The agenda for the upcoming session of the Texas Legislature will be dense with bills that, directly or indirectly, affect the quality of the environment in Texas. More than 50 bills have already been filed that match the criteria “environment” on the legislature’s online bill search.

The Texas Department of Transportation was reviewed by the Sunset Commission which recommended major changes in the way the agency operates and in the way it is structured. For example, the Sunset Commission recommended that the five-member board be replaced by a single highway commissioner. To see the draft report, go online.

The legislative session begins January 13. Newly elected State Representative Armando Walle, who will represent the North side/Aldine area (District 140) is hosting three town hall meetings next week. It is a great opportunity for constituents and activists to visit with him about legislative issues. The meetings are:

Monday, January 5th – 6 pm
MacArthur High School Cafeteria
4400 Aldine Mail Route

Tuesday, January 6th – 6 pm
Sam Houston Math, Science & Technology Center Cafeteria
9400 Irvington Blvd.

Tuesday, January 6th – 7:30 pm
Aldine-Greenspoint YMCA
10960 North Freeway

Please RSVP for any of the meetings by sending an email to representativewalle@gmail.com.

This week is a good opportunity to visit your own legislators about issues that you care about. Call the local office and make an appointment to visit the legislator (or a staff member) or see if there will be any public events. If you don’t know who your legislator is, find out online.

The last legislative session resulted in the highest level of funding for state parks in more than a decade, a two-year moratorium on the Trans-Texas Corridor, and a successful challenge to the process of fast-tracking permits for coal-fired electric plants. All these accomplishments were the result of bi-partisan coalitions of business leaders, environmental activists, farmers and ranchers, and urban and rural elected officials. Those coalitions can make a positive contribution toward making Texas a greener state.

Park People’s recent newsletter says:

“We discovered that many Houston area voters care a great deal about the state park system during the last legislative session. We have three wonderful state parks in the greater Houston area, including San Jacinto Battleground, Brazos Bend State Park, and Galveston Island State Park. After a cliff-hanging effort to increase the funding for state parks, we declared victory at the end of May.

For Texas state parks to have access to all of the funds appropriated to them by the 80th Texas Legislature, Texas voters must go to the polls on November 6 and approve “Proposition 4” – a proposed constitutional amendment that will result in $52 million becoming available to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department to spend during the 2008/2009 biennium for major park repairs. $25 million of that sum will go for repairs to the Battleship Texas. In addition to Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, 8 other state agencies will benefit from the passage of Proposition 4.”

Please note that Proposition 4 doesn’t say anything about parks. It reads: “”The constitutional amendment authorizing the issuance of up to $1 billion in bonds payable from the general revenues of the state for maintenance, improvement, repair, and construction projects and for the purchase of needed equipment.”

The Texas League of Conservation Voters, as well as many other groups, has endorsed Proposition 4. Details of the budget for park repairs can be seen at the Texas State Parks website.

The Park People newsletter also recommends a vote for Proposition 2 in the Harris County portion of the ballot, saying, “Proposition 2 will authorize $95 million for county parks. As many of you know, the County not only builds wonderful county parks, but also acts as a partner for many improvements to City parks. This money will result in new and improved parks throughout Harris County.”

For information about candidates for Houston city offices, join Houston Sierra Club and Citizens’ Environmental Coalition at a candidates’ forum on the future of Houston’s environment this evening (Friday, October 19) at 7 pm in the first floor meeting room at 3015 Richmond. Candidates for City of Houston offices will be given questions about air quality, parks, transportation and recycling in advance and be asked to speak for three minutes about those questions. There will also be information about the various state, county and HISD bond proposals. Wine, cheese, and other refreshments will be served. The event is free. All city candidates are invited to participate. Any voter who is eligible to vote on November 6 may vote early. In Harris County, there are 33 early voting locations. A voter may vote in person at any early voting location, but on Election Day must register where he or she is registered to vote. For early voting locations and hours in Harris County, see the Harris Votes website. In other counties, contact your county clerks office.

