WIMBERLEY, Texas – One of the iconic Central Texas swim spots got some love from Mother Nature this week as rains replenished its reservoir, at least temporarily.
Videos and photos show water flowing from Jacob’s Well for the first time in many months.
“It’s much more water than we’ve seen for an incredibly long time,” said Hays County Parks Department Education Coordinator Katherine Sturdivant.
Sturdivant said that for over a year, the well has been “wildly below” its average outflow of 4 cubic feet per second.
In fact, the flow has been at zero since the summer. But that changed on Jan. 22 as heavy storms drenched the area. Outflow spiked at 28 cubic feet per second. Of course, that flow rate was temporary, but it got another boost with each new rainfall in the past few days.
Related: Before and after photos show dire conditions at popular swimming hole Jacob’s Well
Sturdivant estimated that the recent rains could provide flow for about a week. Unfortunately, the flow will probably fall back toward zero until the Trinity Aquifer, which provides water to Jacob’s Well, is recharged.
Jacob’s Well is the second-largest fully submerged cave in Texas. It’s long been a popular swim spot requiring reservations that can sometimes fill up months in advance.
But swimming has been prohibited since early summer of 2022.
Watch a video that shows Jacob’s Well before and after the recent drought below:
As drought conditions worsened, Hays County had to cancel reservations and refund money. It’s not a process they want to repeat.
So until it’s clear that there will be plenty of water, there will be no hope for a swim season.
“We want to avoid getting everybody’s hopes up and then having to call it off,” Sturdivant said.
But swimming isn’t the only draw to Jacob’s Well Natural Area. It’s open daily from 8 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. for hiking, and conditions are great for that.
“The weather is nice, and the well looks gorgeous,” she said.
Jacob’s Well Natural Area offers free guided tours each Saturday at 10 a.m.
Photo Below: Hiker Metta Marie Archilla shared a photo with KSAT of her hike near Jacob’s Well this week.