Canoe/Kayak Double Bayou
March 25, 2012
by Tom Douglas
Our group was greeted by pleasant weather when we met up at Double Bayou Park, several miles south of the community of Anahuac. Following a leisurely morning paddle, we traded stories about the history of Double Bayou and watched reflections from the water’s surface as they danced on overhanging oak branches at our favorite lunch spot. (For a video of this, check out George Watanabe’s album at Picasa.)
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Ready to go - just
add people
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Heading down
Double Bayou
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Smiles
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Photo by Beth Hurst
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Photo by Tom Douglas |
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Photo by George Watanabe
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In a friendly competition to see who could find several of the invasive
species that have been introduced into the Double Bayou watershed,
Chinese tallow and salt cedar were spotted first by Natalie Wiest and
her daughter, Ellen, while Macartney rose was spied by Roger Hurst.
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More Smiles
Photo by George Watanabe
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Chilling out at lunch
while Joni scans for
birds
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Visiting with the
locals
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Photo by Tom Douglas |
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Photo by Tom Douglas
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False Indigo in
full bloom
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Macartney rose -
pretty but invasive
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Two old sentinels |
Photo by Tom Douglas
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Photo by George Watanabe |
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Photo by George Watanabe
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Joni Shereda sighted or heard some 27 different species of birds,
including Barn Swallow, Carolina Chickadee, Carolina Wren, Downy
Woodpecker, Forster's Tern, Herring Gull, Little Blue Heron, Pine
Warbler, Purple Martin, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Red-winged Blackbird,
White-eyed Vireo, Yellow-rumped Warbler, and Willet.
As the river bank forest gave way to coastal prairie, we took advantage
of one last opportunity for a water break in the shade, then we headed
on downstream toward the salt marshes. Gulls and terns, which we
observed through binoculars, abounded on the small island just offshore
from the mouth of the bayou.
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Last Shady Spot
for a Water Break
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Marsh Grasses with
Local Seafood Spot
in the Background
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| Photo by George Watanabe |
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Photo by Tom Douglas
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Once we had loaded up our boats at Job Beason Park,
some of us headed over to enjoy shrimp and oysters out on the dock of a
local establishment, while others headed on up the coast for more
birding, or back to Houston before the evening sun sunk low over
westbound Interstate-10.
Total paddling distance for the trip was approximately 6.4 miles.
Here is a list of the 12 paddlers:
Tom Douglas
Beth Hurst
Roger Hurst
David Kitson
Brian McKenna
Robert Scaldino
Linda Shead
Joni Shereda
Ellen Shipman
George Watanabe
Natalie Wiest
Page Williams
Thanks to Beth Hurst, George Watanabe, and Tom Douglas for the photos that accompany this article.
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The author,
Tom Douglas
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