For more information:

BOND PROPOSALS ON NOV. 6 BALLOT RUN THE GAMUT

PORT OF HOUSTON’S BOND PLAN FACES TOUGH SELL

LEAGUE OF WOMEN VOTERS’ VOTERS GUIDE

There were 15 speakers at the hearing on the proposed ordinance on September 19.

Mary Lawler requested a waiver for affordable housing. Fahim Hamid; developer Ron Lindsey; Adam Aschman, representing Greater Houston Builders Association; and Andy Teas, representing the Houston Apartment Association; opposed the ordinance.

The speakers for the proposal were: Mandi Kimball; Tom Bacon, a developer and member of the Houston Parks Board; Ty Kelley, for the Bayou Preservation Association; Ann Lents; Evelyn Merz; Gina Donovan; and Bob Schwarz, of the Brays Bayou Association. Supporters Doreen Stoller and John Cutler, of Trees for Houston, were present also. Diane Schenke, from The Park People, and Linda Shead, from the Trust for Public Land, also spoke in support of the plan. Excerpts from their statements follow:

Linda Shead said:
“The proposal to institute a parkland set-aside program for the City of Houston is a welcome addition to City resources needed to make the Houston parks system among the best in the nation. Such set-aside/fee programs are being successfully utilized in cities throughout the country, including some of Houston’s chief competitors, such as Atlanta and Chicago, and the Texas cities of Fort Worth and San Antonio, as well as neighboring communities such as League City and Sugar Land. In fact, though not typical, the City of Atlanta goes beyond requiring set-asides/fees for single family and multi-family developments to include new commercial development in its requirements for providing park fees.

Shead continued:
“These set-aside programs are especially important in cities like Houston, where it is so very challenging for city resources to keep pace with the constantly increasing demand posed by a fast growing population. Without such a program, and with two million more people expected in Harris County by 2035, and a substantial portion of that within Houston and its extra-territorial jurisdiction, an unfair burden would be placed on existing Houston taxpayers both to catch up on providing park equity and access for current residents and to provide adequate parkland for the new arrivals.

Schenke said:
“This effort is important because parks have functions beyond generally improving the City. Parks and green spaces represent critically important environmental amenities; contact with nature is highly valued, and it offers a range of health benefits. In cities and towns, parks are the principal venue for regular public access to nature. Parks also offer settings for physical activity and social interaction. Most importantly, parks, green space and nature provide significant benefits to communities including: (1) economic; (2) developmental; (3) psychological; (4) air quality; and, (5) public health. Given these critical elements, we support the comments filed by Children at Risk, entitled “The Impact of Parks on Child Well-Being.”

Regarding economic issues, Schenke said:
”Parks and open space create a high quality of life that attracts tax-paying businesses and new residents to communities; corporate CEO’s say that employee quality of life is the third most important factor in business; small company owners say recreation, parks, and open space are the highest priority for a new location for their business; and, across the U.S., access to parks and open spaces has become a measure of community involvement, a tool for attracting businesses and residents by guaranteeing quality of life and economic success.

Parks also provide an economic benefit to cities by boosting tourism: open space boosts local economies by attracting tourists and supporting outdoor recreation. Also, because tourists cite natural beauty and quality of view to be the most important criteria in selecting a destination, many communities are now striving to protect scenic views and moving utility wires underground and protecting trees and historic buildings.”

If you want to communicate with your city council members about this proposal, the council’s website will give you instructions.

The Trust for Public Land and the Houston Parks and Recreation Department are hosting a free talk by Richard Louv, author of “Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder”. The event will be Tuesday, October 2, at 7:30 p.m., at the Cullen Theater of the Wortham Center. A book signing will follow the talk. Seating is limited, so RSVP to (713) 226-7200 as soon as possible.

