Hamilton Pool

Hamilton Pool Preserve is a natural swimming hole and protected nature reserve at 24300 Hamilton Pool Road, near Dripping Springs in Travis County, Texas, USA, approximately 40 kilometres west of Austin. The pool was formed thousands of years ago when the ceiling of an underground limestone cavern collapsed, leaving a large circular basin partly enclosed by an overhanging rock formation. Hamilton Creek flows over the remaining limestone ledge, creating a waterfall approximately 15 metres (50 feet) high that drops into the green water below. The surrounding cliffs contain natural alcoves, exposed limestone layers and vegetation growing along the rock walls. The property belonged to Morgan C. Hamilton during the nineteenth century before being acquired by the German immigrant Reimers family in the 1880s. The family gradually developed the natural pool as a recreational destination, which became increasingly popular during the twentieth century. Travis County purchased 232 acres from the Reimers family in 1985 and designated the area a nature preserve in 1990. The site subsequently became part of the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve, established to protect important wildlife habitats in the Texas Hill Country.

Hamilton Pool Preserve has appeared in The Hot Spot (1990), Teeth (2007), Predators (2010) and The Tree of Life (2011). Its natural swimming pool and limestone overhang are used for a romantic encounter in The Hot Spot and a violent confrontation between two teenagers in Teeth. In Predators, the basin represents part of an alien jungle, while The Tree of Life incorporates the natural pool and surrounding rock formations into its imagery of the natural world.

In The Hot Spot (1990), directed by Dennis Hopper, Hamilton Pool appears during a swimming excursion involving Harry Madox (Don Johnson) and Gloria Harper (Jennifer Connelly). Harry, a drifter working as a car salesman in a small Texas town, has become attracted to Gloria while simultaneously pursuing a dangerous relationship with Dolly Harshaw (Virginia Madsen), the wife of his employer. Harry and Gloria spend time together at the secluded swimming hole, where they enter the water beneath the enormous limestone overhang. The scene uses the actual natural pool, with the curved rock ceiling, steep walls and surrounding vegetation clearly visible. The characters swim together in the green water, away from the town and the people involved in Harry’s increasingly complicated personal life.

The pool also appears in footage connected to Gloria’s past, including a brief flashback showing Gloria and Irene Davey (Debra Cole) sunbathing naked. From a distance Frank Sutton is taking nude pictures of them, that he later uses to blackmail the girls. This is the very famous debut nude scene to Jennifer Connelly. Both sequences were filmed at Hamilton Pool during the production’s Texas location shoot in 1989. The secluded setting contrasts with the streets, businesses and other locations in the fictional town of Landers, which were filmed mainly in Taylor and other parts of Central Texas. The large limestone overhang and waterfall remain the most recognisable features of the filming location.

In Teeth (2007), written and directed by Mitchell Lichtenstein, Hamilton Pool is used for the swimming-hole sequence involving Dawn O’Keefe (Jess Weixler) and Tobey (Hale Appleman). The two teenagers belong to a Christian abstinence group and have developed a mutual attraction, despite agreeing that they should avoid being alone together. They eventually arrange to meet at a secluded natural swimming hole, where the limestone cliffs and water form the setting for one of the film’s central sequences. After swimming, they move into a sheltered rocky area behind the waterfall, where they begin kissing.

Their encounter turns violent when Tobey ignores Dawn’s repeated demands to stop and attempts to rape her. During the struggle, Dawn discovers the terrifying physical condition that gives the film its title. Tobey is severely injured and falls from the rocky ledge, while Dawn flees in panic. The natural swimming hole also appears when Dawn returns to investigate what happened, eventually discovering that Tobey’s body has been recovered by the authorities. The rocky overhang, the water below and the surrounding limestone cliffs are central to the scene’s geography.

Hamilton Pool was one of the reasons Lichtenstein chose to film Teeth in the Austin area. The director was particularly interested in the shape of the partially collapsed cavern, whose large opening and pointed rock formations suggested the film’s central anatomical imagery. The production also used Krause Springs near Spicewood for some waterfall footage, combining the two natural swimming locations within the sequence.

In Predators (2010), directed by Nimród Antal and produced by Robert Rodriguez, Hamilton Pool represents a stretch of river and jungle on an alien planet where a group of heavily armed humans have been transported to serve as prey for extraterrestrial hunters. The location appears after Royce (Adrien Brody), Isabelle (Alice Braga), Edwin (Topher Grace) and the other survivors encounter the Predators and their hunting creatures. Attempting to escape, the group rushes through the jungle and tumbles down a steep slope towards a waterfall, eventually plunging into the water below.

Hamilton Pool is used for the sequence in which the survivors emerge from the water beneath the limestone overhang. The characters swim towards the edge of the basin and scramble onto the rocks, with the waterfall and curved cavern ceiling visible behind them. The scene is assembled from several filming locations, with wider shots of the waterfall and the characters’ fall photographed elsewhere. Hamilton Pool provides the sheltered basin at the bottom, where the distinctive rock formations can be recognised despite the location representing an entirely different planet.

The sequence was filmed during the production’s Texas shoot in late 2009. The actors worked in the natural pool during cold weather, and the waterfall created additional difficulties because the sound of the falling water interfered with dialogue recording. The combination of the real limestone grotto, surrounding vegetation and other exterior locations in Texas and Hawaii allowed the filmmakers to construct a continuous alien landscape from geographically separate environments.

In The Tree of Life (2011), directed by Terrence Malick, Hamilton Pool appears in the film’s extensive imagery of nature, water and the origins of life. The film follows the memories and experiences of the O’Brien family in 1950s Texas, combining scenes of everyday childhood with images of the natural world and the development of life on Earth. Hamilton Pool is visible in a sequence showing the natural basin beneath the mouth of the enormous limestone cavern, with the surrounding rock formations and water forming the composition.

The footage makes use of the pool’s partially enclosed shape, with the large overhanging cliff framing the water below. Unlike the more conventional swimming and action sequences filmed at the same location in The Hot Spot, Teeth and Predators, the natural setting appears as part of Malick’s broader visual exploration of the relationship between human life and the environment. The production also filmed at other natural locations around Central Texas, including Barton Springs in Austin and McKinney Falls State Park, which appear in separate sequences.

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