Pedernales Falls State Park

Several summers ago, the fam did what we called a “Tour of Texas Waterholes” that included Pedernales Falls State Park. At that time, Texas was in a drought (which appears to be a yearly state of affairs, at least since I’ve become a citizen of the great state of Texas). At that time, PFSP was more exposed rock than falling water, which was fine by us because we enjoyed bouldering what would normally be unseen because it would be under the water of the river (queue precious yesteryear photos of The Man, The Manling and Kinder Frau – awwww). 

We returned to Pedernales Falls State Park in early June 2018, excited to see what it looked like under normal conditions. After mapping a good route for a mid-morning hike on the w i d e s t trails with the gracious staff at the HQ, I turned the Trails Map over to see how far we would actually be hiking that morning. My breath caught as I stared down at my arch-nemesis – the dreaded rattlesnake – in clip art form. I took a deep, cleansing breath and then looked back at the staff member. I swallowed probably louder than I intended before I asked, “Do you have a lot of rattlesnakes in the park?”*

Yes, she answered.

And then continued with the spiel that obviously must be learned verbatim in order to pass State Park Staff School – But they won’t bother you unless you step on them, or scare them, or get too close to them. Just stay out of the tall grass and don’t climb any fallen branches and you should be fine. They are more scared of you than you are of them.

Here’s the thing…They don’t know how scared I am of THEM, so how do we actually KNOW who is the scaredest of whom?

I took another cleansing breath, verified that the trails we were going to hike were w i d e (“A car can drive down them, ma’am.”), and that they would definitely lead us on a scenic route to the falls so that The Manling could do some fishing. We returned to the Tiny Toyota Tardis (because the Yaris is bigger on the inside) and drove to the far end of PFSP to park, where we then found the dirt road that lead us to the Hackenburg Loop Trail, which ends on the beach of the falls just below the Pedernales Falls Overlook.  Except it didn’t. Not on the day we were there. I don’t think.

Here’s what happened. The Manling (whom I’d like to point out is an Eagle Scout and, as such, is somewhat knowledgable of the outdoors, including hiking and orienteering) took the lead on the trail because 1) I am the only other person, and 2) I would be useless as our trail guide since my motto is Don’t touch anything green! and I may be overly paranoid about snakes. The dirt road from the parking lot was wide – YAY! – so I felt somewhat confident at this point that this would be a positive experience, meaning I wouldn’t inadvertently step on my biggest fear because we were on a wide path and we could walk down the middle of it without some rattler being scared by us, or us by it. The dirt road led to what was clearly the Hackenburg Loop Trail, exactly as described by the helpful park staff. Score! It consisted of two dirt tire tracks with grass growing between and on either side, which was a little more unnerving, but still doable. (I was going to be so proud of myself for finishing this trail like a boss!) The Manling and I talked off and on, mostly of his love of the outdoors as this trail reminded him of Philmont, or that field to the right reminded him of such-and-such campout where Mr. So-and-So said this and…just good, naturally flowing Mama-Manling convo. Eventually the tire track path became a single dirt trail with unmown grass growing on each side. My breathing quickened, but The Manling kept walking and talking, unfazed by the change, so I followed, loosely keeping my cool. As The Manling shared memories, his Mama desperately tried to concentrate more on his words than the fact that her breathing was becoming more labored.

I won’t make you finish that trail with us, as I’m not sure we were on the actual trail a few minutes later. Instead of ending at the beach and strolling beside the river to the falls like the park staff said, we found ourselves in the thick of the woods, uncertain which way to go, retracing our steps, squeezing through tall, tight boulders with our backpacks on, stepping on fallen branches, and basically disregarding the verbatim instructions I mentioned earlier that I assume they memorize regarding snakes in State Park Staff School in our attempt to make it back to some semblance of a genuine trail – ANY genuine trail! – because I think we were on a game trail or a rogue trail some rule breakers made that was about as wide as my size 9 foot and I kind of started to mildly hyperventilate which concerned The Manling because there was no way he could pack me outta there. I kept it together only because I was absolutely certain that if I passed out all the snakes would slither from their hidey-holes en masse to crawl all over my fallen body which would definitely put a damper on my enthusiasm for hiking, Pedernales Falls, state parking, and nature in general.

Honestly, I don’t remember much toward the end of that, ahem, “adventure” other than I genuinely felt like the most thankful woman on the planet when the trail widened and we eventually found ourselves at the TOP of the Pedernales Falls Overlook – which is the absolute opposite of where the Hackenburg Loop Trail leads. And just because I want to share the degree to which I was fouling the air with my presence after the aforementioned midday “trail” hike, here is the haggard, sweaty pic I snapped to send to The Man:

Thankful to have the hike in the past, I plopped down on the stairs that lead to the bench at the overlook (above pic) to wait out my wobbly legs, cool my jets and basically get my stuff together while The Manling plodded down the masterfully crafted stairs to Pedernales Falls below to go fishing. (Seriously, these are excellent natural stairs! I even went down them SOLO.)