The following parks are on the Trail of Trash:
In the Katy area, Cullen Park Phase Two and Four, sponsored by Waste Management;
In the Sugar Land area, Cullinan Park, sponsored by LJA Surveying & Engineering;
In the Heights area, Stude/White Oak Park, working with Shell Oil volunteers;
In Northeast Houston, Herman Brown Park, working with Haliburton’s summer interns;
In New Caney, Lake Houston Park, working with Exxon Mobil; and
In South Houston, ER and Ann Taylor Park, working with volunteers from TSU.

Marathon Oil volunteers will work on the N. MacGregor esplanades at Hermann Park, but that crew is full.

Tickets from the Houston Astros, Museum of Natural Science and the Alley Theatre will be offered as volunteer prizes.

To sign up to help at one of these parks, visit Houston Beautiful’s website or The Park People’s website.

Another event, National Trails Day at Cypress Creek, will clean future park land and build the Timber Lane Hike and Bike trail, which will ultimately connect to a developed trail system along Cypress Creek.

Groups working on that project include Recreational Equipment, Inc. (REI) employees, members, and guests, together with Timber Lane Utility District, the Texas Master Naturalists Gulf Coast and Heartwood chapters, the Cypress Creek Greenway Project (Cypress Creek Flood Control Coalition), Harris County Precinct 4 Parks Department, Greater Houston Off-Road Bicycling Association, and Talon Trails (formerly Texas Bicycle Coalition Trail Doctors). However, this is a big project, and volunteers of all ages and skill levels are invited to participate.

The work site is off Treaschwig Road and Whittaker Way, north of Aldine Westfield Road and Cypress Creek across from Mercer Arboretum. The first 75 people to preregister in person at REI Willowbrook, or by phone at (832) 237-8833, will receive a free REI volunteer shirt. Lunch will be served. Volunteers are asked to dress comfortably, and to bring work gloves, loppers, shovels, hand saws, or metal rakes, if possible. Refreshments, insect repellent, and sunscreen will be provided.

The Outdoor Nature Club will be picking up trash at Little Thicket Nature Sanctuary on June 2. For information about that project, call Aaron Stoley at (713) 781-1372.

Galveston Bay Foundation’s Marsh Mania Volunteer Cleanup will put teams to work at Armand Bayou Nature Center, Texas City Prairie Preserve, and Starvation Cove. To register to help, call (281) 332-3381, ext. 205 or go to the Foundation’s website.

There will be a press conference and rally on Tuesday, March 27th on the south steps of the Capitol in Austin to call for Gov. Perry, Lt. Gov. Dewhurst, and Speaker Craddick to preserve and fund the Texas State Park System. We have three specific requests:

1. Drop the move in the House to transfer 25 state historic sites and part of the revenue from the sporting goods tax from Texas Parks & Wildlife to the Texas Historical Commission. This move is being driven by Speaker Tom Craddick at the behest of Historical Commission Chairman John L. Nau III, who has made significant political contributions to the current state leadership.

At the recent committee hearing to consider bills that would transfer the 25 historic sites, Nau was the only speaker in favor of the bill. One of those bills, HB12, links releasing the cap on sporting goods tax revenue to transferring historic sites away from the state park system. This move has had no public input, no economic evaluation, and ignores the recommendations of several studies.

2. Ensure that HB 6, which already has 126 sponsors, is allowed to come to the floor of the House for a vote and that the companion bill in the Senate, SB 252, comes to the floor for a vote.

3. Appropriate the funds needed to restore the Texas State Park System.

After the press conference and rally on the steps, delegations will deliver letters to Perry, Dewhurst, and Craddick. At about 2 pm, the House Committee on Culture, Recreation, & Tourism is expected to hold a hearing on House Bill 12. House Bill 12 must be stopped.

