Lost Maples State Natural Area

I'd had a great start to my South Texas Foliage Hunt.  The afternoon called for a sterner stretch of the legs, and Lost Maples State Natural Area was ready to help me answer that call.

The East Trail loop reportedly offered nice scenery, including some steep stretches leading to overloooks.  Skies were overcast but the threat of imminent rain seemed to have passed.  Temperatures were mild.  In short, terrific hiking weather.

Intimate shots of fallen leaves covered in rain droplets.  This was absolutely the autumn I had sought.

Orange maple leaves?  Yes, please.

Everything about this walk in the woods was exactly as I'd hoped it would be.

Well, almost everything.  It would have been really cool if there had been, like, sprites or faeries or something.  Alas, no such luck.

I haven't seen many physical landscape features as aptly named as Monkey Rock.

The Grotto is interesting. This is a spot I'd like to see again in the summer when everything is blooming.

The trail goes steeply uphill to some overlooks with views that are probably more compelling when there are fewer clouds.

Switching to portrait orientation didn't dispel the clouds either, unfortunately.

I reached that point where the surroundings were all so beautiful that I wanted to shoot them all at once.  Sometimes I couldn't even find a subject, I was just overwhelmed by the vegetation.

Five miles almost exactly the nose with some side meandering, in a tidy two hours and 44 minutes.  Satisfied with what I'd seen and done, I was both relaxed and energized (if that's even possible) for the six-hour drive back home!