Day Trips: Mother Neff State Park, Moody
Texas’ first state park is still going strong after nearly 90 years
By Gerald E. McLeod, Fri., Feb. 23, 2024
Mother Neff State Park outside of Moody started one of Texas’ best ideas. The state park system that encompasses more than 640,000 acres and 89 properties began with 6 acres donated by Mother Neff.
Isabella Neff gave part of her family’s farm along the Leon River for a public park in 1921. Her son, Gov. Pat Neff, enlarged the gift and proclaimed it the first state park when it opened in 1937.
The Civilian Conservation Corps constructed the basic infrastructure of the park from 1934 to 1938. The former superintendent’s residence is now a cabin for rent by the park that can sleep up to eight.
At 400 acres, what Mother Neff lacks in size it more than makes up in diversity and a mixture of old and new. A portion of the park along the Leon River has been closed since 2015 to due flood damage.
With almost 3.5 miles of trails, the park is a hiker’s paradise. The footpaths cover three geographic zones, from grassland prairie to escarpment canyons and dropping into river bottoms. The trails lead to hidden ponds, a cave used by Tonkawa Indians, and structures built by the CCC like the rock observation tower.
After a series of floods, the parks department opened a new headquarters building closer to the entrance to the park. Among the other improvements completed in 2015 was a campground with 20 campsites with full hookups, modern restrooms, and day-use areas with playgrounds.
Among the unintended features of the campground is the occasional blast-furnace roar of rocket engine testing at the SpaceX factory six miles away in McGregor. Less frequent are artillery explosions from Fort Cavazos in Killeen.
Mother Neff State Park is 13 miles west of I-35 through Moody and 32 miles southwest of Waco. The prairie often bursts with color during spring wildflower season. Reservations can be obtained at 512/389-8900 or texasstateparks.org/reservations.
1,691st in a series. Everywhere is a day trip from somewhere: Follow “Day Trips & Beyond,” a travel blog, at austinchronicle.com/daily/travel.
