East Trail

The East Trail traverses the Sabinal River canyon at Lost Maples State Natural Area, home to a relict population of Uvalde bigtooth maples that are geographically isolated from their nearest relatives by hundreds of miles, a botanical curiosity that draws thousands of visitors during the spectacular fall foliage season in late October and early November. These maples, which found refuge in the sheltered limestone canyons of the Edwards Plateau during cooler, moister ice age climates, turn brilliant shades of gold, orange, and scarlet in autumn, creating a fall color display unique in Texas and rivaling anything seen in the eastern United States. The trail follows the Sabinal River upstream through a canyon of towering limestone walls draped with maidenhair ferns and columbines, the cool microclimate supporting plant communities more characteristic of the mountains far to the west or north. Golden-cheeked warblers, an endangered species that nests exclusively in Texas, inhabit the Ashe juniper woodland along the trail margins in spring. Black bears have been increasingly documented in this region, and sightings are a rare but real possibility. The canyon limestone is rich in fossils of marine organisms deposited when this area lay beneath a warm inland sea approximately 100 million years ago.