Good hike. Miles 0-7 are rough.
User: rmtjr - 4/13/2004  [View Log Page]
Rating: N/A Difficulty: Solitude:
Distance: 29.60 Miles Duration: N/A
Water plentiful in mid April. Getting water from the lake at Cedar Hollow is easy, but finding a tent site is difficult with the rocks and slope. Water at Sawyer Camp requires wading in the lake to get some depth for pumping. Careful past MP 9. The two track trail splits. The corrrect route is to the right thru the fence and trees. No trail marker. MP 10 must be missing. (I didn't see # 12 either.) Look to the right after passing the trail marker at the end of the field after crossing the little dam. The two track trail around the edge of the field starts to parallel a path in the trees that goes straight to Tejas Camp. Tent sites at Tejas are $6.00/night. On the north side of the lake I lost the trail in the Walnut Springs Creek bottoms. I did not see the trail or a trail marker on the other side of the creek. Walnut Springs Camp is pretty rough. The privy is under construction. Returning the same route be careful after leaving Tejas Camp. The path through the trees that you followed earlier eventually goes down to the river while the Good Water Trail follows along the two track around the field and away from the river. The path just east of Cedar Hollow Camp is hard to see when it splits from the two track. The turn off is about 50 yards east of the Camp. When I passed there, there was a stack of three flat stones marking the path through the bushes. Trekking poles or a staff are certainly handy for miles 0-7. Lots of rock! After mile 7 there was little elevation gain or loss, except for a hillock at mile 9. At the same time the rest of the trail that I took was mostly in the open and will be pretty hot in the next couple of months.

A wide variety of terrain
User: moore9ksucats - 3/18/2004  [View Log Page]
Rating: N/A Difficulty: Solitude:
Distance: 16.50 Miles Duration: N/A
I've never hiked the whole trail at one time. Each of the access points has differnet terrain to offer and short hikes in and back out never dissapoint. My favorite is Crockets Gardents.

Always a Great Hike!
User: oceanus - 2/9/2004  [View Log Page]
Rating: N/A Difficulty: Solitude:
Distance: 16.60 Miles Duration: N/A
I did the entire Goodwater Trail with a group of backpackers this weekend. We dropped a car off at Cedar Breaks Park and drove around to Russell Park, on the other side of the lake. From there, we hiked to Tejas Camp, were we met up with another member of the trip. We continued hiking to Sawyer Camp, were we met up with another group member, and stayed for the night. It was great! We had a nice camp fire and good conversation into the night. Sunday morning we woke up to a chilly morning, but still very nice. Later, we hiked the remaining 6 1/2 miles to Cedar Breaks Park, where our car was waiting. A must try. Enjoy!

Don't tell anyone about this Centex gem!
User: oceanus - 6/27/2003  [View Log Page]
Rating: N/A Difficulty: Solitude:
Distance: 16.50 Miles Duration: N/A
The Goodwater Trail is great, it's the only place in the hillcountry (that I know of) that allows free backcountry camping. The only exception is at Tejas Camp, where the fee is $6.00. The southside of the trail is the best part of the hike. The trail is actually a footpath, as opposed to the north side, and it is more hilly. Cedar Hollow camp is about 4.5 miles from the trail head, but the best spot is 6.5 miles out at Sawyer Camp. This spot sits underneath some large oaks at the foot of a hill right on the lake and solitude is virtually guaranteed. Coyotes serenade every night. The trail vanishes between the end of the 7th and 9th miles, but you can follow fence line most of the way and look for brown trail markers at other times. The 11 mile marker is where you'll find Tejas camp, it is also the only place on the trail to get water from a faucet. A short walk across a road takes you to the north side of the lake. The trail here is an old caliche road, which is flat and easy hiking. The only problem is that there is almost no shade. At 14.5 miles out you'll find Walnut Springs Camp. Since it is so close to the trailhead, it usually has people campng there. The wildlife is decent as well. I've seen turkeys, armadillos, vultures, deer, and lizards, plus this is the only place I've ever heard a large cat of some sort just outside my tent. Overall, the Goodwater Trail is an excellent hike in the Texas Hill Country.

Beautiful wildflower meadow
User: figment - 4/20/2003  [View Log Page]
Rating: N/A Difficulty: Solitude:
Distance: 5.00 Miles Duration: N/A
This is an advanced hike, because of the isolation, and the roughness of the trail. There are wildflowers blooming at the waterfall 2.5 miles into the hike. One of the few federal parks in Central Texas.

Very quiet
User: Centex Trekker - 3/12/1999  [View Log Page]
Rating: N/A Difficulty: Solitude:
Distance: 2.50 Miles Duration: N/A
Met a troop of Boy Scouts on their way home.