Hamilton Pool
Travis CountyA grotto waterfall into a green pool. Reservation required every day; swimming depends on bacteria testing, and the trail to the base of the falls is currently closed.
Experience
Swimming Holes & Spring Rivers
The Edwards Aquifer keeps Hill Country water cold and clear all summer — the region’s single best antidote to a Texas July.
The lay of the land
Rain falls on the Edwards Plateau, sinks into the limestone, and surfaces miles away as springs that stay in the 60s and 70s year-round. The result is a region full of jade-green swimming holes and float-ready rivers — the Hill Country’s defining summer pleasure.
The famous spots require reservations now, which is the price of their popularity. Book ahead, go early, and have a backup in your pocket.
Where to go
Featured spots
Blue Hole
WimberleyA cypress-shaded swimming hole with rope swings on Cypress Creek. Daily May 1–Labor Day plus September weekends, by online pass only.
Jacob’s Well
WimberleyThe famous artesian spring — closed to swimming since June 2022 while the aquifer recovers. The natural area is open for hiking, free.
The Comal River
New BraunfelsSpring-fed and ice-cold; about two and a half miles end to end and a classic family tube float.
The Guadalupe River
Gruene / Canyon LakeLonger, livelier floats below Canyon Dam, with outfitters all along the banks. Flow depends on releases from the dam.
Krause Springs
SpicewoodA privately-run, photogenic set of spring pools and a swimming hole under cypress, with camping.
Inks Lake State Park
Burnet CountyThe Devil’s Waterhole — a granite cove for swimming and cliff-adjacent scrambling. No reservation needed to swim, just a day pass.
Know before you go
A few good tips
- Reserve Hamilton Pool and Blue Hole days to weeks ahead — both are online-only, and both sell out.
- Jacob’s Well is hiking-only right now. Don’t drive out expecting to swim.
- Go early — parking and day passes fill by mid-morning on summer weekends.
- Water shoes help on limestone; the rocks are slick and sharp.
- Check flow and water-quality status the morning you go, and never enter a river that is rising or running muddy.
Plan it properly
Book it with the source
Hours, fees, and closures change. These are the people who set them.
- Hamilton Pool Preserve
Travis County — the only official reservation system.
- Blue Hole passes
City of Wimberley Parks & Rec.
- Jacob’s Well status
Hays County posts the current swimming decision here.
- Visit New Braunfels — rivers
Outfitters, river rules, and flow conditions on the Comal and Guadalupe.
- Krause Springs
Privately run, cash-friendly, and open most of the year.
Where to base
Destinations for this
Hamilton Pool & the Pedernales
30.342°N 98.126°WTravis County
A collapsed grotto where a 50-foot waterfall spills into a jade-green pool. Reserve ahead — this is the most-photographed swimming hole in Texas.
Wimberley
29.997°N 98.099°WHays County
An arts town built around water — Jacob’s Well, Blue Hole, and the Cypress Creek. Market days, galleries, and the bluest swimming in Texas.
Gruene & New Braunfels
29.738°N 98.104°WComal County
A 19th-century river town wrapped around the oldest dance hall in Texas, with the Guadalupe and the spring-fed Comal running right past the door.
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