A Different Kind of Pool

Looking out on the pool (from the back of the cave).

We were a little too excited - giddy almost.

It's a place we knew about, but it is a good distance away (on the edge of the hill country).  And one must be organized - must plan ahead to swim at Hamilton Pool. *

Fortunately YC had made the reservation for friends and "over reserved." There was room for us.** So we loaded up early and headed south-southwest.

Arriving early we drove further down the road and waited - 15 long minutes. Then we headed in.

It's a short walk, but up and down some rugged (but not difficult) elevation changes.

The pool is lovely and unique. We enjoyed the brisk swim, watched the giant catfish swim among the humans, fretted over struggling children swimmers (yes, I counted heads as they crossed the expanse of water - no lifeguard here), and mused at other children wandering with little supervision.***

As it became crowded, we decided to head off for lunch.

Sign observed on our time-delay. Oh my goodness! That was a crazy winding road.

DH, BAR, and OC head down the trail.

This is the easy part...well, most of it is easy. (They were not leaving me behind. I was slow for pictures.)

It is a sensitive area. And some of the "off trail" looked fairly dangerous. Best of all - I only saw one piece of trash along the trail!

Choose your decent - rugged, but not hard.

It is a lovely trail - reminds me of the river. But everyone is in such a hurry to reach the pool.

The sun was up and our friends, the cypress, embraced it.

Like "our" cliff trail at the Frio, there is a "nose" rock.

Cypress

The creek runs along part of the trail.

Some small "pools" at the creek call, but we move on.

We are moving down, losing elevation. Suddenly there is a limestone wall along one side of the trail.

Gorgeous place

Jade colored pool is very deep.

Catfish greet us in the shallows. I counted at least 8 big guys - maybe 15 or 18 inches (I am a bad judge).

I stood quietly for some time to get these awful shots. Buy the time I tried this, there seemed to be about 100 people moving about. The fish weren't bothered. I also heard some folks saw a large snapping turtle.

There's a trail all around the pool - up under the ledge of the "cave." I decided to see what I could see.

There is moss and many kinds of fern along the walls and limestone boulders. There is a spot one must climb (awkwardly for me). A kind young woman offered a hand.

Turks head makes itself known with a pop of red.

A tiny cave within a cave.

Maidenhair fern.

The waterfall is "light." No rain for a while.

Looking out and up.

This was before the place filled up.

More of the path around - one must duck in places.

Another view of the pool - my peeps across the way.

Looking up at the cliff above - limestone, ferns, swallow nets and more.

Behind the waterfalls.

Lots of folks played in the waterfall.

Ferns overhead.

An old friend - buckeye tree along the trail...

Looking up at the limestone walls.

The color of the pool seems impossible.

Gorgeous driftwood left behind in many spots.

Another Turk's cap on the far side of the pool.

A big pile of driftwood caught around a tree.

There are few things lovelier than the fringe of cypress against the sky (the view from an inner tube on a river float).

Yes, there is a warning.

More late summer bloomers:

Buttonbush

Narrow-leaf water primrose

I do not remember seeing this primrose before. Love it.

As the sun (and temperature) rose higher and the crowd increased we chose to head home.

We walked a short way down the river trail...

Love those cypress roots.

So we climbed back up the rough trail.

It wasn't far.

"Vine" of the flower below

Tiny pink flower along the trail. I do not know this one and am checking the books - and brother. It looks like it could be from the pea family (Update: Brother agrees).

Striking bloom. Nope. Don't know what this either. Will keep looking.

We will be back in cooler weather to explore this place again. Maybe a mid-week trip will help avoid the crowds.

NOTES:

* https://parks.traviscountytx.gov/find-a-park/hamilton-pool

**DH, OC, B , and I realized we had free time and could take advantage of the extra reservation. [After a discrete comment by the staffer, we discovered our entry fee would be discounted - there's an advantage to age!]

***OC agreed that, had we come here in her youth, she'd have been forced to wear a life preserver.