Escape to Mother Neff State Park: An RV Adventure in Central TX

[@rvamericayall]

Hey y’all! We hope you enjoy this little peek into Mother Neff State Park. We look forward to going back again in the future! We’d love to hear your thoughts on the park and suggestions for things to do in the area... leave us a comment!

[@themoodyphotographer59]

I didn't read all the comments to check to see if anyone mentioned the bell, but the bell was in the old section of the park along with the flag pole and the bell was moved up to the new section when it was finished. This is one of my favorite parks, I've been going to the park all my. My wife and I got married in the old tabernacle in the old section in 1983. Great video!

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks Dennis & thanks for sharing your experiences with the park!!!

[@lindadurst2290]

rewatching your reviews of Texas State Parks as we plan an October trip along the Texas Forts Trail, the Brazos Trail and the Pecos Trail. Thanks for all the great information it makes my trip planning easy.

[@rvamericayall]

You’re welcome Linda! ☺️

[@btj1844]

Those bats under the rock overhang were cool. There are so many spots like that here in Texas. I've lived here for almost 60 years and had never heard of Mother Neff.

[@rvamericayall]

Hey Ben! Believe it or not, we’ve had multiple folks tell us that was actually a large group of Daddy Long Legs! We wish we had gotten a closer look! We really enjoyed the park.

[@btj1844]

If they were "pumping" up and down they probably were. It was pretty dark exposure and reminded me of numerous times I walked up on bats hanging there like that. The Daddy Long Legs gather by the hundreds in west central Texas in the most odd places. I've heard it has something to do with mating but don't know. Maybe someone can elaborate.

[@bobcausey]

Thank you, Tom and Stacie. Super neat park and great job capturing it on camera. Linda thinks they are Daddy Long Legs in the cave.

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks Bob! Linda might be right. Someone who goes to the park all the time says they are spiders also. 😱 Wish we had gotten a closer look. That’d be a whole lotta Daddy Long Legs!

[@slowyourroll839]

That's exactly what I thought too. I was yelling at my TV for him not to touch them! HA

[@bobcausey]

Slow Your Roll It was kind of hard to tell, but we have seen them caves and on rocks that are cool and protected from the Sun..

[@rvamericayall]

LOL!

[@rvamericayall]

Next time we'll know what to look for! That was completely unexpected.

[@roydavis2242]

Beautiful park. Hey, I still have a brace and bit set (that is what we called it) and I have used it. Many of the state parks in the eastern half of the United States have length restrictions. One park we stayed in Virginia had A.C. bathrooms that was solar powered.

[@rvamericayall]

Hey Roy! Any size rig could fit in this park. That is really cool about the solar powered AC bathrooms!

[@UnclePaul]

I was in that cave last year and the big black clumps of something "growing" on the cave ceiling are thousands of Grandaddy-Long-Leg spiders.

[@rvamericayall]

That is incredible!!

[@BenNstyle]

Hey Tom & Stacie! Not sure if you've used them before, but I notice the remote microphones which really add a nice aspect and quality sound to your video! Texas owes a lot to the CCC for all they've done to improve the land. We've added Mother Neff to our list of places we need to visit and 👍🏼 to Library in the Park which is pretty cool to see. Looking at the cave, I first thought it was mold growth. But, a second look, I think it may be a type of moss. Thanks for another wonderful video guys! Safe Travels.

[@rvamericayall]

Hey Ben! Thanks! We love visiting CCC parks. The work those guys did always amazes us. We really enjoyed Mother Neff. It was almost like having an RV resort inside a state park. We kinda wish we had gotten a closer look at the mossy stuff. Very interesting and unexpected.

[@pentonhusqvarna]

Texas is big, big enough that if you're anywhere near Waco, you're actually in East Texas and not anywhere near "Central Texas." Good video none-the-less.

[@revbob53]

I LOVE your state park reviews. Now we have to check out Mother Neff SP!

