Texas Hill Country - The Most Scenic Drives in America: 120 Spectacular Road Trips - page 758

4. Garner State Park
Imagine yourself in a swimsuit on a hot, lazy afternoon, easing into an oversize inner tube
and drifting down a cool, crystal-clear river. Tubing, in fact, is one of the Hill Country's
most popular summertime pursuits, and an invigorating place to try it is the Frio (“Cold”)
River at Garner State Park.
Stately bald cypresses (a species of tree usually more associated with swamps) tower
over the Frio, creating shade for the floaters and illustrating a lesson in natural history. The
rivervalleys oftheEdwardsPlateau arelikefingersofAmerica'shumidEastreachinginto
territory where the uplands are most definitely part ofthe drier West. Species frombothre-
gions coexist here: pecan and mesquite trees, for example, are neighbors in the Hill Coun-
try;andtheCarolinawren,aneasternspecies,singsitstremuloussongwithinearshotofthe
canyon wren, a western bird. Few places in the country boast such an intriguing diversity
of flora and fauna.
5. Lost Maples State Natural Area
ThesceneryalongRte.FM337eastofLeakeyisamongtheHillCountry'sfinest.Thedrive
twists through valleys below oak-covered ridges and climbs to panoramic-view-offering
heights of the eroded plateau and its many hills.
Where the highway descends toward the Sabinal River, turn north on Rte. FM187 to
Lost Maples State Natural Area, by any standard one of the loveliest places in Texas. The
“lost” bigtooth maples here are actually relics of a prehistoric age when the climate was
wetter and cooler. Surviving in a deep canyon carved by the Sabinal, the maples (along
with oaks, walnuts, and other trees) are protected from the hot summer temperatures and
drying winds found throughout the entire Hill country region.
Guadalupe bass, found only in central Texas streams, glide along the rocky Sabinal,
while tiny green kingfishers not much bigger than sparrows patrol the river for prey. Rare
golden-cheeked warblers and black-capped vireos nest on hillsides above the river. En-
dangered, these birds symbolize the area's unique natural heritage.