State park supporters should plan to gather no later than 9:45 AM near the South steps. Carrying signs is encouraged. Call Evelyn Merz with the Houston Sierra Club at (713) 644-8228 or Jan DeVault at (281) 793-9569 for more information about how to participate

Summertime is a great time for kids, a nerve-wracking time for parents. It’s also a time for kids to explore their passions and to learn new things. And it’s a perfect time to reconnect with nature and escape from the metal, glass, and wooden confines of the classroom. But exploring nature in Houston in the summertime sounds worse than visiting the dentist for a root canal! But believe it or not, Houston offers several camps for kids that help them touch the earth – and not all of them are hot and sultry. However, since many of these camps do have a portion of their learning outdoors, slather on the sunscreen, hand the kids their hats, and make sure they bring bug spray and water. After all that, it’s time for fun in nature!

The Armand Bayou Nature Center has “EcoCamp” for 4- 13 year olds that offers a variety of exciting activities and learning opportunities using the Nature Center as a living laboratory. Activities may include fishing, seining, canoe rides and pontoon boat rides. These camps are in June, July, and August.

Artist Boat offers “Eco-Art Summer Camp Adventures” on waterways near Houston for kids 10 years old and up. Artist Boat is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to promoting awareness and preservation of coastal margins and the marine environment through the disciplines of science and art. The camps involve kayaking and vessel tours that combine art, science, and personal encounters with nature. For more information, log onto Artist Boat’s website.

The Downtown Aquarium offers a nice, indoor “Sea Safari Camp” for kids 6-12 years old. Kids can explore different habitats and learn about their animals in a hands-on, fun way. Kids can explore places presented in the Aquarium, including a Louisiana swamp, a rainforest, and the Gulf of Mexico. Camps are offered July 10-August 4.

The Houston Arboretum & Nature Center has “Nature Trekkers” for kids 5-12 years old. They’ll tromp around in one of the coolest, covered natural habitats inside the city limits. This 155-acre nature sanctuary is used by staff naturalists as a “living laboratory” to lead children in hands-on outdoor experiences, including more than 5 miles of nature trails that contain forest, pond, wetland, and meadow habitats. For cooler learning, kids will go into The Discovery Room inside the main building. Camps are offered June 4-August 3.

The Houston Museum of Natural Science offers “Xplorations Science Adventures” for kids 4-13 years old – and has branched out beyond Hermann Park to the Woodlands and Sugar Land. Kids will enjoy a week of science adventure with more than 60 different camp topics from dinosaurs to DaVinci, magic to malacology, or chemistry to catastrophes. Sign up for these camps early as they fill up quickly; they are offered May 29 through August 17. For more information, log onto the Museum’s website.

The Houston Safe Boating Council offers “Camp W.A.D.E (Water Activity Day Events)” in Clear Lake Park. The camp provides hands-on instruction and safety skills for several different water sports, including sailing, kayaking, motorboating and PWC’s, in a day camp setting for persons aged 13 and up. Camps are offered June 16-18 and July 18-20.

Moody Gardens in Galveston offers “Pyramid Kids Camps” in which children will explore the lush, tropical rainforest or discover what lurks beneath the ocean waves in these educational, interactive camps. Part of the fun will be learning what it’s like to be a keeper for the animals at Moody Gardens. Kids will explore animal training, enrichment, exhibit requirements, and help prepare food diets for the animals in the Rainforest and Aquarium pyramids. The camps take place from June 4 through July 27 and are for kids 3-13 years old.

The Nature Discovery Center in Bellaire offers a “Summer Science Camp” for kids 5-10 years old. Their camps will actively engage kids in the study of habitats and humans as kids study “Amazing Anat-o-me”, “Oceans of the World”, “Superhero Science”, and “Desert Dwellers”. The camps are offered June 4 through August 10.

Texas A & M University at Galveston offers “Sea Camps”, which are week-long residential camps for kids 10-18 years old and “Sea Campus Kids” day camps for kids 6-11 years old. A day’s activities at Sea Camp might include touring a sea turtle head start facility and then trawling from the 42′ Research Vessel Earl L. Milan. Kids might then explore a salt marsh and have the opportunity to see numerous species of birds and fish, as well as shrimp and crabs. The camps are offered in June and July. For more information, log onto Sea Camp’s website.

