Log Country Cove — Hotel in Horseshoe Bay

"Idyllic" is the best word to describe Texas Hill Country, Log Country Cove, and Elkhart Lodge, the spectacular cabin that was our family home for nearly a week.||||Hill Country in April and May is carpeted with wildflowers. Along with the cedars, live oaks, mesquites, prickly pears, rolling hills, occasional rock outcrops, old-school towns, golf courses, little streams, and the big dam-created lakes, it's a heavenly getaway.||||Log Country Cove blends right in. Granting awe and respect to the mega metro mansions that line other parts of Lake LBJ, I must say that an enclave of 40 log cabins just feels like the perfect way to experience Hill Country.||||Elkhart Lodge is a genuine cabin made from giant Canadian logs but it's also the classiest and most complete vacation home I've ever seen. 4 bedrooms, 2 on the first floor and 2 on the second, plus additional beds to sleep a ton of people. The central loft area on the second floor has casual seating and a vintage foosball table -- good play area for kids. The Great Room on the first floor has a giant kitchen (all the appliances) with breakfast bar, a dining table (where 10 gathered comfortably), a conversation area near the expanse of cathedral windows, and even a gas fireplace. Real saddles, steer skin, and dried flowers combine with subway tile, quartz countertops, and smart lighting to give it lots of country-chic style.||||Outdoors! Steps from the master bedroom, an 8-person hot tub flows over rock ledges into the curvy swimming pool. The deck area includes gas and charcoal grills and looks out over a cove (complete with sun-basking turtles) that connects to the main lake. The kids fished in the cove and the lake. Next to the cove and the volleyball court is a great fire pit area. In the front yard, there are horseshoe pits and a rope swing; we set up some archery targets and a mini-track for the kids' mini monster truck. There's plenty of room because Elkhart Lodge owns many acres; it feels secluded and very private. ||||But it is a part of the Log Country operation, which offers the benefit of professional management, always-available assistance, a shared waterfront with multiple kinds of boats (and golf carts) to rent, a water trampoline, snack bar, a modest mini-golf course, sand volleyball court, and large event space for weddings, etc.||||One of the things we enjoyed the most was the (easy) hiking trail that runs over 3 miles through the property. It includes a surprise so cool that I can't adequately describe it -- you're going to have to find it...

Wow, this place blew our hair back, knocked our socks off, and exceeded all our expectations! ||||Elkhart Lodge is beautifully appointed and you can see the level of attention everywhere. The cathedral windows are stunning and the view encourages you to slip on your shoes and enjoy the endless activities around the property. ||||Our 6-year-old son was delighted by the kids' craft corner and foosball table upstairs, the cabinet of games/puzzles, the selection of children's books to read at bedtime, and the marshmallow roasting sticks we used at the fire pit by the lake (Can we get an amen for a place that understands when your kid has a good time, YOU have a good time?) ||||We love to cook when we're on vacation and the kitchen did not disappoint. It's fully loaded with every pot/pan you could need, cooking oils/spice selection, blender, toaster, large stock pots for big gatherings, and even had an entire drawer of kids plates/bowls as well as thermos mugs for taking your cocktails on the go. The outdoor charcoal grill was clean and ready to turn out delicious steaks (which we purchased at the HEB in Kingsland, only a 5-minute drive away). ||||We walked down to the main area of Log Country to play a round of mini-golf, swing, and watch the boats on the water. This place must be a riot in the summer but was still such a nice getaway on a chilly weekend. We fired up the hot tub and warmed ourselves by the fireplace inside - talk about top-level cozy factor. ||||Every last thing was so clean and fresh, the beds comfortable, the showers good water pressure. It truly felt like a luxe stay in the woods. ||||I can imagine this place being ideal for family reunions, bachelorette/bachelor parties, team building weekends and so much more. We're already trying to find a reason to go back.||||Lastly, the checkout procedures are simple - we've visited many properties where we're essentially required to work the last day of our stay. Not here. Wash your dishes, take out the trash and lock the door. ||||Thank you for a fabulous hill country getaway - we came back more energized and a little...

Many problems. This was our 3rd visit so obviously we had enjoyed it before. We arrived on Christmas Day for a 5 day stay. We had been informed that no one would be in the office that day so no problem. We were unable to start the gas fireplace that day, not much thought of it. The pool was low and dirty, hot tub was almost empty. It was Christmas and family was arriving so we were not overly concerned. The next day the remaining family arrived and we did our family gift exchange and enjoyed each other.|The following morning, I went to the office to let them know of our problems and was met with a very defensive person. I was not at all upset, just wanted to make sure they knew. She seemed angry that I had not told her earlier but we were busy with our family.||Issues were: We had about 20 degree variance in the temperature between upstairs and downstairs and impossible to regulate. The hot tub and pool were not functional. There are 2 jacuzzi bathtubs but neither was operational. The toilet seat was broken. There were nails sticking up on the transition between one bedroom and the bathroom. The carpets were absolutely filthy and gross. There is no hand soap in the house. There was evidence of a previous leak in one bathroom.||Positives:|Space was ample for our family. Kitchen is well equipped and refrigerator, oven, dishwasher, microwave and coffee maker worked. The place was cleaned prior to our arrival.||After informing the the management about the problems, they sent someone that changed out toilet seat and hammered nails in the floor so no one steps on them anymore. Nothing else was resolved or addressed for the remainder of the trip, no one followed up on any other issues. We were told the hot tub would be operational for our last day but it was not. They did issue a small credit, less than 1/2 of 1 day's rate.||The accommodations were disappointing|to say the least. Unfortunately, this will probably be our last family trip to Log Country Cove.||Rooms: 2/5 | Service: 1/5 | ...