Laurie Roddy - 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: Houston: Includes Huntsville, Galveston, and Beaumont

60 HIKES WITHIN 60 MILES: HOUSTON

Copyright 2008, 2012, and 2019 by Laurie Roddy

All rights reserved

Printed in China

Published by Menasha Ridge Press

Distributed by Publishers Group West

Third edition, first printing

Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available from the Library of Congress.

LCCN: 2018018934; ISBN: 9781634041027; eISBN: 9781634041034

Cover and text design: Jonathan Norberg

Cartography: Scott McGrew and Tim Kissel

Interior photos: Laurie Roddy, except where noted

Indexing: Rich Carlson

Front cover: Stephanie A. Sellers/Shutterstock

Back cover: Top, Sabine to Bagby Trail (see ). All photos by Laurie Roddy.

MENASHA RIDGE PRESS
An imprint of AdventureKEEN
2204 First Ave. S, Ste. 102
Birmingham, Alabama 35233

Visit menasharidge.com for a complete listing of our books and for ordering information. Contact us at our website, at facebook.com/menasharidge, or at twitter.com/menasharidge with questions or comments. To find out more about who we are and what were doing, visit our blog, blog.menasharidge.com.

DISCLAIMER This book is meant only as a guide to select trails in the Houston area and does not guarantee hiker safety in any wayyou hike at your own risk. Neither Menasha Ridge Press nor Laurie Roddy is liable for property loss or damage, personal injury, or death that result in any way from accessing or hiking the trails described in the following pages. Please be aware that hikers have been injured in the Houston area. Be especially cautious when walking on or near boulders, steep inclines, and drop-offs, and do not attempt to explore terrain that may be beyond your abilities. To help ensure an uneventful hike, please read carefully the introduction to this book, and perhaps get further safety information and guidance from other sources. Familiarize yourself thoroughly with the areas you intend to visit before venturing out. Ask questions, and prepare for the unforeseen. Familiarize yourself with current weather reports, maps of the area you intend to visit, and any relevant park regulations.

I am most thankful for the support my husband, Jim, and son, Mitch, gave me during the researching and writing of this book. While completing 60 hikes in nine months took me away many weekends and even some holidays, neither of them complained and oftentimes they had dinner ready or the restaurant picked out when I got home. Mitch was with me on my first hike and then again on the only other hike I completed during the summer. What a trouper to hike in Houston during July.

I also want to thank my hiking, golfing, shopping, and just-hanging-out buddy, Pam. She was there when I needed her most, even through her sore knee, knee surgery, and recovery. Her moral and emotional support were invaluable in keeping me focused and on schedule. I love her like a sister.

My family and friends encouraged me along the way with enthusiasm for the project. To a person, they expressed excitement about a hiking book for Houston. I also want to thank the Lone Star Hiking Trail Club and, in particular, Carol, who sent me copious amounts of information on trails that the club had mapped out and recommended. The clubs website is a great resource for information on hiking in this area.

Thank you to my Menasha Ridge Press editor, Russell Helms, who helped me throughout the first edition and particularly in the beginning, when I was just learning about GPS use and map creation. His knowledge, patience, and guidance were sorely needed at times. Also, I want to thank Molly Merkle, who took all my files and actually made a book. Amazing!

The volunteers and employees of state, city, and county agencies that support all the parks must also be recognized. Without them there would be no parks, no hiking trails, and a very dreary world. Thanks for your time and support.

And last I want to thank my mom, Shirley Cook, for instilling in me the love of the outdoors and the belief that I can do anything if I put my mind to it. I think of her every day and miss her in my life.

Welcome to Menasha Ridge Presss 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles, a series designed to provide hikers with the information they need to find and hike the very best trails surrounding metropolitan areas.

Our strategy is simple: First, find a hiker who knows the area and loves to hike. Second, ask that person to spend a year researching the most popular and very best trails around. And third, have that person describe each trail in terms of difficulty, scenery, condition, elevation change, and other categories of information that are important to hikers. Pretend youve just completed a hike and met up with other hikers at the trailhead, we told each author. Imagine their questions; be clear in your answers.

An experienced hiker and writer, author Laurie Roddy has selected 60 of the best hikes in and around the Houston metropolitan area. This third edition includes new hikes, as well as additional sections and new routes for some of the existing hikes. Laurie provides hikers (and walkers) with a great variety of hikesall within roughly 60 miles of Houstonfrom urban strolls on city sidewalks to aerobic outings in the area state parks.

Youll get more out of this book if you take a moment to read the introduction, which explains how to read the trail listings. The Maps section will help you understand how useful topos are on a hike and will also tell you where to get them. And though this is a where-to, not a how-to, guide, readers who have not hiked extensively will find the introduction of particular value.

As much for the opportunity to free the spirit as to free the body, let these hikes elevate you above the urban hurry.

All the best,
The Editors at Menasha Ridge Press

This book offers you an insight into the many diverse outdoor regions in Greater Houston, which is becoming more and more of an outdoor city. With numerous hiking and biking trails being added almost monthly, Houston is quickly turning into one of the more park-centric cities in the United States. We have the Gulf Coast in the south, Texas coastal prairies in the south and west, marshes along the coast, East Texas forests north and east, rolling hills north, and riparian landscapes along rivers, creeks, and bayous all around the city. To my surprise, some of the hikes in the Sam Houston National Forest had elevation changes of 200300 feet, and while that doesnt seem like much to people in other parts of the country, I think its more than what most people would expect around here.

The hikes in this book give you a little bit of all the regions mentioned above. I hiked over 300 miles to get the necessary information to map and write the book, and seldom was I inundated with crowds. Most of the hikes are peaceful and can be done all year, whether alone or with one of the many outdoor or conservation groups. For an amazing urban experience, I recommend the trails in Buffalo Bayou Park, one of the top urban parks in the country. If the trails there arent amazing enough for you, just a mile west are the trails of Memorial Park, an old World War I army camp that is now one of the largest urban parks in the United States.