Texas. Big. Bold. Wide open. Lots of territory. And No. 1 in the sale of off-road vehicles.
With that kind of combination—one that most off-roaders like—it might be a little surprising to some to find out that much of the riding in the Lone Star State is confined or limited to ride parks scattered across the state.
So in a state as big as Texas, how do you choose a place to ride? That choice is sometimes dictated by what you own and what kind of vehicles are allowed in specific ride parks. For example, some parks only allow dirt bikes and ATVs while others allow a wider variety of vehicles.
However big or small your ride area wish list is, somewhere on that list should be Hidden Falls Adventure Park near Marble Falls. With 240 miles of trails spread across 3,000 acres, Hidden Falls is the largest off-road park in the state of Texas. And it’s open to side-by-sides, ATVs, dirt bikes, jeeps and buggies. Despite being just seven years old, Hidden Falls (originally named Boulder Creek but changed to its present name a year after opening) is one of the most popular ride areas in the state.
That’s quite the bragging rights in a place like Texas.
We have ridden Hidden Falls a couple of times, first experiencing the ride area during the Polaris Ace media intro last January. We had left the frozen tundra of the north and were warmly greeted by mid 60-degree F temps and deep blue skies. Our second ride was in late May and it was much warmer but still fairly tolerable—nearly 86 degrees F by the time we loaded our side-by-sides on the trailers.
“Anytime It’s Cool”
Bryan Reiswig, manager of the privately-owned ride park, pointed out that while Hidden Falls is open year-round, the busy time for the park (read: ideal riding season) is “anytime it’s cool.” That means June, July, August and the first half of September are hot and dusty. However, Reiswig did say that some diehard riders will ride the park at night during the summer months after the sun goes down and it cools off a bit.
During our Polaris Ace ride we thought we had experienced a good share of Hidden Falls. Not hardly. It didn’t take us long into our May ride to realize we only saw a slice of the park in January. It was also on that second ride that we were able to experience some of the impressive scenery not only of the park but also the surrounding area.
Hidden Falls is located in Texas Hill Country and that means there are lots of hills and elevation changes along with spots in various areas of the park where you can see the surrounding tree-covered hills and valleys. One such spot is Wildcat Mountain (elevation 1,400 feet), which is not only the highest point in the park but also in Burnet County. From the top of Wildcat Mountain you can see for miles and miles in all directions.
On our roundabout way to Wildcat Mountain we rode one particular trail—North Pole Trail—that runs along the northern border of the ride park that we think has some of the best technical terrain with hills and valleys and is one of the more scenic trails in Hidden Falls. The North Pole Trail has some fun rock crawling trails—where we were able to test the Arctic Cat Wildcat X and its capabilities—that are actually quite difficult in certain stretches.
Another technical trail is Royal Gorge, which is located over near the actual Hidden Falls. The sign says it’s for 4x4s and is a “level 5” trail with level 6 being the most difficult in the park. We’re guessing a long travel side-by-side like a Wildcat, Polaris RZR or Can-Am Maverick would be able to tackle it just fine.
Squeezing The Throttle
And then there are other trails in the park where you can open it up and gain some speed. Reiswig got our Wildcat up to 50 plus miles an hour a few times, although he was quick to point out that park officials do monitor speeds on certain park roads, especially the ones labeled “Park Road,” followed by a number, i.e., Park Road 1. When you get to the trails where you can hammer the throttle a bit, Reiswig said the speed limit is “as long as you’re in control.”
We call that the Texas common sense approach.
There is also a good mix of tight, twisty trails through thick stands of trees that are littered with rocks and tree roots. There were some very narrow spots where the Wildcat X barely fit through. In fact, we were brushing against the trees in spots.
While we mostly stuck to the Valley Road trail and the Green Loop and Green Spur during our January ride, we hit more than a half dozen different trails in May. Those included (besides the main park roads), Valley Road, Vista, West Loop, North Pole, Turkey Run, Lazy Man, Wildcat and Red Oak. As mentioned before, North Pole is a favorite of ours, as is the West Loop, especially the closer to where it intersects with the North Pole trail. Turkey Run and Vista are also fun.
The trail maps given out by the park clearly show which trails are designed for ATVs and side-by-sides and which ones are for 4x4s and have difficulty ratings. North Pole Trail, for example, is a “3 Dot” rated trail for ATVs and side-by-sides and is, according to the trail map, “...the most difficult and will challenge an expert rider.” That’s probably a fair estimation of the trail’s difficulty. The 3 Dot trails are the most difficult in the park.
As mentioned, we did ride over near one of the falls. There was a trickle of water running in Camp Creek in January and May as the creek is fed by a spring, but the falls, which are in another drainage, were not falling as there was no water in that creek, except at the base of the falls where the water was pooled up and hadn’t evaporated yet. A few weeks after our May visit to Hidden Falls, central Texas did finally receive some much-needed rain and it would have been cool to see the water running in the creek and over the falls. And it would have been fun to drive through the creek.
As dry as it was last May when we rode Hidden Falls, there were still a few “tanks” as Reiswig called them. These tanks are deep water holes that Reiswig cautions riders should avoid, mostly because riders/drivers underestimate just how deep they are.
Wildlife In The Wild
We were excited on our January ride to see a Javelina scoot across the trail. We weren’t quick enough to pull out our camera to take a picture but Reiswig said it’s not uncommon to see several Javelina all over the park. There are also rabbits, lizards and fox living in the park.
Hidden Falls is open to the public Thursday through Sunday but memberships are available that allow you to ride all week. Rates are available for a single day of riding to all weekend long. For instance, as we went to press with this issue, the day rate for one adult rider was listed as $25 with a passenger another $15. The website www.hiddenfallsadventurepark.com has all the details and current prices. ATV and motorcycle rentals are available on-site as is camping (RV, cabins and tents). There is also a kids riding area and a full service shooting club on site.
Hidden Falls is located on FM 1431, about 8 miles east of Marble Falls. If you don’t want to camp, the town of Marble Falls is a great option for lodging and restaurants. We stayed at the La Quinta on both our rides and found it very clean and comfortable and the staff extremely friendly. Marble Falls has plenty of services, including a wide variety of restaurants, thanks, in part, to being near Lake LB Johnson and Lake Marble Falls, popular tourist destinations. There is a visitors center in Marble Falls, which has plenty of information on the area, or you can go to www.marblefalls.org or call (830) 693-4449. The town is 45 miles west of Austin and 85 miles north of San Antonio.
Hidden Falls was one of our first riding experiences in Texas and what a great first impression. And while OHV riding in Texas is limited to ride parks, we found no limit to the fun at Hidden Falls Adventure Park.
