Mistakes to Avoid When Hiking to Colorado Bend Gorman Falls

Disclaimer: This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission from the discount codes used or when a link/ad is clicked. All purchases made will come at no extra cost to you, and I only include products and services that I have personally used and would recommend. Also, Two Worlds Treasures is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associate Programs. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Don’t get confused with the name, because Colorado Bend with its famous Gorman Falls is not in Colorado. It’s in Bend, Texas, southeast of San Saba and west of Lampasas in the central Texas.

I first heard about Colorado Bend and Gorman Falls from a lady at the store where I volunteered every Monday. She told me about hiking to this beautiful waterfalls and kayaking on the river, the Colorado river. I went online and told my husband that we should check this park out.

That’s where we went for our first hiking during one Spring Break in the Texas Hill Country. If you do not know, Texas State Parks in the Hill Country are one of the best places to go for Spring Break in a budget, especially if you love water activities. Colorado Bend was about 1,5  hours from the Lady Bird Johnson Municipal Park in Fredericksburg where we stayed for the trip. Our main goal in the park was to hike to Gorman Falls and when we had time and energy, tried to do one or two more trails.

When we got to Colorado Bend State Park, we saw the sign to Gorman Falls not long after the entrance but didn’t see the headquarters. Well, apparently it was all the way to the end of the park, where they had their main camping area. It was 6 miles pass the entrance and felt forever to get there with the park speed limit.

Hiking in Colorado Bend – mistakes we made

After we got the permit, we drove back toward the entrance and when looking at the trail map, I offered to check the Dogleg Canyon Trail that sounded interesting: Enjoy views of this hidden gem’s cliff walls and canyon rim. It was also one of the points of interest at the park and it said on the trail map ‘enjoy this hidden canyon view that feeds the Colorado River. Cliff walls and interesting rock outcroppings make this a unique destination’. I thought we could hike there for a lunch break, and went back to the car to continue to Gorman Falls Trail by the entrance.

Bear in mind, I was a beginner hiker at that time and much younger. My husband and son were in the Cub Scout. Also, I was the one who read the map because my husband was concentrated driving. I thought we could handle the trails easily, which was a mistake.

So, we started from Cedar Chopper Loop and hiked for 0.8 mi (difficulty: moderate). This loop winds through cedar trees brakes on relatively flat terrain but rocky almost all the way. Then we turned east to Dogleg Canyon Trail which was also rocky. After hiking for about an hour, we found the rim and a quite big basin where we took out our sandwiches for lunch and let our son played a bit along the rim.

After lunch we continued and saw a couple of houses in a distance. I didn’t know why, but I assumed we would see the river soon. Another mistake. You must learned about the trails before you leave for the trip.

But still, we had not seen the water yet. Then the trail started to change downhill and it felt easy on our already tired legs. At the end of trail (1.3 mi, difficulty: challenging) we hit River Trail and finally saw the river! When we looked back to where we came, we decided not to go back. We were too tired to climbed up the trail. Besides, the River Trail connected to other trails that will take us to Gorman Falls. Yay!

River Trail was an easy hike (1.1 mi, difficulty: easy. We started from the middle). It was flat and the trees canopied the trail along the river. A beautiful hiked along the river.

At the end of trail we turned to Old Gorman Road Trail (0.1 mi, difficulty: easy. Note: they said it is easy if you go down the hill with your bike, but we had to go up on our feet and were pretty tired. It was not easy!). The trail lingered to Gorman Falls Trail and we added another 0.3 mi to the falls (difficulty: challenging).

Before we turned to this point, my husband decided to turn around to pick up the car. We didn’t know how hard the trail was and how many more minutes for us to get there with our tired legs. I offered to get a ride from the people whose going toward the headquarters, but my husband didn’t think it’s a good idea.

Colorado Bend: Gorman Falls

I tell you what. Even it was only 0.3 mi from where we started, it was pretty hard. It was rocky and at the end of trail it was steep, so they put handrail to help people walked easier down to the viewing area. I didn’t take any pictures from the steep part because I had to make sure I made it safely to the bottom.

We finally arrived at the bottom. The falls were beautiful and we spent almost 20 minutes there.

First thing I wanted to do was to dip my feet in the water but it’s prohibited. But still, there were people crossed the line and climbed to the falls, both adults and kids. My son said they couldn’t read. I guess it’s because no rangers on duty there. Rules are for others, not me.

• 

• 

Going back was harder. I think my knee touched my chest several times when climbing up from the viewing area. After that the trail was going up all the way to the parking. We were so tired and asked people we met at the trail how far it was to the parking and they said ‘about 45 minutes, about 30 minutes, no it’s not, it’s less than that. You can do it.’ They didn’t know we started hiking since 11.30 a.m. and it was 2.30 p.m. already. There was a nice couple who filled up our water bottle that was pretty low on our way to the parking lot.

Finally, we saw the top of the cars and heard people talking. It’s a parking lot! What a relieve to see my husband with cold water in both hands for us. Apparently, he was just arrived, too. His hiked back to the car was another story.

Here’s Colorado Bend State Park trails map and you can see the hike we did on our visit. When you plan a trip to Gorman Falls, stick to Gorman Falls Trail. Don’t repeat our mistakes, unless you are an avid hiker.

Colorado Bend: Tips for hiking to Gorman Falls

• Bring plenty of water.
• Wear appropriate hiking or walking shoes. The ground was rocky and it’s pretty steep at the end. I saw several girls wearing strap sandals and boys in their flip-flops. Leave them at home if you love your feet.
• Bring snacks.
• You are not allowed to climb to the falls. If accident happened and causes the park closing the trail, it’s a bummer for the rests of us who respect the rules.
• Gorman Falls Trail is 1.5 mi one way with challenging difficulty. It also has little shade, so take a rest when you need one. Know your limit.
• Use your Texas State Park pass or get one if you plan to go to other state parks a lot during the year.

Other things to do at Colorado Bend State Park

• Swimming at Spicewood Springs, one of the best swimming holes in the Hill Country. You are allowed swimming in the river, too. No lifeguards on duty, swim at your own risk.
• Mountain biking on rugged terrains. The park is one of the best places for mountain biking in the state!
• Boating and paddling on a slow-moving water. Bring your own watercraft, or rent kayaks from the park.
• Caving to Colorado Bend’s underground world. You will crawl, slide and climb through small spaces and into large chambers with an experience guide. Reservation required. (The park has more than 400 caves!)
• Fishing for bass. Do you know that you don’t need a fishing license when fishing in a state park?
• Joining the ranger program and if you are visiting with children, let them do the Junior Ranger program.

Distance from major cities

• Austin: 2h
• San Antonio: 2h 40m
• Dallas: 3h 30m
• Fort Worth: 3h
• Houston: 4h 15m