Hell Gate
Highest Volvo coefficient of any swimming hole measured. Ford Explorers finished second and Subarus were third. All of which is to say lots of families. Denesae McNicoll (pictured) is the third generation to ride the rope swing at Hell Gate. For 27 years without interruption the McNicoll family, their cousins, in-laws and even the in-laws’ relations have spent their summers bobbing in the wide, slow water of the Trinity River’s south fork. During the summer the river is sprinkled with air mattresses carrying people between the campground and the deep basins downstream. The most spectacular display is the evening when entire families raft together and sputter upstream on one giant vinyl lily pad.
A market may be developing for the popular lower campsites. A poll of vacationing families found they’d offer as much as $150 for a riverside camp if they found another car parked there. Along the campground the river itself is fair to good, more of a channel than an enclosed space. Zero expectation of privacy. Jumping rocks at the day use area downstream.
Bonus feature: Beautiful mountain bike rides on the South Fork Recreation Trail. It’s an abandoned road studded with rocks and roots, making this a hot ticket for intermediate to advanced riders. Note: Riding across the bridge is expressly prohibited…don’t get caught.
Copyright Running Water Press 1997