Fall in Love with Fall Creek Ranch in Travis County, Texas

Turning the calendar to September signals the start of  the hunting season and leaves me longing for the Texas Hill Country, even though I’m more likely found shooting with a camera than a gun. I love the feeling of being in a natural setting, flush with fish and wildlife. Wish-booking through ranch property listings, I came across this lovely property, Fall Creek Ranch off the Pedernales River in Travis County, northwest of Austin.

It’s available all or in part, with or without a 9-acre parcel with a lodge house bearing the address 26109 Wild River Road, Spicewood.  The five-bedroom, six-bathroom home was built in 2004 as a retreat house. At 3,128-square feet, the lodge sleeps up to 15 with space for more in cots on a sleeping porch. Modeled after 1800s-era Texas dog-trot style log cabins, the structure is finished out with antique and reclaimed materials and is so charming it has been featured in both Country’s Best Log Homes Magazine (Spring 2010) and Cabin Living (April 2016.) 

 

Here’s more of the magazine-quality interior and gorgeous surrounds: 

The open floor plan with a loft is light and airy with lots of windows. Walls and ceilings are covered with antique and reclaimed materials, such as antique shiplap and bead board, much of which was sourced from a circa 1890 cotton oil mill in Seguin and a church in Taylor dating to 1901.  Throughout the house are antique doors, and longleaf and shortleaf pine floors.

The result is a comfortable kaleidoscope of natural colors and textures.

Living and dining space adjoins an eclectic country kitchen under the warm glow of the pressed tin tile ceiling.

There’s a free-standing fireplace in the entry, too.

The master bedroom is on the second floor and features a neat stick ceiling.

A cozy downstairs room doubles as an office. We love the creative use of wallpaper!

For a place like this, a bunk room is a must. This one is cozy and whimsical.

The bathrooms have fun, eclectic features:

The screened-in porch has extra room for cots:

Covered decking surrounding the back and sides adds extra living space:

Here is the side view:

Behind and below is the pristine creek that flows year round:

Nearby is a fruit orchard and deer-proofed garden:

In addition to the lodge, improvements include a detached garage, barn, storage shed, and deer stand, plus an”off-the-grid” set up: a solar panel system that has served as a model for solar electric systems installers and students from across the country. A 12,000-gallon rain collection system supplements ultra-violet light-filtered well water.

All of this sits on 68 acres, heavily treed with large cypress, oaks, pecans, persimmons, walnuts, elms, buckeyes, sumacs and redbuds. There’s abundant water via access to the Pedernales River, and in the grottos, swimming holes, fishing holes, and rapids of the creek, you can see why the deer, turkey, hogs, quail, doves, and free-ranging exotic game easily make their homes here.

Occupants are not cut off from the world, however, as the lodge has high speed internet, and, per the listing agent, the location is 40 minutes from downtown Austin, 20 minutes from Galleria Mall in Bee Cave, 15 minutes from the new Scott & White hospital in Marble Falls, and 10 minutes from the Spicewood airport. Google maps pegs it approximately a 3 and 1/2 hour drive from Dallas/Fort Worth.

Fall Creek Ranch is listed by broker Brady Moore of Big League Ranches LLC with varied purchase options: 9 acres with the lodge for $2, 195,000; 68 acres with the lodge for $3,995,000; or 59 acres of land only for $1, 975,000. With hiking, hunting, fishing, and bird-watching right off the porches, it sounds like the perfect gathering spot for fall weekends and a big Thanksgiving dinner for a nature-loving family!