Nature and Hiking Trail at Mountain View Lodge
| Hike on nature trail at your own risk |
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Situated on the Edwards Plateau, our nature trail passes through representatives of many of the habitats of the Texas Hill Country. Winding through our 5.5 acre property, the trail moves from dry rocky slopes down into cooler moister ravines. Many of the region's most interesting native plants can be seen here in a small area.
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Several succulent plants are common on the rocky slopes, such as the sotol and the twist leaf yucca, which is found nowhere else in the world except the Texas Hill Country. In the ravines you can see Lindheimer's silk-tassel and, in the spring, the blue flowers of Wright skullcap and the red blooms of the cedar sage. |  |
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The trail ascends upward to a bench of hard limestone. The seasonal wetness allows moisture-loving grass-like plants to grow, producing a "sedge meadow". This is in sharp contrast to the clumps of big bluestem at the beginning of the trail, and another important part of the Mountain View ecosystem |  |
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This is one of our highlightsCome
in spring to see wildflowers, including perennial Indian paintbrush, slender
Greenthread, Barbara's Buttons, Blackfoot Daisy, and the blue flowers of Wright
Skullcap.
Agarito is one of the earliest spring bloomers. Another early-spring treat is the Texas redbud. Its pink pea-flowers stand out among the foliage of various trees. Fragrant Mimosa, easily overlooked at other times of the year, is covered in pink flowerballs during the spring. In midsummer, Sotol produces a woody flowering stalk that can be ten feet tall. Also seen during the summer and into the fall, white heliotrope is common in dry areas, Marsh fleabane is conspicuous on a moist spot. Texas oak, provides great fall color and throughout the winter, look for Plateau Live Oak with its dark green glossy leaves At any time of the year, not to be missed is a remnant of the property's history-about 200 million years ago- as the bed of a shallow sea. The depressions in the rock are dinosaur tracks. These tracks have been confirmed by an archeologist as those of an Allosaurus "other lizard." The Allosaurus existed 156-130 million years ago during the later part of the Jurassic period. Descending into the ravine a last time, you can see a track that a dinosaur very thoughtfully left next to our trail. The track has been confirmed by several archeologists from the University of Texas as that of an Allosaurus which inhabited the earth in the latter part of the Jurassic period. |
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Sumacs are an integral component of the juniper-oak woodlands of the
Hill Country. There are four forms of sumacs on the property, with
poison ivy being the only one that is
poisonous.
Other highlights are the Texas madrone, rarely found on the Edwards
Plateau and the Texas barberry, rather rare in Texas and not found
anywhere else in the world.
You may encounter some of our friends along the trail as well.
10600 Ranch Road 12 P.O. Box 877 Wimberley, TX 78676
512-847-2992
Minimum 48-hour cancellation notice required. (2 weeks for
weddings/holidays)
All rooms and property are non-smoking except in designated
outside areas.
No pets allowed; kennels available in the area