Sky darkness(Bortle class 1 is best): 2-3

Lost Maples Pinwheel used by permission of Jon Etkins


 West of Kerrville is the beautiful and isolated
 Lost Maples State Natural Area. Located 
 at 37221 F.M. 187, Vanderpool, TX 78885 3.5 miles north of state highway 86.


The San Antonio Astronomical Association and San Antonio League of Sidewalk Astronomers holds star parties here sometimes. I have a soft spot for this park aside from its natural beauty. There is a high hill with good views. My wife's grandfather Edgar Thompson's family were early settlers in Uvalde County between Varderpool and Utopia thanks to a land grant. I saw one of my brightest meteors here with my sons' Boy Scout troop on a Philmont trek shakedown. Locations in the nearby valley along the Sabinal River will have good views of the dark skies as well.

More information:

• Lost Maples State Natural Area

Clear Dark Sky Forecast History / Climate Information

Astrospheric graphical astronomical forecast