The Falls of Slick Rock
by DALE FRY - Highlander Staff

The grand opening in 1990 of the spectacular Falls of Slick Rock marked the completion of yet another of the many one-of-a-kind Norman Hurd-designed amenities that have distinguished Horseshoe Bay Resort as one of the most unique in the nation.

The massive waterfall, 100 feet long, 25 feet high and built on two levels, is the focal point of a major landscape complex — months in the making — at Slick Rock Golf Course's 14th hole. Hurd designed the area with a dual purpose in mind: to alter the water hazard created by the creek which flows throughout the golf course, crossing it between the tee and the green at number 14 — and to create a thing of beauty unparalleled anywhere else in the nation.

"In my opinion, it's the most beautiful and unusual hole in America," Hurd said.

Creation of the landscaping project was no small task, nor was it inexpensive; the sheer magnitude of this undertaking distinguished it quite apart from the other landscape developments which preceded it.

"It (was) the largest and most intricate project we (had done to date), so far as landscape and beautification are concerned," Hurd said.

The development of the site, which began in October, 1989, required six months, 40,000 man hours, 2,000 equipment hours and a large number of laborers, not to mention Hurd's daily supervision and the expertise of engineer Frank King, project foreman Lewis Jackson, golf course maintenance director Alan Houdek and masonry contractor Bobby McMurry.

Hurd said the value of the site lies in its relation to the golf course and to the creek. "But how can you determine the monetary value of the creek itself?" he asked.

Hurd's distinctive touch is evident throughout the entire site. After hand-cleaning the creek's banks to remove undesirable growth and erosion, Hurd scooped tons of silt from the creek ("We don't believe any silt will come out of Slick Rock Creek into Lake LBJ"), and from this material; created huge flowing mounds, then covered them with grass. Then he built over 600 feet of retaining walls to hold the banks intact.

These gracefully curving limestone walls, rising as high as 25 or 30 feet, follow the natural rock formations which extend down to the bedrock in the spring-fed creek. The walls serve not only to hold the creek banks, they also lend a touch of beauty: their planting pockets are filled with shrubs and native plants — and here and there, carefully controlled Carolina Jasmine vines in a burst of yellow blooms cascade over the walls and seek the waters below.

Maintenance crews regularly tend the vines for an aesthetic display of both plant and stone. "The vines are controlled," Hurd said. "We like to maintain a 20 percent coverage; if you hide the stone, you've destroyed your purpose."

Creating an exceptional golf hole also required re-covering golf cart paths with a slate-like finish and edging them with limestone curbs; transporting for miles great boulders weighing in the tons and positioning each to Hurd's exacting requirements; cantilevering an observation deck out over the creek; planting some 10,000 individual plants in special raised and contoured planters and elevating the existing mens' and ladies' number 14 tee.

And, of course, building an imposing split-level waterfall complete with a wooden golf cart bridge crossing between the upper and the lower falls. And creating another ladies' tee, a very special one, integrating its design into the design of the waterfall so that the two form one beautiful entity.

"It was a good location for the waterfall," Hurd said. "It had all the natural characteristics for a big one. It's the only waterfall I know of, of any magnitude, on any golf course that crosses a fairway — and it's the only known waterfall designed with a golf cart path crossing between the two falls."

Hurd said the idea came to him suddenly one evening as he was relaxing at home. The thought entered his mind from nowhere: Why not a waterfall, a huge one? Then, just as suddenly: And why not a split-level waterfall, two falls with a golf cart path passing between each?

A week later he began construction.

"The addition of the waterfall hazard was a part of our philosophy," Hurd said. "It is impossible to maintain a level. You must be ever changing and improving to create new interests for your members and guests.

"The challenge in getting Horseshoe Bay to where it should be is in making it more unique than other resorts. I think it's unique to others now, but not as unique as it will be.

"Everyone has golf; everyone has tennis; everyone has all these usual resort amenities — but where do you go from there? We added tropical birds, unusual play of water, original sculpture...Horseshoe Bay has developed about 30 percent of (its planned development)."

Horseshoe Bay Resort President and Chief Executive Officer Ron Mitchell puts it another way. He says the resort is dedicated to being a trendsetter in what he calls "spectacle golf." This is a trend that has developed over the past eight or 10 years, in which world class golf is leaning more toward aesthetics: unique design that appeals to the senses and creates a positive reaction.

"Such aesthetics may include eye-catching rock formations, breathtaking waterfalls and possibly even man-made art forms placed solely for the enjoyment of the golfer," he says.

"We plan to be a trendsetter — and we can do it, because Horseshoe Bay Resort possesses the rare combination of natural beauty and a commitment to spend the green. Other resorts spend millions of dollars for imitation stone made of plastic and papier-mache, for instance, to create a 'golf spectacle' (such as a waterfall).

