Rocky Point Trail

Review: Rocky Point Trail is a great trail that follows a creek and then the shores of Lake Grapevine. Like the other Lake Grapevine based trails, you’ll find a mix of rock and sandy trails, with a lot of varied things to see and explore. Not the best maintained, it’s a curious mix of well maintained trail sections, whereas other spots it’s easy to wander off the trail. Highly recommend you use a GPS tracker to find your way back to your vehicle!

Distance: 4.8 miles officially, but there are unofficial side trails (which I got lost on)

Area of Town: Flower Mound

Facilities: None that i saw, the other trailhead may have something?

Suitable for: Hiking, Horseback Riding

Type of Trail: Natural Trails

Shade: Bit of everything. Much of the trail is under thick forest, but as you get closer to the lake, it’s wide open and sunny.

Where to Park:  I see there are two trailheads that I found on Google Maps. I started on the western side, off High Lane.

Official Website: Official Website

Nearby Trails:  North Shore, Cross Timbers Equestrian Trail, Knob HIlls

Note: I HIGHLY recommend that you use a GPS tracking app so you know where you are. Given that I thought this was a fairly short and limited trail, I didn’t do so. The ’map’ above is for the ‘official’ trail, but there are a lot of off-shoots which can be confusing. I got very lost, as I’ll describe below, and had a hard time figuring out how to return to the trailhead. Use Map My Fitness or some other app that lets you track your route as you go. I made the mistake of using a map on All Trails, and got even more lost, as that user didn’t start at the trailhead I parked at.

Rocky Point Trail, located in Flower Mound along Lake Grapevine, is a great trail that I had never heard of. I actually discovered it by accident, as I was looking to see where Cross Timbers Equestrian trail lay, and I saw a trail marker for Rocky Point on Google Maps. I had a hard time finding more information about the trail, aside from some reviews on All Trails that indicated it was overgrown and hard to follow. After doing some more research I found that the Cross Timber Equestrian Trail Association maintains this trail, along with several others by Lake Grapevine and Lake Lewisville. Intrigued, I set out to explore the trail!

I’m glad I did! Using Google Maps, I saw two trailheads available, so I drove to the one off High Road and Sunnyview Lane. I wasn’t sure what to expect, especially as I parked at the trailhead and only one other car was there. The start of the trail was not impressive (see below., For the first bit, the trail was overgrown and seemed sandwiched between two private properties (one side with signs warning you not to trespass).

Once I got a bit further into the forest, the trail opened up and in some places was very well maintained. Fairly soon in my hike the trail diverged, so I took the right path towards Lake Grapevine. Since there were quite a few offshoots, and no map, I took every right turn i came across (well, every right turn that looked like a real trail). Often times I’d see signs indicating I was on the trail, and indicating that horses use the trail. I didn’t see any horses on the trail, but I did see evidence of their passing. Watch your step!

Going this direction, the trail this direction follows a creek (Google Maps names it Sharp’s Branch) under a thick forest. The further in I got, the less road / people noise i heard, replaced by the sound of birds, woodpeckers, and critters in the brush. I did see quite a bit of wildlife, from a rabbit I startled on the path, some squirrels that ran up a tree and scolded me, and then waterfowl along the waterways. The path was rocky in places, and steep in a couple spots, so be careful. Eventually the creek joined an inlet of Lake Grapevine, with expansive views of the lake. A marina was nearby, so a few motor boats were out as well.

The views here are quite beautiful! However, the further i got along Lake Grapevine, the worse the trail got. The grass was very high so I had to guess where the actual trail was, in many cases it was almost impossible to see. I kept going for a while, until I got worried about snakes, so turned back (my progress below). Perhaps the other trail head provides better access to that area? An adventure for another day!

On the way back, i continued to take the right branches. There was more elevation on this side, and alot more horse poop. The trails in some places were impossible to make out. At one point I thought I was on a trail, but I think it was a dried creek bed, which emptied me into a large meadow. Really pretty, with tall grasses. As I wandered around this section trying to find the trail again, I found a section where a vehicle had driven through, and found where someone dumped some wood in the meadow. In this section, I had a hard time finding the trail again. I was lost. I eventually wandered back into the woods and located the trail, and continued on. I was getting further away from where I had parked, but it was difficult to figure out which way to go. At one point I was on a ridge looking down at a depressed area below, which I wanted to explore, but was tired and hot so kept going. After trial and error, i finally found a familiar looking spot, and managed to get back to the Trailhead.

Overall, i really enjoyed this trail, and it offered some great views. I’d never heard of it before, and only discovered it by luck. I am definitely going to return to this trail! If you go, make sure to track your progress using a GPS app (it’s confusing as hell), and do NOT forget to bring water. I’d also advise bug spray. Given the overgrowth in some spots, as soon as I got home I scrubbed myself with rubbing alcohol and then soap and water, as I’m certain there is poison ivy and oak out here. I should know in a few days whether that trick actually works or not!