[@rvamericayall]

Hey Bob! Hope y’all are doing well! Yes... definitely put Mother Neff SP on your list. Great park!

[@steelbanjoman7729]

Tom and Stacie! You are such a wonderful couple!

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks

[@shomet4595]

Hey Y'all! So happy we found your site! We stayed at #5 this past weekend, loved it. The park is magnificent! It was a little chilly this past weekend but we still enjoyed the trails. We've made reservations to go back in June when its warm and the folage and birds are out. Again thank you for all the information and great videos!

[@rvamericayall]

Welcome! Thanks so much for watching! Glad to hear you enjoyed your visit to Mother Neff. We'll have more Texas state park videos coming soon. We bet Mother Neff will be great in June.

[@annamaybeekman5152]

What a beautiful park.I love how it has alot of woods....This must have been a wonderful place to call home by the native Americans.....Shade cave area the pond etc....and I love bird watching

[@rvamericayall]

We want to come back when the birds are migrating. We loved the park!

[@DGFavorite]

One of our favorite parks

[@rvamericayall]

One of ours too now! 😁

[@frankjenkins2668]

I will be heading there in the near future. Mother Neff State Park just climbed to the top of my list......thanks for the great video and tour. Happy camping y'all.

[@rvamericayall]

Awesome Frank! It’s a really nice park. Enjoy!

[@dannyyates7208]

Great video. Thanks, and safe travels. 👍👍👍👍👍

[@normangebhardt2092]

Enjoyed watching this video. Lot of interesting things to do in this state park. Thanks.

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks Norman! We really enjoyed it!

[@daveanddeb5629]

That was so cool! i just loved it. Will put that on my bucket list. I love it when ya'll give us the history of the places ya'll are.

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks so much Dave & Deb! It is a really nice park. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did.

[@JJs-ClassC-Adventures]

Just learned about ya'll from your interview with Grand Adventure. We are your newest subscribers. We live 5 miles from Mother Neff State Park.

[@rvamericayall]

Welcome JJ! We're glad y'all found us. We loved our visit to Mother Neff.

[@carolthiele190]

Great video. This would be a great place for my first RV camping as it's only 2 hrs. from where I live. Thank you for taking us with you.

[@rvamericayall]

Hey Carol! Yes! Mother Neff would be a GREAT 1st camping spot for you. Have fun!

[@USAFAFRet11]

Texas has one of the best park system in America. If memory serves me correct, you can purchase a state park pass and save a lot of money when you stay, plus I believe you can stay a little longer if you have the pass. Your videos on the state parks are absolutely wonderful.

[@rvamericayall]

Thank you so much David! We appreciate it so much. Yes, the Texas State Parks Pass can save you a lot of money if you like to visit the parks. You save day use fees, get 1/2 off your second night of camping on every trip, and discounts on purchases. Well worth the money for us!

[@aprilmurphy42]

LOL!!LOL!! I grew up around the area. Those are grandaddy long legs that cluster up like that in the cave. As kids we used to throw stones to get them to scatter as they cluster upside brick homes as well.

[@rvamericayall]

That’s a lot of daddy long legs!

[@susanf9862]

Great video! I love the appreciation you have for the state parks and the Texas history. This is the Great state of Texas. Love the information located throughout the park. You've done another great job guys!

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks so much Susan! We love our state parks! We have several park videos coming up!

[@txdave2]

Great review. We stayed at Mother Neff for a few days last fall. Loved the peace and quiet and great trails for hiking. It truly is a nice park.

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks so much David! We agree 100%, so relaxing!

[@TravelingTroy]

Nice looking State Park. It looks like you’re backtracking? I figured you two would be leaving Texas via NM or OK. I guess you’re heading back to pick up your passenger, mentioned in a previous video. That will be fun. Safe travels. I’m now in Frisco, CO, visiting with my Dad and Step-Mom at their campsite for the next 2 weeks. Nice to have family visits out on the road. 👍😁

[@rvamericayall]

Hey Troy! We’re behind on our videos. We have a few more Texas park videos to publish before we start getting into OK and points north. How’s the weather in CO? Have fun camping with your family!

