Bridgeport Falls

Bridgeport Falls

COVID-19 has been a very challenging experience, but realizing I just can’t stay inside forever, I joined a Meet-Up group at Bridgeport Falls. 


Clear skies made for a really nice hour long drive north through small towns like Boyd and Paradise. I’m always amazed at the beauty of the Texas landscape. 


Bridgeport Falls is situated on the Trinity Paddling Trail. The “falls” are actually created by a dam used during high water flow by paddlers to practice white water skills.


More than a dozen people turned out to paddle a five mile course. A friend, Tricia Thomason, who I know from TOWN was there too. She and I decided to forego the crowd and paddled ahead into the serene waterway.


With each paddle stroke, still air and a glass-like waterway untangled the stress of COVID-19 and Black Lives Matter protests from my shoulders. Deep sighs of serenity created much needed distance from the serious realities of the world for three hours.


We paddled through a couple of fast, strong eddies and finally saw the silhouette of the creatures leaving cow patties on the shoreline. Adjacent to the water, black Angus were allowed to water at the edge of the West Fork of the Trinity River. The call of their voices provided a unique serenade  to the paddle.


At about mile two, we encounter a rather large, impassable snag. Unseen when we entered the funnel, but greeting us as we turned to leave, a large water moccasin was perched on a submerged tree limb. Where there’s one, there are probably others. 


Aided by a swift current, the return downstream was equally pleasant. The wind had picked up and buffered the growing heat.


Highly recommend a few hours southeast of Lake Bridgeport. A lovely paddle.