The Weather Research Center has a new home in the Museum District at 5401 Caroline. They offer “Weather Camps” for kids 5 years old and up. Meteorologists have developed an exciting curriculum using computers, activities, games, demonstrations and experiments to fill the day. Camps are offered June 12 through July 28. For more information, log onto the camp’s website.

Editor’s note: Sarah is the mother of two boys who test out many summer camps every year. THE SUMMER BOOK is an annual guide to Houston day camps and classes for kids 4 years old and up and teens. It includes information on approximately 200 organizations. The camps are divided by “arts”, “religious”, “educational”, and “sports”. The book also includes information on which camps are free or offer scholarships and a chart detailing amenities of each camp. For more information on the book or to order a copy, see The Summer Book’s website.

Even if the Houston area’s winter weather has been benevolent compared to the weather in other places, it has been chilly and wet too long for most of us. However, sun and warmer temperatures are in our forecast, so skip the Presidents’ Day sales and go outside and play.

Lee Anne Wilde, of the Galveston Bay Foundation, suggests, “If low tides and a norther don’t keep you in your slip, February is great time to sail – without burning to a crisp or being eaten by mosquitoes.”

To the surprise of many, there are plenty of waterways nearby that are good for canoeing. Mary Ellen Whitworth, of the Bayou Preservation Association, says that more than 25 bayous in the area have navigable sections. The Houston Canoe Club was organized in 1964 and now coordinates about 50 ‘floats’ a year.

If being a passenger is more to your taste, take a pontoon boat cruise down Armand Bayou. Armand Bayou Nature Center offers morning and evening boat tours every Saturday. The trips last about 90 minutes and cost $20 for adults.

Paddle boating is a popular activity at McGovern Lake at Hermann Park. The list, 101 Things to in Hermann Park, complied by the Hermann Park Conservancy, includes activities such as joining the drum circle on Friday evening, taking tai chi on Tuesday or Thursday morning, and rolling down the hill at Miller Outdoor Theatre. And, of course, the train still runs through the park.

The zoo’s Brian Hill offers, “You could chill out at the Houston Zoo and save cold hard cash by taking advantage of the zoo’s February on-line discount offer.” Go to the Zoo’s website, print the coupon, and present it for $2 off an adult admission every day in February.

Hill suggests, “Before you go, check out the list of daily events on the zoo website. Many animals are more active in cooler weather. If it gets too chilly outside, duck into the tropical bird house and see the new arrivals – two giant elephant-shrews, Panya and Kidogo. The Houston Zoo is one of only 6 zoos in the U.S. exhibiting the species.”

Houston has moved down from fifth to sixth on the list of fattest cities in the country in Men’s Fitness magazine’s 2007 health survey. Las Vegas is now first. The report considers data about how much city residents exercise, how healthily they eat, and how much time they spend sitting in traffic. The magazine also looks at programs designed to get citizens up and moving, and at civic leadership.

One leader in getting people up and moving is the Energy Corridor Management District in west Houston. It works with other organizations to develop park and green space areas. A new hike and bike trail built by Harris County Precinct will connect 20 miles of trails in the area.

Little Thicket Nature Sanctuary, owned by the Outdoor Nature Club, is open to visitors this weekend. The sanctuary is off SH 150 and FM 945 between New Waverly and Cleveland. For directions, call Aaron Stoley at (713) 781-1372.

Houston’s newest city park, Lake Houston Park, is in that area also, at 22031 Baptist Encampment Rd. in New Caney.

If you want to see nature in the middle of Houston, check out the Houston Arboretum and Nature Center at 4501 Woodway. Nature tours are offered every Saturday afternoon at 2 and 3. Memorial Park’s new Playground Without Limits, in front of the St. Theresa’s Church, is a favorite spot for people watching.

