
wanted to swim in Canyon Lake, but settled for this section of the Guadalupe River below the dam (#20)

the slow tubing section of the Guadalupe River (#21)

the tube chute on the Comal River in New Braunfels (#22)

where the tube chute empties back into the Comal
back on the Guadalupe near Boerne with James Hardy & Vader (#23)

fun spot of the San Marcos river (#24)
Pedernales Falls State Park where the swimming hole scene in Boyhood was filmed (#25)
the spring fed pool at Krause Springs (#26)

I was entertained by slack liners over the main swimming hole (#27)

they were filming a commercial for HP
Upper McKinney Falls (#28)

further down river - Lower McKinney Falls (#29)

Bull Creek (#30)
looking back at Hippie Hollow at a very low Travis Lake (#31)
Sculpture Falls in the green belt (#32) on a cool morning
inside the grotto at Hamilton Pool (#33)

the falls at Hamilton was really kicking

the Pedernales River inside Riemers Ranch (#34)
end of the trip at Georgetown's version of their Blue Hole (#35)

   35 swimming holes in 2 weeks. lots of rain. lots of good times.

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