[@TravelingTroy]

RV Texas Y'all I can relate. I just posted a video from content recorded in early June. Trying to catch up, myself. Weather is looking good here the next few days. Highs 80, lows 55. Not bad.

[@bartlettpair899]

What a beautiful park! Yes, the clump on the cave is granddaddy long legs! They are amazing! Thanks for sharing!

[@rvamericayall]

We agree! We wish we had taken a closer look at the “fur”. We had no idea that was a massive group of Daddy Long Legs. That’s incredible!!

[@mejoe943]

Such a peaceful, tranquil tour. Love the background music.

[@rvamericayall]

Thank you Joe. It's a really nice park.

[@violawilson8379]

Thank you for the video. This is definitely one state park I’ll have to visit on my next trip to Texas. I just visited Palo Duro Canyon on my return trip back to New Mexico.

[@rvamericayall]

Hi Viola! We really enjoyed our visit to Mother Neff. Hope you had fun at Palo Duro Canyon!

[@christyd2896]

Great review! Mother Neff is beautiful, and so much history. Thank you for all the awesome info, as always.

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks Christy! We really enjoyed the park!

[@priscillarodehorst420]

I've been . Its beautiful!

[@rvamericayall]

Yes it is, thanks!

[@leann4925]

I didn't know anything about this Park until this video. I did at one time drive up to Dublin, TX going through Waco and took route 6 and what an adventure that was as a beautiful drive. Have wanted to go back. Loved the History of this place and will do some more reading up on it. Thank you so much as enjoyed.

[@rvamericayall]

Hey Leann! We’re so glad you enjoyed it. Definitely put Mother Neff on your list to visit!

[@lindarainey5759]

Thanks for mentioning the cell strength! Nice park! Thanks for taking us with you 😊

[@rvamericayall]

You're welcome Linda! Thanks for joining us for the fun!

[@soniacruz9607]

What a beautiful park, I'm enjoying the video so much. Thanks and God bless

[@rvamericayall]

Thank you Sonia! We really enjoyed our visit.

[@ronniebatiesr4491]

Thanks Guys it’s great to be able to travel with you safe travels 👍🙏🏼🙏🏼

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks Ronnie! Hope you’re doing great!

[@pedintx]

I really enjoyed the detailed tour of Mother Neef State Park. I live in the Waco area and have been to the park several times. I have not explored the park since all of the improvements. There are some terrific back roads close to the park and I have spent a considerable amount of time in the recent past years exploring those roads by motorcycle. I have several friends in the Waco area that we all ride our motorcycles together and the Mother Neef area is one of our favorite areas to ride. Thanks again for all you do. Paul E Dulin

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks Paul! We’re so glad that you enjoyed the video. We look forward to exploring more of those back roads on our next visit!

[@wendyschonhardt1532]

Thanks for sharing. I really do appreciate the history and the information that you give about the various parks including this one. Thanks again for taking the time to get the information and share it with us.

[@rvamericayall]

Thank you Wendy! We are so happy to share what we are learning with you. We hope that you will add Mother Neff to your list of places to visit. We really enjoyed our stay.

[@lizchilders4154]

Very nice!

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks Liz! We really enjoyed it.

[@dwain1310]

that 'drill' is called a 'brace and bit',,,before electricity,,,,you press your weight down on the top knob and use your right hand to 'drill'....works well , as you can imagine. nice show !

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks Dwain!