Birding is popular your-round. Vanessa Mintzer, of the Galveston Bay Foundation, suggests checking out the Bolivar Flats Shorebird Sanctuary, a reliable four-season wildlife viewing area, managed by the Houston Audubon Society. She says The Great Texas Coastal Birding Trail Maps will guide you to the coast’s top birding sites.

The Great Back Yard Bird Count, hosted by the Audubon Society and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, is this weekend. Count birds for as little or as long as you wish and report the results online.

There is a complete list of parks in Harris County on the Park People’s website.

Our website has links to the groups mentioned above.

Environmental activists spend a lot of time worrying about saving the environment, but sometimes we forget to just enjoy it.

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s 2005 proposal to sell 46,000 acres of Big Bend State Park called the public’s attention to the state parks funding crisis in a way that broken showers, staff shortages, and dilapidated buildings did not.

In 2006, the parks budget shortfall was even more critical, leading to staff lay-offs, cuts in hours that parks were open, curtailment of programs, especially for youth, and the transfer of some state parks to other entities. More than half of our state parks cut services. TPW stopped making any grants for city and county parks.

However, 2006 may have been a turning point for state park fortunes. TPW Commission chair Joseph Fitzsimmons created a state parks advisory committee to assist the agency in developing ideas to address the shortfall in the funding of state and local parks, and named former state senator John Montford as chair of the committee. After several months of deliberation and review of current funding, the committee recommended allocating at least $85 million more each year to meet the ongoing needs of the state park system, including $20 million for local park grants. Parks and Wildlife commissioners adopted this proposed budget for submission to the legislature.

Also, two studies were commissioned showing the economic value of state and local parks.

The study of the economic impact of state parks showed that 13 of the 28 reasons out-of-state visitors choose to visit Texas are state park experiences; that 10 million park visitors spend money in local communities, generating over $1.45 billion in economic activity annually; and that state parks visitor expenditures support over 14,000 jobs in Texas.

The study of the economic impact of local parks, released this past Wednesday, Jan 31, shows that the incremental net fiscal revenue to state government from local parks’ activity is more than $170 million each year.

The first step in achieving an appropriation to meet this ambitious $85 million parks budget request is allowing all of the revenue from the sporting goods tax, intended to be the funding stream for parks, actually to be used for parks. Currently only $32 million in revenue from the sporting goods tax may be used for parks, even though the tax (which is not a separate tax, just the sales tax from the sale of certain sporting goods) is expected to generate more than $100 million in FY 2008. Ironically, in the last budget, only $20 million of sporting goods tax funds were appropriated. User fees and taxes contributed a majority of the current budget for state parks.

House Bill 6, enabling legislation to remove the cap on the “Sporting Goods Tax”, was filed by state representative Harry Harvey Hilderbran (R-Kerrville) early in January. Currently, the bill has more than 100 co-authors. Because this is a tax bill, the house must act on it before the senate can consider the bill.

More good news in the local park funding area came Wednesday from state representative Garnett Coleman and state senator Mario Gallegos, who announced a $400,000 grant to the City of Houston for Sims Woods Park in southeast Houston. The grant from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department will help buy 27.3 acres to develop the park, including a nature trail, wetlands boardwalk, bird blinds, and other facilities. The funds will assist the City in acquiring, developing, and improving land around Sims Woods Park, Sims Woods Conservation Area, and the Harris County Flood Control District along Sims Bayou.

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Commission also approved a grant to the city of Hempstead to help fund construction of a 9,100-square-foot recreation center in the eastern part of the city.

There will be a bus trip to Austin to for lobby for “Support Your Parks Day” on Thursday, March 8. The trip planned for January was cancelled due to icy conditions. To sign up, contact Diane Schenke at the Park People, (713)942-7275. Although House Bill 6 seems assured of passage, it is only the first step toward securing sufficient funding for state parks.

The park will be operated primarily by the City of Houston in cooperation with Harris and Montgomery counties. Joe Bill Cochran will be its director. The park will keep the same hours, 8 am to 10 pm, seven days a week, Cochran said.

