Pathways still on agenda of The Woodlands Township

Two projects carried over incomplete into this year. The pathway from Indian Springs to Creekside Park did not begin as anticipated and remains under construction. A large section now has concrete but will not be opened until later. A small bridge will be required to pass over a leg of Spring Creek on the north side of the bridge. I am uncertain at this moment if there will be a traffic light put on Gosling, or we will depend on traffic stopping to let pedestrians pass from the east side of Gosling to the west side at the entrance to Creekside Park. The volume of traffic probably does not yet warrant a traffic light there.  Our weather has slowed down the project tremendously! It will be another six weeks before the pathway will be completed even if the weather permits the work! Little chance of that, so I will stretch that out to about 10 weeks (maybe late April).

A contract work crew has been scheduled to begin construction of the final leg of the Flintridge pathway after the crew completes its work with the Gosling pathway to Creekside Park.

Financially, the funds for these two projects were moved from the associations to the Township before cessation of the associations'  operation at the end of last year.

I am not complaining. How about you? We need rain. I hope this summer's dry spell will not be as bad as last year. The dry weather revealed itself in January last year. This year we received a decent amount, but it was still significantly below the normal rainfall for January.

Festering problem with Invasive trees and vines

For decades, a creep of invasive plants has been drifting north from the coastal prairies. I have observed this occurring my entire lifetime. When I was young, there were not many invasive trees, notably the Chinese Tallow. Now, there are forests in marsh areas, once inhabited by marsh creatures. The coastal marshes are however not in scope of this article. They are only examples of what can and will happen when invasive plants go unchecked. The Woodlands parks and paths have these trees, some in abundance. I am blessed by living next to one such park which demonstrates what can happen. We have a beautiful invasive tree population in this park. People like to see them in the Fall. They produce a lot of color. As the trees are allowed to grow unabated, birds spread their millions of seeds throughout The Woodlands. New trees are also propagated through their long root systems. An example of this propagation is shown in the leading photograph of this article. The little trees are on the edge of the pond and on this peninsula where residents sometimes picnic and fish. The tree is also very difficult to kill, and it propagates even when stressed. Some residents see this tree as a friend and actually take measures to protect and encourage its growth. If unchecked, in five years, the trees will be "small adults", about 8-10 feet tall. In 10 years, they will be full sized, reproducing prolifically. I have lived here more than 10 years now and watched as the population of this tree has grown. If we let it, it will eventually displace our forest, and we will be just like the prairie.

We do have an irradiation program, but it was designed for very visible spots, like entries into neighborhoods. The program replaces those trees removed with native trees. Perhaps we should prioritize this program and place more funds on it to get the job done. The other issue being brought forward here is the vine growth. We have a program to mitigate this issue as well. Mitigating the destruction of our trees by vines that grow well in the sunlight has been difficult. We have a contractor working on the program. It appears that the program is simply under funded, or just lacking sufficient resources to get the job done.

In short there are certain critical issues that must be resolved. Status quo in government transition may not be acceptable. We need our leaders to question these programs and make sure we have sufficient budget and emphasis to protect the natural environment which serves to make out community an exceptional place to live - in the forest.

Other resources ¹Number 1 Enemy Chinese Tallow

Reedy Pond Park

Seen by all who pass south of Woodlands Parkway on Gosling, this simple but attractive park is mostly pond. It was built for flood control years ago. Since then, this retention pond has been improved various ways. It is named after the reeds that were planted along its banks. In recent years, additional landscape has been added in the form of native trees and bushes. Local residents have been adding tree seedlings along the bank for years hoping to add a little natural landscape around the pond. As a result, there are a number of young Cypress trees along its banks. Recently, a fountain was added at the request of residents who needed white noise to help abate the traffic noise. The park has some natural forest in it also. It is a place where residents fish and have family picnics on the abundant grass which the Parks department maintains quite nicely. One will find a few domestic ducks and wild water birds often on the pond. Occasionally, a deer or two will frequent the park. Although rarely seen, other visitors include Coyotes, Raccoons, Possum, Armadillo, and other small animals. The pond is noted for its Crows. You won't find any additional amenities here.

Reedy Pond park, Woodlands, Texas: Ducks, Dragonflies, and Fish

This is a walking tour of the pond on one early Sunday morning. A late season brood of ducks has highlighted the life on the pond during the past week. There were no ducks on it two weeks ago and suddenly one female arrived, built a nest and incubated her 10 little ducklings. Nine have survived the first week. These little fluffy creatures follow their mama's instructions. It is amazing to see the mama seemingly not do anything to tell the babies what to do, but the babies follow whatever she wants in unison. Look closely and you will recognize some of these behavioral patterns in the photos.