[@DARNGOODADVICE]

I love your reviews, they are so helpful and will serve many folks for many years... you guys are on track for great success, wishing you guys the best future, enjoy and carry on... don

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks so much Don! We appreciate you! 😁

[@judyabernathy80]

Wow!! I played the video twice, as I absolutely loved it!! This will be one of my all time favorite videos. I so love hearing about Texas history in particular. I will definitely visit this park. And, it’s not too far from Fort Worth!! Thanks for a super good video!! 😘

[@rvamericayall]

Thank you Judy! We really enjoyed our stay there and it wasn’t busy at all!

[@ForgottenWinter]

Very informative!

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks!

[@ronielllove8735]

Stacy - Just letting you know that Village Creek State Park has the free book, take one or leave one. We were just there with our Grandson and he took one Friday night and returned it back Sunday morning and then he found another one and brought it home with him. They had a large assortment of books for adults and children.

[@rvamericayall]

Awesome Roniell! Thanks for letting us know. We wish more parks would add little libraries.

[@lauraholliday4978]

Love your video of this camp ground! Thanks for sharing 🤗

[@rvamericayall]

Thank you Laura! We loved our stay there.

[@TexasEscapist]

We're really looking forward to camping in those nice, spacious, flat sites!

[@rvamericayall]

The sites are GREAT!! Enjoy!

[@TheArtofRVing]

After watching your video we have decided to go there in August....thanks so much

[@rvamericayall]

Have a great time! And tell them we said Hi!

[@TheArtofRVing]

@@rvamericayall It looks so fun...our daughter works for Baylor so this should be perfect for us....we loved the hiking trail footage...thanks again

[@apriltaylor8923]

Great video. Thanks!

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks April!

[@jeandecker4073]

Great tour. Thanks for sharing.

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks Jean! Glad you enjoyed it. We really like the park.

[@randyrainwater983]

Another Texas SP to add to our To Do list.

[@rvamericayall]

Enjoy Randy!

[@hebguy07]

Daddy long Legs in a cluster on the cave rock

[@rvamericayall]

Wow! That is amazing Dale! Wish we had gotten a closer look.

[@baseballmochamom]

Freaked me out the first time I saw it!

[@Gramma-Bambi-Lynn]

That was my first thought, too, Dale...my Grandma’s garage at Lake Austin had a lot of ‘em in there. Pretty cool critters!

[@seeker61z81]

yeah ive seen that before along a stone wall..it totally amazed me when i saw it.

[@TexomaRoadTrippers]

That hand drill sure made me have some flashbacks of a few blisters I got playing with my papa's drill when I was a kid...lol Great that AT&T works down there, Verizon doesn't work over at Colorado Bend State Park just west of there. I "heard" Verizon isn't good at all in Central Texas. Beautiful hiking trail. The dog panting sounds like me breathing on a hike....lol That spot y'all were in was huge. Are they all that big? Thanks for sharing! Brandon

[@rvamericayall]

Hey Brandon! I (Stacie) did a lot of drilling with my granddad's drill back in the day. :) All of the sites are pretty good size. They have both back-in and pull-through sites.

[@jwrappuhn71]

Excellent vid ya'll.

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks so much!

[@mmbbq]

Cool video 😎 .it looks like it was a little warm. That is a good looking camp sight. If you are camping there can someone use a tent if they are with you

[@rvamericayall]

Hey Mark! Typically in Texas State Parks you are allowed to have a tent in the same site as an RV. We’re sure that applies here as well. We had plenty of room in our site to set up a tent. You’d probably want a pad under the tent since it would be on gravel.

[@Gramma-Bambi-Lynn]

So the older/original campsites aren’t in use right now, but all the CCC structures are still accessible from the new areas? Sorry if I misunderstood your explanation about that. Great video, as usual!

[@rvamericayall]

Hi Bambi, Thanks! Some of the CCC items are available, but the structures down closer to the river and in the old camping area are not accessible right now.

[@baseballmochamom]

Bambi Lynn the bottom (older section) area is not accessible to the public. There is plans to refurbish that area but it will be awhile. I’m currently a park host at MNSP.

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks Carol!

