📍 Lost Maples East Trail Hike | Texas Hill Country with Dude RV

Lost Maples, Lost Maples State Natural Area, early. Sun's not quite over the horizon yet, and we're headed to the Grotto, East Trail, right there. A whole lot of this, a whole lot of walking across this. All right, I got out of the, looks like we're leaving the river over there. I don't know, but the road has opened up. The trail, lots of, so many little maple trees. Red buds. I'm not sure what this one is, but it's got the neatest bark. All right, we'll keep going. This is a big-tooth maple, a very old big-tooth maple. Look at the size of it. Massive. So cool. All right. I know. But that's why we're here, is to see this maple tree. This trail surface, it rolls. It's like, oh, this is work walking on this. All right, we've got a fork in the road coming up. Monkey rock. I guess we better go see a monkey rock. I hope it's well identified. Certainly don't want to be in any hurry on this. Oh, no, that's cool. I presume this is the famous monkey rock. We have an echo. It is cool the way the ferns are hanging. And then we've got a maple. Oh, maple just hanging on right there next to the juniper. They're just hanging on. Wasn't identified but maybe this is the grotto? Pretty cool. So this is the Primitive Campground Camping Area A. Now I understand. So this is Primitive Camping Area A. It's off the side of the trail. We are crossing out of the river valley and about to go over into the creek valley. So that's the Sabinal. So now we're leaving the Sabinal, I think, and headed up over into a creek channel. But I could be wrong. That could be a creek channel and we're headed back. I don't know. If you find yourself way out on the trail here at Lost Maples, they have provided you with facilities. We are at the, there's a sign right up there that says no bikes beyond this point. And if you can get it back to this point, my hat's off to you. This maple tree, I mean, it's growing in this and looks like that. And it's just so magnificent. I know, I know, I'm geeking on the trees. But how can you not? Look at that one up there. Oh, that would be so cool. How do you get there? It's an oak with maple. Oh, and the roots hanging down. And there's that one up there. How cool is that? Now I just need to sit back and get over there. The grotto. Okay, so it's a half cave kind of. This view right here. This is so cool. Just have to wonder how old is that little tree right there? How long has it been hanging on? Hello? Hello? How old is that bad boy right there? Big leg tight. Moving right along. Boom. Now we go to work. No, it's not like I haven't been working, but boy. Now we're going up one step at a time. I'll see you at the top. We're getting up into the oak forest and fewer maples. Onward and upward. We got to get a selfie. Right? There's a selfie. On the map and the signs too, it says that there's some steep spots that make it very challenging. And I'm going to tell you, yeah, that's no joke. That was a scramble. But I'm on top of the ridge now. About to drop over into the other side. Glad I started early. I don't know what we're overlooking. This, I presume, is the Scenic Overlook. It says the trail ends at the Scenic Overlook and we're overlooking some scenery, but I don't know what scenery it is. And does the trail actually end there or does it keep going? That's a pretty good overlook right there. I think we're officially at the end, so now I just gotta go back. That's a long way down. I think maybe that's the trail we're gonna be going right there. All right, these are the ponds. And that is most definitely the trail that we're gonna be taking because there's the vault toilet and that's the trail going down. We got a ways to go. This is no joke right here. Don't wanna be in a rush going down this slope. At least it's the rock. The tennis shoes get traction on the rock, but the gravel, no. All right, I'm gonna turn this off. Well, I can't decide which direction is preferable, the other side, which is a shorter, steeper climb, or this side, which is a longer, shallower. We have made it, but we were standing up there, and now we're down here at the pond, a very cool maple. I am gonna go sit down. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. Hard part's over I guess. No more big climbs up or down. This is drivable. I know that they drive a truck up here to empty that vault toilet. So when I find something else of interest, I'll be back. Sycamore bonsai growing in the pocket of the limestone block. That's cool. Here for the maple trees. That one is very a very unique almost like the perfect natural bonsai come around a different angle i mean they're all cool but this one's just glowing well for all of you people that didn't want to come to buzzard days because it was so gonna be so hot it's gonna be too hot are y'all hot We landed! It may be humid in a little while, but right now it's quite pleasant.