This day, the fish were waiting for a handout.

I tried to catch varying lighting situations as the morning sun shined through the brush and into the water; the results are apparent.
Suddenly I noticed quite a few Dragonflies. Their adult lives are very short, about 60 days.

And then there is also more than one species.
Click on any of these photographs and you will be directed to a folder containing these and related photographs from the same shoot in Flickr.com. By the way, the fish in these photos are probably no longer alive. A man brought his 6 or 7 children to the pond the same afternoon and put everything he caught in an ice chest. Of course when I asked him if he knew this was a catch and release pond, he said "no", even though there are two signs on the property, one just a few feet from where he was fishing. Then after he told me his lie,trying to justify has action, he added, "I know many people who come here who do the same thing." I am guessing that he drive 60 in a 45 MPH zone in The Woodlands, because he knows other people that do that also. The children were trashing the area, throwing cans, paper and cartons around while the dad continued to fish. I called for a park ranger who came and talked to them.

I explained to the man that I hoped he was going to clean up behind himself and that I wanted the fish back in the pond. I go to clean up behind such people everyday. They leave their ugly trash in this beautiful pond and around it. It is essentially up to residents to clean up behind them.

George Mitchell Preserve at Spring Creek The Woodlands Texas

George Mitchell Preserve consists of approximately 1700 acres along Spring Creek in Southeast Texas. It is part of a much larger regional project. See the link below. In a flood zone, along either side of the creek, the preserve has weathered development and construction, but maintaining most of its natural integrity even to this day. Lately, a large initiative has been launched for the largest park in Texas, called Spring Creek Greenway. Now, George Mitchell Preserve is being developed, section at a time, into a series of natural paths and creek-side amenities for nature lovers. This area will be preserved with its savannas, large pine trees, Cypress and other native forest plants as a haven for deer, squirrels, Possum and other wildlife. It is intended to provide a means for humans to appreciate the forest.

In one spring walk, I took photos along the paths of this preserve and have made them available for readers. See some of the photos below.

One can easily find the trail head of the northern trails from Flintridge Rd. A sign along the road marks the trail head of George Mitchell Preserve. Please be careful to carry out what you take into the forest. It is a pristine area. Keep on the marked paths and do not wander off of them, so the plant life will not be harmed. Please leave it as you found it or cleaner.

Enjoy the solitude away from city noise. Sometimes you will have to put up with the noise of airplanes flying overhead and sometimes the hammers and machinery some distance away where construction continues nearby. But the birds will sing; the butterflies will flutter around you; the squirrels will break the silence and startle you in the nearby brush. A deer might even be alarmed and run out from the brush if late in the evening or early in the morning. A visitor walks on dirt here, not concrete. Walking is thereby easier on the joints and generally more quiet. Walk with a stealth gait and you might see a little more wildlife.

The photos below are randomly selected for your viewing by the software. There are a number of photographs in the folder. If you wish to see more, just click on one of them and all the photos will be made available for you to view and you can see larger pictures.

Links: Spring Creek Greenway

www.flickr.com

Falcon Wing Park, The Woodlands Texas

Woodlands Online information link

Another significant park in Indian Springs. Amenities include swimming, softball, basketball, tennis, picnics, BBQ, a pavilion. It is located at Falcon Wing and Flintridge. Great place to take a family for a picnic or have a group BBQ with friends. Don't forget to bring your softball equipment or a soccer ball! A popular place for swimming in the summer.

Chandler Creek Park, The Woodlands Texas

Woodlands Online information link Chandler Creek Park The Christmas spirit is in this exceptional tree.
Click on picture to see more detail. Very nice native Pecan

This park is small with a few amenities located on Flintridge at the creek. It has a children's playground and a picnic table with a small pavilion. It has a unique signature due to its trees. It has several Pecan trees and a beautiful Holly tree. Since I am a fan of trees, I must point you to more information on this tree.
Link for more information

Forestgate Park, The Woodlands Texas

Woodlands Online information link Forestgate is an exceptional major park in Indian Springs. It offers swimming, soccer, basketball, picnic tables, Bar-B-Que pits, Children playground equipment, and a pavilion. There are plenty of natural trees and brush retained. It provides a setting to enjoy the peace for reading a book outdoors or to have the neighborhood kids at an outdoor party.

Getting there: Access is from Woodlands Parkway or Flintridge Drive, west of HEB and Indian Springs Shopping Center (at Kuykendahl and Woodlands Parkway). Address is 7505 South Forestgate Drive The Woodlands, Tx 77382.
Google map