[@arkansastraveler7698]

A lot of the state parks here in Arkansas have building, build out of native stone by CCC.

[@rvamericayall]

We look forward to visiting more Arkansas parks!

[@BobKeefe]

Very nice video, excellent in fact! 👍

[@rvamericayall]

Wow Bob! Thanks so much! We really appreciate it.

[@lisamcgrath3132]

Great video👍🏼

[@rvamericayall]

Thank you Lisa!

[@frankmnowickl9010]

Great video 👍 love you guys.may be down that way next fall

[@rvamericayall]

Hey Frank! Thanks! This would be a great park to visit in the fall.

[@Edwardsjourney]

That fur coat is like a bazllion spiders !

[@rvamericayall]

Believe it or not... apparently yes! Multiple folks who visit the park frequently have told us that the "fur coat" is a huge bunch of Daddy Long Legs! We wish we had taken a closer look!

[@a1930ford]

In 1968,, myself and a few band members from the local rock group, The Buccaneers, all went to Mother Neff park late at night. It was pretty open and a lot of machinery as road graders and bulldozers in the area. Well, as stupid as teens were, especially when drinking beer when underage as we did in that park, one of us jumped up on a bulldozer and somehow got it started into motion, more by accident than by know how. Any rate, the kid jumped off and that machine, as heavy as it was, took a direct route into the river or body of water that was there at the time. It went chug, chug, chug as it slipped into the water and disappeared. We did not stand about, as we were all scared to death at the time and had not had any evil intent to make this happen. Just stupid kids doing what stupid kids do. Later, we thought of naming our rock band Mother Neff as we started to transition from rock to psychedelic music at the time. There were groups as Shiva's Headband, the 13th Floor Elevators, The Babycakes, The Watch Band, The Reasons Why, The Left Canadian Overflow and The Georgetown Medical Society which were all popular groups on the Austin scene back then, so that name seemed sort of cool to us for some odd reason. Sorry to have ruined a piece of equipment like that. Maybe it stopped before completely entering into that stream, but best I recall, it did not. Just an unknown tidbit of useless information of the history of that park. Ahhhh, memories; both good and bad. :-)

[@rvamericayall]

Now that might be the most unique park memory we’ve heard!

[@raymondschneider5217]

Great tour, guys; looks like a very lovely park with super nice RV spaces. Love the natural materials so many of the early (CCC) improvements were constructed. How many RV spaces are in the park? Are they difficult to get into/out of?

[@raymondschneider5217]

Y'all Be Safe!

[@rvamericayall]

Hey Raymond! There are 20 sites. All full hookup, 30/50 amp. All look easy to get in and out of. And some can handle big rigs.

[@sandracoxwell6011]

All the years we have camped, the “restrooms” were always known as “comfort stations”....however, not many KZbinrs use that term for some reason.

[@hoss1003]

Great video. I like that park. Nice big spaces, like you said, nice and dark to watch the Stars go by.. and UFO's.. Have ya'll ever seen one? Are ya'll ever going to visit Area 51 or The Alie inn on the Extraterrestrial Highway? That would make for a good video. 🌎🏕⛺🚐🛸⭐👽🏔👨‍🚀👿👻👺☻☄♾🥶🤢😶🐽☣🚀🛰👀

[@rvamericayall]

Hey Hoss! Area 51 is definitely on our list for one of these days. 👽

[@2000_mules]

Great video guys….that ‘thing’ growing under the cave was a hive of daddy long legs

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks Vernon! We have never seen that many daddy long legs together! If we had known that’s what it was, we would have taken a closer look.

[@2000_mules]

@@rvamericayall if you ever get a chance to explore the rock caves at enchanted rock….they are full of them. Side note: if your friend is behind you and you put a flashlight on the ‘spiders’, they will collapse and fall down, covering your friend and engulfing them in terror 😂

[@irapickard6775]

What a neat “old/new” park. Will put that on my list. Just curious, how long did y’all camp there and what is your average camp stay since full timin it?

