Hidalgo Falls Festival
April 25th, 2015
by Mark Andrus

I drove to Hidalgo Falls on the day before to help get the grounds ready for the festival and I worked with Steve Daniel and James Williams. When they left at the end of the day, I had the campground all to myself for the night. I watched the fireflies for about an hour after it was dark and then went to sleep at nine. There was a heavy rain in a thunderstorm from about five in the morning until after dawn when I woke up for the final time.

Paddlers gradually arrived during the day. The other Houston Canoe Club paddlers were Mark Vlaskamp, Ron Vlaskamp, Phillip Grove and I. Around eleven o clock, we decided to play at the falls since the water level was higher than it had been for several years. Some people I heard decided to do the 3 1/2 mile trip to Highway 105 about mid afternoon. I declined because I had already pulled my kayak back up the bank. Another person who did not paddle was passing through on his way back from the Buffalo River. Also, I saw David Jacobs there.

Hidalgo Falls was bought by the Texas River Protection Association to preserve the rapid for paddlers. If someone wants to get the gate combination, they can join TRPA at the $25 level and get an orientation to the property from a gate combination holder. Combination holders can let paddler guests in to enjoy the falls also. Southwest Paddlesports often teaches whitewater paddling courses at the falls.

The author, Mark Andrus