Robert L. Cook, TPWD executive director, said, “We have a clear understanding that they will continue the park’s current recreational character and safeguard its natural resource and historical characteristics. It took careful consideration and lengthy discussion with our partners, but it finally became clear that in this case transferring this site to local control was the right thing to do for the park and the people who will enjoy it in future years.” Houston mayor Bill White said, “This transfer is a wonderful opportunity for both the City of Houston and surrounding counties to preserve green space and to increase tourism and economic development that will benefit the entire area.”

Joe Turner of the Houston Parks Department said, “Twenty years from now, this area will be surrounded by residential development. . . and right in the middle will be almost 5,000 acres of parkland for all to enjoy.”

Jerry Walls, formerly at Jesse Jones Park, will be Lake Houston Park’s naturalist. Walls said plans for the park include building a nature center, constructing wildlife exhibits, conducting adult and school programs, and scientific research.

Christina Wilkerson of the Park People said, “We have committed to raise money to improve the park and are also making it one of the sites for our Trail of Trash clean up next year. One of the special features of the park is its white sand beaches.”

The park’s existing facilities, remnants of its days as a Girl Scout Camp, include walk-in campsites, a picnic pavilion, showers, a 12-mile hike/bike trail, and 8 miles of equestrian trails. There are several dormitory styled cabins.

The park will be renamed Lake Houston Park. It is at 22031 Baptist Encampment Road, New Caney. From Houston, take US Highway 59 north to the New Caney exit, FM 1485; travel east 2 miles to Baptist Encampment Road, turn south for 1.5 miles to the park entrance. Admission is $3 for each person older than 13.

To make reservations for cabins and other facilities, call the state park reservation center at (512) 389-8900.

The Houston Outdoor Group and the Piney Woods Wildlife Society are each sponsoring day trips to the Big Thicket on Saturday, May 13. The Big Thicket seems like this impossibly mysterious place in East Texas. Photos of the area always show canoes and trees draped with Spanish moss, conjuring up visions of elaborately outfitted excursions requiring lots of time. However, the instructions for these two trips suggest nothing more complicated than bringing plenty of water, a broad brimmed hat, sunscreen, and lunch.

The Big Thicket is where, during the last Ice Age, eastern hardwood forests, Gulf coastal plains, and Midwest prairies all came together. According to the Handbook of Texas Online, the Big Thicket is a unique biological crossroads of at least eight different plant communities: “The Big Thicket is possibly the most biologically diverse area in the world. Cactus and ferns, beech trees and orchids, camellias and azaleas and four carnivorous plants can all occupy what is called the thicket, along with the pines, oaks, and gums common to the rest of East Texas.”

Big Thicket National Preserve occupies about 100,000 acres in twelve units scattered through Hardin, Liberty, Polk, Tyler, and Jasper counties. The visitor’s center is north of Beaumont near Kountze. This was the first national preserve, created in 1974. In 1981, the preserve was designated an International Biosphere Reserve by the United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) and, in 2001, the American Bird Conservancy recognized the preserve as a Globally Important Bird Area.

The Houston Outdoor Group’s ornithology group is taking a birding trip led by Tom Kihn. The group will leave Houston at 6:30 am on May 13 and return after 5 pm. To join this trip, contact Adam Wood at (713) 515-1692 or . Non-members are welcome.

The Piney Woods Wildlife Society’s trip begins with a visit to Watson Pinelands Preserve. This is the home of 2005 CEC Synergy Award winner Geraldine Watson, whose work identifying the plants of the Big Thicket demonstrated the unique diversity of the area and made saving it possible. After that, the group will visit one or more units of the Big Thicket National Preserve. The group will meet at 8:30 am at Mama Jack’s Restaurant, 215 North Pine Street, Kountze. For details, contact Al Barr at (281) 443-6629 or . To learn more about the Big Thicket, see http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/BB/gkb3.html.