I don't have a link for it because I can't seem to find a link to the particular trail we hiked. Balcones Canyonland Preserve appears to encompass a large area of Austin with a few different accesses.
Since it is a preserve there were plenty of signs along the way about not disturbing the endangered species - the Golden Cheeked Warbler being the one they were most concerned about - and staying on the trails. Also, dogs and bikes are a No No.
We started at the head of the trail and made our accent up and up and up. Whew, it was a workout. The trail is many miles long so we took the first loop which ended up being 5 miles by the time we were done.
Five miles is no big deal for us, but we hadn't brought our camel packs along thinking we wouldn't need it. The trail offered very little shade and it was 95 degrees. Climbing up the rocky terrain was strenuous resulting in our need of water that we had neglected to bring. Silently I was hoping we didn't get lost and die of heat exhaustion or thirst.
As we ascended upward, there were some nice views making the trek worthwhile...
Upward we went....
At one point we passed by Austin's Water Supply. That big, inaccessible tank of water sure did make our mouth water. They could have at least had a complementary water fountain for passersby...
Once you passed the water supply, we took our decent back down. A much easier walk....
It was a longer hike than expected, but totally worth it.
That looks gorgeous! We went hiking recently too. I posted some photos of our hikes on my blog.
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