Not many fish were caught by any of the anglers trying their luck in the full sun of Pedernales Falls that day, but from my shaded perch atop the overlook, I got my extrovert on and met some truly interesting people. One person in particular that I continue to think about is the older lady who wore a doggie backpack and her little white doggy companion. As I sat exhausted from my ordeal, she stood at the overlook, chatting with a young family. When the young family headed down the stairs to the falls, she turned her attention on me – sitting on the stairs, looking like I do in the above pic. I shared my harrowing experience with her, and what The Manling and I are doing this year (99 State Parks. 12 Month State Park Pass. 1 Awesome Adventure!) before I asked what brought her to PFSP that day. Through the course of our conversation, I learned that her husband used to work at PFSP. He had retired because of an illness, so PFSP was the last place he worked. The park was super special to her and she wanted to spend the day enjoying the park with her dog like she used to do with her husband. Before he became sick. With cancer. And sadly passed away. That particular day was their anniversary – some huge milestone anniversary, too, like 50 years or something – and being at PFSP was the closest she could come to spending time with her beloved husband on their special day.

Yeah, it hit me square in the feels, too. Still does just writing about it, so let’s take a moment to collect our feels with a rousing game of Where’s Waldo? because The Manling is in every single one of these pics taken from my perch at the Pedernales Falls Overlook.

I met quite a handful of interesting people while The Manling tried his hand at fishing spot after spot at the dehydrated falls, mostly by offering to take group photos of people wanting pics with the above views as their background. (You can meet a lot of people that way!)

Why We Love Pedernales Falls State Park

1. Pedernales River. The park sits on a few miles of the Pedernales River, which offers opportunities to fish, swim, kayak, tube or conoe – any of which would fit the bill on a hot, Texas summer day. There are restrictions on which activities can be enjoyed where, so check with the park staff before taking to the river with your wet activity of choice.
2. Pedernales Falls. We’ve yet to see the falls in all of their glory, but we don’t really mind. The rock that the diminished water supply exposes is fun to boulder! So either way, the falls rock. (Get it? R O C K? Because they’re made of r o c k?)
3. Exploring. PFSP offers a host of trails to choose from, including a whopping 10 miles for use on horseback. (NOTE: At the time of this publication, no outfitters were on-site from which to rent said horse, but if you have your own rideable pet, this would be awesome!) And let ours be a cautionary tale – take the trail map with you.
4. River bed. As previously stated, we’ve never been there when the river had “volume,” but that fact doesn’t diminish the PFSP experience. The exposed river bed is EXCELLENT for exploring. Seriously! Literally everyone that I met headed up the exposed river bed on an adventure. It’s all smooth rock, not mud. And remember to take water. This is a full sun activity.
5. Parking Lot. This may very well be the first SP that we have visited that offered some shaded parking spots in any parking lot. It is such a colossal blessing when it’s a thousand degrees to have your car parked in the shade of a tree. It makes a difference. Plus…and this is a biggie…PFSP has vending machines in the parking lot to the falls! The Manling and I LOVED that they offered cold drinks for the visitors that maybe underestimated their hydration needs! Kudos, PFSP, for anticipating and meeting the need! (That said, geez, don’t rely on that as your sole means of intake. It’s hot as Hades in Texas. Have a well-stocked cooler of water in your car and use this as a last resort.)

Must Do’s

• Hike. Talk with Park Staff at the HQ and map out your hike with them. They love their park and want you to have an excellent time visiting it. And echoing what I said above regarding exploring, take the trail map with you. Trust me.
• Fish. The Park Staff were able to point out some great areas to drop a line. Talk to them as you’re registering your vehicle to get the inside scoop on where the fish are biting. (The Manling said the falls were great for carp and I can verify because I saw two men catch some whoppers from my perch on the overlook. Plus the water seems pretty clear there.)
• Swim. Look, they have signage for a reason. Don’t swim except in the designated areas. It might seem too hot to be a reasonable request, but if you need to cool off, go to the designated places. You can swim til your heart’s content in those areas. Bad things tend to happen when people go rogue. Don’t be a rogue. Be a rule follower.

We’d love to hear about your experiences at Pedernales Falls State Park! Please share your thoughts on this righteous river region in the comments.

*In all natural areas, you are a guest. Educate yourself on what lives in the areas before your visits, always talk to the Park Rangers upon arrival and take precautions so that your experiences end as positively as ours.