Sleep in a treehouse at Cypress Valley Canopy Tours
Published at 101HighlandLakes.com
Stay the night at an aerial resort after ziplining through a canopy of Cypress trees. Photo courtesy of Cypress Valley Canopy Tours
Spend the night in a treehouse after ziplining through a canopy of trees at Cypress Valley Canopy Tours.
In 1998, entrepreneurs David and Amy Beilharz sold their home in Austin and bought 88 acres of undeveloped land in Spicewood. After raising their four children, the couple wanted to share their property with the public — and Cypress Valley Canopy Tours was born.
“They had been contemplating stuff to do with the land for awhile. They had an organic farm, they had bison, and they wanted to do something more substantial,” manager Shelby Semon said. “David went and experienced a canopy tour in Central America and decided that’s how he wanted to share their property with the world.”
The treehouses are beautifully decorated on the inside with views that will take your breath away. Photo courtesy of Cypress Valley Canopy Tours
The Beilharzes opened Cypress Valley Canopy Tours in 2005. It was the first true canopy ziplining tour in the continental United States.
Today, the property is an aerial resort. It now boasts four treehouses with a fifth one in the making. Each treehouse is accessed by a long, wooden rope bridge. The treehouses tower above the ravine, the life source for the cypress trees. The valley becomes a beautiful explosion of color in the spring.
At night, the property is pitch dark. Guests can see millions of stars and are treated to a stunning view of the Milky Way. Fireflies light up the cypress forest, making the stay a magical experience.
The Juniper and the Willow are the property’s small, but sweet, treehouses. They are the first you’ll see on the property and are at the start of the canopy tour, so guests can watch the tour in action from the comfort of their private porch.
The Juniper and the Willow are the property's smallest treehouses and are centered along the canopy tour. Photo courtesy of Cypress Valley Canopy Tours
Families will feel right at home in the Nest, the biggest treehouse. The Nest is settled into the ravine with several lookouts, a kitchen, and an outdoor solar shower. It is in the middle of the canopy tour with a huge platform for exploring and a beautiful, curving steel-support structure holding it all up.
The multi-story Nest treehouse is settled into the ravine. Photo courtesy of Cypress Valley Canopy Tours
Romantics will delight in the Lofthaven, a secluded treehouse yurt. Lofthaven connects to a private bathhouse with a waterfall and a soaking pool. Lofthaven isn’t under any element of the canopy tour, so it’s the most private of the four.
“There’s no TVs, no WiFi, limited cellphone service,” said Semon, who encourages guests to disconnect. “Enjoy each other. Read a book. Get outdoors.”
The Lofthaven is the perfect treehouse for a romantic outing with a yurt high above the ravine and a private soaking pool. Photos courtesy of Cypress Valley Canopy Tours
Guests can zipline through the property’s cypress forest led by passionate and well-trained guides. The eco-friendly tour runs approximately two hours. It focuses on biology, ecology, and area history. The course includes five zip cables, two sky bridges, and a rappel.
Zipline through the cypress trees: The canopy tours focus on the biology, ecology, and history of the area. Photo courtesy of Cypress Valley Canopy Tours
“The true goal is to be a canopy tour, so you can get together and enjoy nature,” Semon said. “The tour is geared towards the general public — it wasn’t built to be the biggest, fastest, and highest zipline. It was built for guests to reconnect, do something adventurous, and get back outdoors.”
The canopy tour and treehouses in Spicewood have been so successful, in fact, that the Beilharzes are currently building a treehouse resort in the California redwoods.
“The treehouses were designed and built by ArtisTrees, which is actually owned and operated by their son, Will Beilharz,” Semon said. “ArtisTrees builds our treehouses and treehouses all over the world. It’s all a family business.”
Guests staying at Cypress Valley Canopy Tours also have access to the lake (complete with a rope swing, a water zipline, and a row boat), a pristine swimming pool, barbecue grills, picnic areas, and other amenities on the property.
Cypress Valley Canopy Tours is located at 1223 S. Paleface Ranch Road in Spicewood. Go to cypressvalleycanopytours.com or call (512) 264-8880 for more information.