A scenic stop on the way from Smithville to Flower Mound.
It was a quick week at my house in Smithville. We came, I worked, we left. On May 30, 2020 we were on our way to Dallas. A short pit stop was made in Belton to grab lunch with Kaylee’s grandparents (on her mother’s side) then it was back on the road.
I had forgotten about Mother Neff several times over the short week we spent in Smithville. We made the reservations when we decided which day we would be transitioning from Austin to Dallas since Mother Neff isn’t too far out of the way in between Temple and Waco. May 30 was the day we went.
It is a smaller park overall; not the smallest, but still small. A good portion of the land around the southern end of Mother Neff State Park is owned by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. The intent was to have the be part of Mother Neff and expand the park’s trail system. That plan has been put on hold due to flood damage and development in the works. It may be a smaller park, but it feels like it’s got some size to it.
For those who haven’t been to the Texas Hill Country, it is limestone cliffs, clear spring water, and cedar trees everywhere. Mother Neff resides in the northern part of the Hill Country, and Austinites, I’m sure, would argue that that far north is not Hill Country territory.
Driving in, we hadn’t fully developed a plan of action for the park. Typically we look at the trails map the night before to have an outline of the spots we wanted to see and the trails we wanted to walk. Our Mother Neff itinerary was a little spotty, so we decided to take it front to back (which is north to south from the headquarters). The first trail we came upon was a loop that grazed the park boundary and descended as you walk away from the trailhead. Close to the top was an overlook area that is one of the highest spots in the park. It had a single picnic table and a pergola with virtually no view of what was below. You could see for distance, but the closer areas were obstructed by the cedars. Me being me, decided it would be a great idea to climb on top of the pergola to capture the view. So I did. And it was hard. But I did it. And got the pictures.
The rest of the trail was nice hill country scenery speckled with Texas summer wildflowers and the occasional bee (save the bees) pollinating. This trail connected up to another trail that led us to a small pond. Wasn’t much of a sight to see, we have seen ponds before, so Kaylee took a few pictures then we were on our way back to the car so we could see the next item on our list.
Coincidentally (not really since they are a theme within the state parks), a troop of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) was stationed in the park before it was a park back in the 1930s. The CCC left behind different things as they did in many other Texas State Parks. The first of which we saw was a bell that the CCC used to signal mealtimes, meetings, and even severe weather hitting the area. It was an interesting piece of history that I nearly broke. Not really, but I did try to test it out and it gave a small lurch that made my heart lurch as well.
We traveled further south in the park and further away from the park headquarters. This is where Mother Neff’s size gets blurred by a series of trails through the limestone bluffs and spring fed creeks. The trails we took led us to many different sites within the park all in one swoop. The first attraction on those trails was a pool that the CCC had dammed up on a creek. The water was crystal clear as it is pretty much anywhere you go in the hill country. We continued down a trail that brought us to the top of a bluff and along the edge as it dropped off down into the creek bottom below on one side. We took a slight detour to a rock we thought would be a great place to stop and take ring pictures. Little did we know until after we had left that rock that there was an easier accessible spot just like it directly off of the trail not 25 yards ahead. So we had a small photo session there for ourselves and our Aggie Rings then continued on our way. The trail on the top of the bluff hit another CCC creation, this time a fire tower on a high spot made from rocks that are found in the area. The fire tower rose about 20 feet off the ground and had a winding stone staircase on the outside to the top. The view was great of the treetops and surrounding area. I once again decided that my life was just a little too boring, so I hopped up on the edge of the fire tower to try and get a better view without falling to my death. Kaylee handed me the camera and I did my best to take some quality shots. After climbing down the fire tower and walking further along the trail, we saw more evidence the CCC left behind in the form of a rock table. We walked down to the bottom of the bluff into the creek, crossed a bridge (Kaylee: “BRIDGE!”), and ended up at a cave. This was the last thing we needed to see to complete our exploration of Mother Neff State Park. The cave was once inhabited by the Tonkawa indian tribe over 200 years ago and let me tell you, it wasn’t the best way to live. Having a small limestone cliff as a shelter wouldn’t do you much good for rain coverage or the bitter winter cold. We patiently waited our turn to see the cave in all of its glory since there was a group relaxing in it when we showed up. Kaylee got some pictures and that was a wrap on Mother Neff.
We knew it was going to be a quick trip for this park since we were coming through on our way up the I-35 corridor. We were both glad it was a smaller park with shorter trails, but also thankful that it had a lot to offer for its size. We enjoyed our time there, although short. We are to be up here in Flower Mound for another short week then it’s back to Smithville for a few more days. On the last day of May, which is actually the day after Mother Neff, we are headed to a park we have had our eyes on since this dream of ours started. Dinosaur Valley is a fan favorite when it comes to Texas State Parks and we’re excited to get to enjoy it together. Oh and not to mention the rest of the Cogbill’s will be joining us as well. Our first state park where it’s not just Kaylee and myself. Read all about it next time!
P.S. Don’t forget to look at the photo galleries! We always put a few pictures from our arsenal in each post, but they don’t do justice to what Kaylee cooks up for y’all each trip. Go check them out and see this girl’s talent!
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