ABOUT THE PLACE

This place is much more impressive in person than in any of the photos I've ever seen of it. The entire area is incredibly beautiful with all of the pink granite and boulders - a nice visual change from all of the white limestone we commonly see in the Hill Country.

The trek up this massive granite mound is fairly exhausting, and because of the curve of the dome, the top always looks a short distance away, but it never seems to get any closer the more you hike and hike. Since there is essentially no shade on the dome, and the granite can get pretty hot when the sun shines on it, I recommend that you only do this hike in early spring or fall when the temperatures are in the 50's in the morning. Don't bother wearing a jacket because 10 minutes into this hike you will be huffing and puffing, and by the time you reach the summit you'll be plenty warm! Overcast days are actually the best days to be out there as the clouds not only provide much needed shade, but it brings the colors out much better.

The geology here is so much different than anything else you'll find in the Hill Country, and there are a lot of areas on top of the dome to explore. Bring good hiking shoes and lots of water.

On the top of the dome is a small "cave" that you can explore, but remember to bring a flashlight! The cave is not technically a cave since it wasn't formed in the usual way. It's really just a 600' long tunnel of granite boulders that fell in such a way as to create a cave-like formation. It's really neat!