"At Horseshoe Bay Resort, we use the real thing — and the success of a project is not measured in dollar return, but in the challenge of bringing the vision to reality regardless of the difficulty involved or the man and equipment hours required. The success is also measured by the degree of pleasure these amenities create."

This commitment to "using the real thing" is nowhere more evident than in Hurd's fabulous Falls of Slick Rock, and in the ladies' number 14 tee adjacent to it.

Hurd searched the countryside to find the boulders he wanted, selected each for its size, shape, color and other distinctive features. "We'd look at maybe 15 boulders at least for every one I took," he said, adding, "You have to appreciate the natural characteristics of rocks in order to get the best effects out of them."

Then, once he'd found just the right ones, he chose the exact location and angle of each of them in his design. "When I designed the ladies' tee I saw a suggestion of a small amphitheater," he explained. "I chose each stone with that in mind. It's hard to find height without too much width. We searched a long time to find the right height and width for the effect I wanted."

Hurd selected 19 boulders, considering each of them a natural work of art. And, to accomplish the effect he wanted, stood them in a sort of semi-circle, turning each until he had achieved the right relation of one to the other. He drilled holes in the largest ones, inserted steel rebar in the holes to anchor them safely, then poured up to three feet of concrete around each to stabilize them.

Seven or eight of these 19 boulders together weight an incredible 250,000 pounds, Hurd said, and one of them alone weighs 50,000 pounds – or 25 tons.

Hurd not only chose the site because it contained the natural characteristics conducive to building a massive waterfall, but also because it afforded him the opportunity to create an ingenious effect in a landscape setting designed specifically for the enjoyment of the golfers. Before crossing the creek, those traveling the golf path see only an existing stand of oak trees to the right of the waterfall. But after the traveler reaches the other side of the creek and enters the copse of oaks, an unexpected setting of boulders and shrubs opens before him as the path curves sharply to the left. As the path reaches the apex of the climb, one immediately sees, atop a rock wall, the setting of Hurd's 19 artistically arranged boulders towering overhead to the right, a stunning effect. Passing the boulder setting, the path bursts out from under the trees and enters onto the bridge crossing between the falls. Adding to the visual effect, the roar of the falls to the right and to the left creates an even greater sensual experience.

Hurd went for tonnage also when selecting pumps for his waterfall. "We started at 1,000 gallons per minute, then went to 2,000, then finally said 4,000 would be enough. Then I thought, 'Well, you can't get too much, so we'd better use two 4,000 gallons pumps.' "

Water roars over, and splashes from, ledges that weigh in the tons at the rate of 8,000 gallons, or 32 tons, of water per minute — no small play of water created solely for the enjoyment of Horseshoe Bay Resort golfers.

"Four thousand gallons a minute would have done it," Hurd said, "but it wouldn't have been as effective. You're dealing with two senses: the sense of sight and the sense of sound, and 4,000 would have gotten only about 20 percent of the effect I wanted. I have 100 percent now."

Rising above the creek and perched at one end of the bottom falls, a planting area contains yet another unusual feature, offering a telling insight into Hurd's basic attitude: no amount of time, money or effort were too great to expend in order to achieve the desired effect.

Designed into the planter are two large, thin and flat rock ledges cantilevered four or five feet out into space. Two huge native yucca plants resting on the ledges seem to grow in thin air; one cannot see where their long trunks are rooted in the soil of the planter.

Hurd spied the plants one day on Horseshoe Bay property, and noticed that they were growing parallel to the ground, contrary to their natural upright growth pattern.

Several laborers spent the whole of a day painstakingly digging the yuccas up, keeping a huge ball of dirt compacted around the roots. The plants were so heavy they required a front-end loader to transport them and put them in place high above the creek. Hurd stood below in the creek directing their exact placement.

Lewis Jackson, foreman of the waterfall project who has worked at Horseshoe Bay for years, tells of an interesting incident concerning another native yucca. According to Jackson, one large rock had to be removed during the course of construction — but a large yucca had been growing in the rock for years, a quirk of nature. Hurd wanted to save the plant, but how? He couldn't remove it from its habitat without damaging or killing it — a fact he refused to consider.

"Mr. Hurd had us move the whole thing, rock and all, and plant it across the creek in another location; he didn't want to lose it," Jackson said.

But even though Hurd was uncompromising in his commitment to producing quality and creating a world of beauty, he was always modest about his resulting accomplishments. He never took any credit for his talent: he insisted it was God-given.

"It's not credit that we deserve for having a particular talent," he said. "Instead, it's a responsibility and an obligation to properly use whatever talent one might have. I don't want to say I have any talent; I'm just referring to God-given talent anyone may have."

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