At 9:55 p.m. on October 7, 2026, the LCRA Hydromet gauge on the Pedernales River near Johnson City read 26 cubic feet per second. Downstream at Hammett's Crossing it read 62. Flat Creek, which runs near the park, read 3. The USGS gauge 08153500 showed the same 10.37-foot stage that evening.
Twelve weeks earlier, on July 16, Pedernales Falls State Park closed every trail for the day. The park posted that the river was running at about 5,000 cfs and that "a flood wave coming, flowing at over 60,000cfs and getting faster" was on its way, according to KXAN's live coverage. The 60,000 cfs wave was about 2,300 times this week's flow.
Nobody could have planned around that July closure. The ones coming this winter are different. Texas Parks and Wildlife has already published them on the park's alert page, so the gaps in the park's availability between now and summer 2027 are known in advance.
A Low River Is Not a Promise
The October readings make the falls look calm. TPWD's guidance hasn't changed, though. Swimming and wading are prohibited in the Pedernales Falls area. A separate swimming-area access sits elsewhere on the river, and the park overview warns that river levels can rise rapidly. July showed what that warning means. On July 16, a flood warning was in effect for the Pedernales River at Johnson City, and the wave the park reported was about 12 times the flow already running past the falls that morning.
Treat the gauge numbers as a snapshot of one evening in early October. The river can still close the park on short notice. What has changed is that the river is no longer the most likely reason the gate will be closed on a given day this winter. The hunt schedule is.
Three Windows When Only Hunters Get In
TPWD lists three closures at Pedernales Falls. During each one, only permitted hunters may enter the park. The alert gives these dates without a year. The same page announces a campground closure starting January 1, 2027, so we read them as the 2026–27 season. That's our inference, not something TPWD states. On that reading, here is how they fall:
| Closure on TPWD's alert | Starts | Reopens | What it overlaps |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 p.m. Nov. 21 to 2 p.m. Nov. 24 | Saturday night | Tuesday afternoon | The weekend before Thanksgiving |
| 10 p.m. Dec. 13 to 2 p.m. Dec. 17 | Sunday night | Thursday afternoon | Most of a mid-December workweek |
| 10 p.m. Jan. 18 to 2 p.m. Jan. 22 | Monday night | Friday afternoon | Starts on the evening of Martin Luther King Jr. Day |
The 10 p.m. start time matters. Each closure begins the night before its first full day, so on November 21 the park is open through Saturday evening, and the January closure leaves the MLK Day holiday itself open.
One complication: the hunt dates in the state park reservation system differ by one day from those on TPWD's alert page. The alert page is the current schedule. Before you plan a trip near any of these dates, call the park to confirm, since that's what the alert itself recommends.
Thanksgiving Week Gets Squeezed
The November closure has the biggest effect. Thanksgiving falls on November 26 this year, and the park doesn't reopen until 2 p.m. on Tuesday, November 24. That leaves Wednesday through Sunday of the holiday week as the only open stretch for anyone who wanted the falls during the break.
TPWD already recommends reserving day passes or campsites before visiting on weekends, school breaks and holidays, and it notes that permits often sell out for those times. Entry costs $6 a day for visitors 13 and older, and the park overview notes that the park often reaches capacity. With the weekend before Thanksgiving closed to everyone except hunters, holiday visits fit into fewer days. If you're hosting family that week and want to take them out to the river, book early.
The holiday calendar keeps going after the park reopens. Lights Spectacular lists its 2026 season as November 27, 2026 through January 3, 2027, beginning the day after Thanksgiving. The site notes that it is still updating its detailed event content, so the 2026 schedule of activities beyond those dates isn't posted yet.
January Takes the Campground Offline
The December and January hunt closures are temporary. The campground closure lasts much longer. Starting January 1, 2027, the water/electric campground will be closed through summer 2027 for a construction project. TPWD hasn't named a reopening date or described the work, and the Twin Falls Trail stays open throughout.
That campground is the park's main overnight option. It has 69 sites with water and electricity at $20 a night plus the entrance fee. The campsites page still lists hike-in primitive sites as an alternative.
Put the dates together and the window is easy to see. For anyone hoping for a night at the hookup sites before construction starts, the open nights run from now through December 31. The November 21–24 and December 13–17 closures, plus whatever holiday demand fills in around them, come out of that time. The half-mile Twin Falls Nature Trail and falls overlook, and the six-mile Wolf Mountain Trail, are day-use options TPWD describes on its overview page. The alert only promises that Twin Falls stays open during construction, so check before planning a winter day around another area.
A Note for Anyone Walking a Dog Out There
The park page also links to a TPWD screwworm alert dated June 13, 2026. It asks visitors to check pets and livestock for unusual wounds or maggots, not to move affected animals, and to contact the Texas Animal Health Commission or a veterinarian. Suspicious-looking wildlife should be reported to park staff. TPWD's screwworm guidance sends pet owners to their local vet and doesn't restrict pets or visitors. So it adds one step to the walk back to the car. It doesn't close anything.
What's On in Town During the Gaps
The dates the park is open and the dates the town is busy mostly fall in different weeks this season. October is entirely open at the park and full in town. The closures begin after the town calendar slows down.
- October 9–11: the 34th Annual Pig Roast at the Blanco County Fairgrounds, with live music, a Saturday pig roast, a bike show and a poker ride.
- October 17: the 6th Annual Texas Wine Jam at Memorial Park, with Texas wineries, live music, local food and tasting sessions.
- October 24: the 5th Annual Gears & Beers Car and Motorcycle Show at Pecan Street Brewing from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The same day, the city calendar lists the JCTX Jazz & Art Festival at the Memorial.
- October 31: Trick-or-Treat at the Square, according to the city's event calendar.
- November 14: Brew & Bingo: Harvest Table at Pecan Street Brewing from 6 to 9 p.m. Ticket sales are due to start in October, and the menu hasn't been announced.
- December 12: the 5K Jingle Jaunt, one day before the December hunt closure begins Sunday night.
For something closer to the park experience during a closure, the National Park Service calendar for LBJ National Historical Park lists daily tours of President Johnson's Boyhood Home in October, plus weekly ranger programs at the Show Barn with its Herefords and at the Junction School. The NPS hasn't posted its November and December schedule on that page yet, so check closer to the date.
The Short Version for Your Calendar
October is open at the park, with the river low and the town busy. If the alert's undated hunt windows apply to this season, as they appear to, the park closes from Saturday night, November 21, until Tuesday afternoon, November 24. It closes again from Sunday night, December 13, until Thursday afternoon, December 17. The water/electric campground shuts down on January 1. The last hunt closure runs from the evening of January 18 to the afternoon of January 22. The river can still close the park without notice, as it did on July 16.
Hunting seasons and river access come up whenever someone owns land in Blanco County, not just at the state park. If you're weighing Hill Country land and want to know how hunting, river access and seasonal use affect it, Friedman Real Estate has spent more than 30 years on that kind of property. Let's Connect.
