Mother Neff State Park

This weekend we went on a 1 night trip to Mother Neff State Park.  Mother Neff is located between Gatesville and Temple off 36, about an hour drive from home.  This small park was packed with history and great hiking.  The kids participated in the Junior Ranger program by answering questions about the parks history and nature.  They turned in their answers, pledged to conserve and protect nature, and received a certificate and Junior Ranger badge.  They were very proud of their hard work and even learned a few things.  Mother Neff was the first state park in Texas.  The land was donated by Isabella "Mother" Neff by her son Patrick, who was Governor of Texas in the 1920's.  The land was along a pioneer road leading west and still has 2 of the original mile stones placed to guide west going settlers.  Follow the hiking trail from the pay station at the front and you will cross a grassy pond habitat and continue through a forest thick with pecan and oak trees.  We saw a lot of really great birds, including a vermilion flycatcher.  Continue up to the higher areas away from the ponds and creek and you will find the Indian Cave.  This limestone bluff was home to the Tonkawa Indians and served as shelter and burial ground.  Continue on the trail to the wash pond, a spring fed pond that settlers used for bathing and washing clothes.  There are several nice pavilions built by the CCC and a bell in the main grassy area along with plaques with historical information.  On our hike we found our first state park geocache.  We hope to find the cache at each park we go to and collect cache tags as souvenirs of our finds.
The park had a very damaging flood and is still in the recovery process.  Tent sites are by the Leon river, although river access is difficult due to steep banks and thick grasses with unknown animals residing there.  The reservoir is not far down the road if you are looking for fishing or tubing.  The tent sites were open grassy area with a few trees.  We were in site 11.  The bathrooms and showers were a bit of a long walk, but very nice and as Natalie said, "buggy free".  Not much privacy, but still fairly quiet as there are only 7 water only sites.  Good 3 season park, but bring your bug spray and check for ticks after your hike.