Friends Group Home Page

The Friends of Colorado Bend State Park is a non-profit group that supports the park and it's staff through volunteer efforts and donation funds. Here you can learn more about the park and how we support it. You can also check out news, upcoming events, and ongoing projects

Spring has been good to us in the hill country and we have already been having some pretty warm days. This is a great year for brilliant color, the landscape is painted and decorated with lush foliage, wildflowers, birds, and butterflies. The recent rains have continued to provide much needed groundwater recharge and the springs are flowing great! Lake Buchanan, nine miles below the park, has come up 4 feet but is still 23 feet below full so the river level will drop quickly but we are hopeful that the wet streak will continue. There are 5,316 acres of karst and canyon lands to see and a new sight every time you turn around, so get out there and see it! The trail system takes you to hotspots and hidden treasures that will make your trek exciting and memorable. Fishing at the park has been a little slow due to drought and several years of low water levels.

Come celebrate the oldest and best way to get from one place to another. Don't just move through your environment, experience it. Interact with your surroundings through the sights, sounds, smells, and feel of the wild, be alive.

If you prefer to hit the trails alone or with your own group grab a map and some water and get out there. Know your limits, be safe, and have fun. Unsure of your abilities on the trail? go on one of the guided trips above, show up early and ask questions. Find a park ranger and ask questions about the terrain, temperature, recommended routes and highlights. they are there to help even before you need them.

We have made extraordinary leaps forward on the trail system at the park, We have now crossed the 30 mile mark! The hard work of the trail project and all of its talented volunteers have paid off in a big way. To celebrate this feat and feature our network of the best trails in the hill country we have released a new trail map.

You can download (PDF - 1.4 MB) and print these maps, download them directly to your phone or tablet, or pick up a hard copy at the park. Remember when you come out that these maps have the most up to date trails and connections, the trailhead kiosk maps are great for reference but they do not have all the current routes.

Park staff is also hard at work on the Campground Project where they are clearing out brush, removing hazard trees killed by the drought, rebuilding the pathways from the upper river terrace down to the lower river bank tent sites, fixing some erosion problems, and... opening some new campsites in the drive up area!!! Some areas or sites may be blocked off temporarily as they move throughout the campground, please bear with them, the changes will be great.

We have a wide variety service projects and ways to volunteer. Some current projects:

Gorman Cave closed by TPWD Executive Order Number 10-005.

Texas Parks & Wildlife Department closed Gorman Cave to public access on July 29th, 2010 in accordance with the Department's White Nose Syndrome Action Plan. Walking cave tours of Gorman Cave have been discontinued. The closure was initiated to protect the habitat of a large colony of cave myotis bats (Myotis velifer) in response to the threat of White Nose Syndrome reaching Texas.

White Nose Syndrome affects hibernating bat species and so far is associated with the death of over one million bats. White Nose Syndrome was first discovered in New York State in 2006 and is spreading throughout the U.S. at an alarming rate; it has now been detected in western Oklahoma in cave myotis. There is so much about this wildlife crisis that is still unknown. In an attempt to protect the bats from accidental introduction of the pathogen by humans and to decrease disturbance to the colony TPWD is closing Gorman Cave and closely monitoring the bat population.

Still interested in Caving?

Do you want to explore a wild cave? We invite you to participate in one of our weekly guided crawling tours of other caves in the park that do not support sensitive bat colonies, call for details and reservations.