Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Introduction
The purpose of this guide is to introduce readers to the variety of hiking opportunities in the Houston
area. In many hiking guides the hike descriptions are generally point-to-point narratives, getting you
safely from the trailhead to the trail's end and back again. However, including information on area flora,
fauna, history, and geology adds a great deal of interest to many hikers, including families with young
children.
I spent several months researching, talking with park personnel and other folks, hiking and sometimes
rehiking trails, and studying the area for interesting facts, scenery, history, and geology. I talked with a
variety of hikers, asking them what they wanted a hike description to cover and what made a “best easy
day hike.” I used the following criteria to select the hikes included in this guide: fun, exercise, family
experience, scenery, history, bayous, first-time hiker, experienced hiker, moderate length (1 to 5 miles),
dog friendliness, and wheelchair accessibility. Loops and interconnecting loop trails were selected
where possible so that a “best” hike within a park could be fashioned by combining the best of several
trails.
Determining the best easy day hikes in the Houston area was a combination of personal judgment
about what level of hiker the hike was geared for and information from park staff and other hikers. Four
of my favorite hikes are the loop trail at the Houston Arboretum, the interconnecting loops in Memorial
Park, the Bear Creek Trail, and Herman Brown Park trails. Hiking city and county trails offers a differ-
ent experience from hiking in state parks and on backcountry trails. Most of the city trails are paved; a
few are lighted at night, creating an entirely new hiking experience. There also can be the distraction of
the city itself, with its busy streets, buildings, and commerce. Surprisingly, many of the trails are in
wooded areas, providing an unexpected degree of solitude.
Whether providing recreational and educational opportunities, encouraging well-being, exploring his-
tory and geology, or bringing together people of all ages, hiking has become an important part of many
people's lives. I hope that at least some of the hikes in this guide will become your personal favorites
and that this topic will prove an informative and interesting read as well as an excellent guide to the best
easy day hikes in the Houston area.
Hiking in Houston
Bayous are shallow, slow-moving creeks or streams found in low-lying Southern states, and with four
major bayous passing through it, Houston is justifiably called “the Bayou City.” Buffalo Bayou runs in-
to downtown, Brays Bayou passes near the Texas Medical Center, White Oak Bayou flows through the
Heights and near the northwest area, and Sims Bayou lies in the south of Houston. Originally the bay-
ous were used exclusively for flood control, but since the city recognized the opportunity to build trails
along the bayous, they have become a bonanza for hikers.
Due to the efforts of Terese “Terry” Hershey, her husband, Jacob, young congressman George Bush,
and a dedicated group of supporters, Buffalo Bayou was saved from having its sides lined with concrete
in the 1960s and 1970s. Because of this, the bayou contains an incredibly diverse ecosystem that sup-
ports dozens of species of flora and fauna, which add a new dimension to your hike.
