Buffalo Bayou Paddle
by Natalie Wiest
The lone standing tree on this otherwise channelized portion
of White Oak Bayou.
The tree seems emblematic – last one standing;
a trumpet creeper vine clinging to it in full bloom;
knees in the water, and a mattress washed up
against its base,
trash all up and down it where the waters have reached.
Click on image to enlarge.
Photo by Natalie Wiest
Saturday, August 20, became a “free to paddle” day for me at the last minute due to a Girl Scout activity cancellation, so I decided to take advantage of the time to do another Scout deed – check out the downtown part of Buffalo Bayou that I hadn’t paddled in years, and see about its suitability for floating a bunch of Scouts later this year. If you haven’t been on the bayou in some time, or just curious on what’s going on, thought you might like to hear about it too.
First, I was looking at several potential put-in and take-out spots. Luckily or not I decided to use Eleanor Tinsley Park as our meeting and put-in spot. The good luck is the long downhill grassy slope to the bayou, an easy skid for boat and gear; but a lot more effort on the return when it’s all uphill! I had previously put the Girl Scouts in at the Woodway crossing of the Bayou; found that a little too much hard paddling for that crowd in the time allotted so I was looking for something easier and shorter.
Even with a late Thursday note on the online bulletin board, four other intrepid HCC paddlers joined me: Marilyn Kircus, Joy Kreider, Bob Price, and Louis Aulbach. Louis’ extensive knowledge of the bayou, including alternate put-ins and takeouts, and its history, was very welcome; I had re-read parts of his Buffalo Bayou writeups (see his Web site at: www.hal-pc.org/~lfa) before paddling, but as I’d also quickly been “lost” with the multitude of bridges, it was great to have the expert along for guidance!
We put in at 4 p.m. with an air temperature of 95; and took out shortly before 7 when it was 90. Plenty warm for paddling!
Streamflow was about 200 cfs at the Houston gauge (http://waterdata.usgs.gov/tx/nwis/uv/?site_no=08074000&PARAmeter_cd=00065) and there was an almost imperceptible (except on the return!) downstream current. Louis advised us that the bayou is tidal for several more miles upstream. We did a leisurely paddle downstream, past Sesquicentennial Park, and Allen’s Landing, then upstream on White Oak Bayou, farther downstream to McKee Street bridge; and then back upstream to Tinsley Park.
The train has emerged from under the Main Street bridge, and is
crossing White Oak Bayou where it is emptying into Buffalo Bayou.
Click on image to enlarge.
Photo by Natalie Wiest
In the long time since I’d been on this stretch the city of Houston has made some great strides in beautifying the bayou and is in fact in the process of putting even more plantings and walking trails in. It was quite a change from the neglected dump of 15 years ago. If you were at the HCC meetings where the planning for the bayou was discussed, you can now see that taking place before your very eyes. Townhouses and condos are sprouting from the north banks of the bayou and park property – it’s an urbanized bayou indeed.
Probably the most benign place to put canoes in or take them out is from the nether reaches of the Spaghetti Warehouse parking lot at 901 Commerce Street. Louis advised this will cost you $3 a carload but seems well worth it to me, as long as you aren’t conflicting with the busiest times for the restaurant, and yes, I did eat there afterward and it was delicious!
Alternate takeouts/putins I scouted included Guadalupe Plaza at the Jensen Drive bridge. Beautiful park, nice big parking lot – but would be a heck of a challenge to go up and down steps and ramps to get to the water, where you have to deal with a concrete dock that on this day was at least 2’ above the level of the bayou.
Here’s another Buffalo Bayou shot – Louis is facing
Allen’s Landing and the Houston downtown skyline
from White Oak Bayou.
Click on image to enlarge.
Photo by Natalie Wiest
From Tinsley Park to here is a 4 mile roundtrip paddle. Bute Park doesn’t appear to have the water access worked out, at least not with civilized road or parking lot . The park under development at North York street crossing is likewise not in a usable state, or at least not what I’d want to hazard with a bunch of Scouts. I considered White Oak Bayou upstream for potential too, but the steep concrete-lined slope to the water looked way too dangerous and with no observable eddies or stopping places, I wouldn’t consider this as an alternative.
I’ll let my photos speak more for the area; the lone cypress in mid-stream White Oak Bayou, the train crossing the bayou, Wortham Center/Sesquicentennial Park, Allen’s Landing, and the view of downtown from upstream.
Ceramic or Steel?
Here Louis, Marilyn and Joy are inspecting a water supply pipe at the
remains of Houston’s first electric generating venture on the bayou.
Older installations like this one often used ceramic pipes instead
of metal. You’ll have to ask Louis for the verdict.
Click on image to enlarge.
Photo by Natalie Wiest
In addition to Louis’ web site, you should take a look at the Bayou Preservation Association’s site for descriptions of Buffalo Bayou paddling.
BPA’s site is at: www.bayoupreservation.org and click on “Water Access”, then “Buffalo Bayou”. Best of all, hop in a boat and see it for yourself!