[@rvamericayall]

Hey Ira! We were at Mother Neff 5 nights. That’s about the average stay for us since we went full-time. We look forward to going back again. We enjoyed it a lot.”

[@pjwroblewski]

Thanks so much for this video. I've lived in Texas for 21 years and I never knew this place existed. What was that "all trails" you referenced on your phone?

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks Patrick! This is a really nice park. All Trails is a website and app that has trail maps and info for parks. Folks can rate the trails, post photos and share information with other hikers. When we find a park that doesn’t have all of its trails listed, we try to add them by recording our hike and submitting info. It’s a nice reference for folks who enjoy hiking.

[@OKCMark1]

I've seen a fuzzy blob like in the cave. I think it is hundreds of daddy long legs spiders.

[@rvamericayall]

Crazy! Next time we'll take a closer look!

[@covetthecamper2289]

Whoops! Looks like someone accidentally hit the “thumb down” button. Sure wasn’t me. 👍🏻

[@rvamericayall]

LOL! Thanks Jeff! :)

[@deannekaminski1299]

The "fur" on the cave ceiling was a swarm of Harvestmen (daddy long legs).

[@rvamericayall]

You're right Deanne! That was a TON of them!

[@shannonpayne904]

Do Ya'll have stickers? I would love one for my Texas RV !!

[@smittyhill1]

Hello! Great videos. What site number did ya'll stay in? Also, I have a 31' travel trailer with a Super Crew cab F-150. Would this fit into that spot? Thanks!

[@rvamericayall]

Hi! Thanks so much! I believe we had site 7. It should accomodate you without a problem. There are several sites within this park that can fit any size rig. There are also a few pull-through sites. Here's our complete write-up with more information: rvtexasyall.com/region-central-texas/campgrounds/mother-neff-state-park

[@lancestewart452]

Hi Tom & Stacie I live in Galveston I’m looking for for next hike with dog I’ve been to Huntsville SP what would be a great park for hiking with dog what would be your favorite. Thank you Lance

[@rvamericayall]

That's a great question Lance! For hiking with a dog, we really like Tyler State Park, Garner State Park, Mission Tejas State Park, Palmetto State Park, Mother Neff and Brazos Bend (just keep the pup away from alligators on the trail). We also like Stephen F Austin State Park's trails if they have reopened (they were damaged by flooding a while back).

[@lancestewart452]

@@rvamericayall thank y’all so much for your expertise I’ll try Tyler SP next God bless .Lance

[@jefferygreene9722]

Did you say full hook ups - including sewer?

[@rvamericayall]

Yes, Jeffery. They have 20 campsites, all with full hookups (water, 3/50amp electricity, and sewer). Here's our Complete Park Visitors' Guide with all of the details on Mother Neff State Park: rvtexasyall.com/region-central-texas/campgrounds/mother-neff-state-park

[@wantsomething3319]

Why does Star have to wear booties? Does she have problems with her paws? Jayman...

[@rvamericayall]

Hi Jayman. No she doesn’t have a problem, but we’ve seen dogs that have burned their paws on hot rocks or concrete during the summer. And our old dog, Sally, bruised her paws pretty badly on stones at a campground. So we just decided to try to protect her paws.

[@seaphor665]

My wife and I got married at Mother Neff, in 1995

[@rvamericayall]

That’s really cool!

[@jayjdietrich]

[@rvamericayall]

Thanks Jay!

[@scottvandusen396]

That far thing is dady long legs

[@rvamericayall]

That is truly incredible, Tony! We wish we had taken a closer look.

[@judyabernathy80]

Pl

[@patriciapeters5526]

Thanks so much. I’m going to Camp host here and this was great overview for me.

[@hottlimited]

👍🏻👍🏻

[@rvamericayall]

😁😁

[@hottlimited]

👍🏻👍🏻