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#houstonstrong, Buffalo Bayou Park, flood, Houston, Hurricane Harvey, resilient, temporary, Texas, Weekly Photo Challenge
Buffalo Bayou Park was the first thing I fell for in Houston when we moved here in early spring. Less than a mile from my house, it was my walking, running, and biking track until the Gulf Coast summer humidity put an end to extended outdoor exercise. We still took visitors to the park for a stroll and a view of our shiny city rising up from the greenery, but I had taken a temporary break from the park a few months before Hurricane Harvey hit in late August.
Now I’m hoping the current state of this beautiful riparian playground is just as fleeting. Harvey’s floodwaters, as well as the emergency release of upstream reservoir contents, wiped out the banks of our urban stream, uprooting trees, drowning plants, stripping away ground cover, and coating the lower paths in a thick layer of silt and sand that has yet to be fully shoveled away two months later.
The dog park was annihilated, and the kayakers have disappeared. Plastic bags cling to dead tree branches, steep banks have collapsed into the water, and the always-murky waters have turned an even muddier brown.
At the Shepherd Drive Bridge, pictured below, the water was nearly 40 feet (yes, FEET) deep inside the park and washed up to and over several of the pedestrian and vehicular bridges that cross the bayou.
As in many places all over this resilient city, though, life is returning to Buffalo Bayou. Ducks and blue herons tentatively paddle and perch on those felled branches, ferns and mondo grass spring from ragged ground, new green growth pushes up insistently from the sand mounds, and people on foot and bicycle have re-emerged to take advantage of perfect fall days in the park.
It’s great to be back in the park.
One Foot Out the Door 
Nature is always amazingly resilient, Lexi. So are people, given a chance. I am thinking about New Orleans, and now Huston. Glad you have your park back, even if still in recovery. –Curt
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The park was designed to flood, but the planners could never have forecast three major floods in three years, not to mention a rain that dropped 51 inches in a few days’ time! So many parts of the park sprang back quickly, but others will take a while. Nature (and some people!) really do have the capacity to bounce back.
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Yeah, Mother Nature just refused to behave, Lexi 🙂 Sacramento has a large floodplain next to it called the Yolo Bypass. When the river gets unruly, they just open the floodgates. It creates a fairly large, temporary lake but does the job. –Curt
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Oh dear, nice to see it recovering, but it will be slow. Keep us posted.
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Yes, parts will really take a while longer. The poor dog park was still 8 feet underwater weeks after the rains stopped and most flood waters had receded. But the upper paths are once again full of people, and that makes me happy!
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Lexie, this level of destruction is heartbreaking, and while nature finds a way to recover slowly but surely, the human side always takes longer. Given the pounding you guys had, I’m sure that for repairs and recovery it all comes down to priorities. But these tough Texans have been living on the Gulf and at sea level for a long time, so it will all be put right sooner or later. In the meantime, hang in there, and thanks for a personal look at what the hurricane really meant in Houston. ~James
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You are very right about priorities, James. A dog park or a walking trail certainly takes a backseat to the main road and flooded neighborhood clean-ups! Flooding and its aftermath are no strangers here, but this one was a doozy!
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Great post, Lex! I think the destruction of the recent hurricanes has been hard to comprehend for many people, myself included, who haven’t been there to see it or live through it. Your photos are very telling, not only about the impact but about the resiliency as well. Great to see that Houston’s recovery continues and some of the recreational areas are in use again. The photo of the bird is especially hopeful!
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I added that poor, out-of-focus heron just because it does show that things are returning to normal. And that snarl of dead branches behind him also illustrates the sad state of much of the vegetation. It’s hard for me to imagine the impact of the western fires, just as it is for you and others to imagine the flood scenes here. I do think we are on the road to a good recovery!
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Oh, my, Lex. Excellent documentation of your area and the effects of the flooding. The image with the deposits under the highway is very good!
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Thanks, Jane. Imagine that area under the bridge totally full to the top with water! It was almost surreal the amount of water that collected in the first days of the storm. The reservoir release on top of the unprecedented rain nailed so many people and places – hard to fathom why that decision was made in hindsight, but at the time, it seemed like the right thing to do.
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I was following that in the news…must have been an agonizing decision.
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Nature always find a way to come back. I hope it becomes a peaceful oasis again soon.
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On the upper paths, it feels pretty much normal. Down by the lower banks, it’s pretty sad still, but I’m happy to see people out and about even down there these days.
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It sounds like the level of damage has been quite extreme. So sorry to hear that. It did sound like such a water – and so hard to withstand the deluge. These are such beautiful photos of the park, which seems another world away. Sometimes nature is strong that way – strong to strip away a facade, but there will always be strength to grow and rebuild. So good to hear that’s the way it’s going 🙂
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Yes, little by little, the green stuff is coming back and the city workers are slowly cleaning up the hardscape. It will be a long road to total recovery, but I feel like we’re on the way. Much of the rest of the city is looking fairly normal these days.
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Destroying something always takes much shorter time than building it, but some places are worth rebuilding, like Buffalo Bayou Park. I can see how important this park is not only to the city, but also to its people and the wildlife around it. Given its significance, I hope (and believe) by next spring the park will at least show signs of its former charm and beauty again.
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It’s sad because the park was only recently completed, and it was such a great symbol of the co-existence of a huge city with some nice green space. From street level, it’s looking pretty good, and the lower parts will eventually get dredged out and replanted. I’ve seen some giant silt piles lately, so they must be dragging it off some of those paths and banks!
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My hometown was hit by many floods, most notably the 1995 one when waters were 9 meters above the normal level and the army was airlifting cows (yeah!). I remember the big mounds of silt, pebbles and branches and trees all around the river beds. They looked like desert dunes for a while but, eventually, they became small grassy hills which seemed designed with mountain bike riding in mind… so perhaps Buffalo Bayou park will evolve into something different!
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Well, that’s a fun and positive way to think about things! I’m sure there are many teenage boys who would be thrilled with that outcome. I already see some grassy little hillocks forming on all that sand, but I wonder if they will plow those down when they try to shift the silt and all the other debris? I imagine it will be many months or even years until we see what transpires there … and we have to hope there’s not another huge flood while it’s still a work in progress!
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It takes time, but nature does recover. Brazos Bend State Park just opened for the first time this past weekend, and all of the roads are open at last in the mid-Coast refuges.
Mercer Arboretum went through the same thing as Buffalo Bayou. Just repaired and replanted from the Memorial Day flood, it went under again with Harvey. As one woman who volunteers there said, “At least we have a better idea now how to approach it all.”
Until I joined the Native Plant Society and started paying attention, I didn’t realize how many plant nurseries there are in the area. Even at the Edith Moore Audubon sanctuary in Houston, they’re growing plants — hundreds of plants — for projects around the area. And volunteers of every sort are fanning out across the various prairies, collecting seed to be distributed where new growth is needed.
It takes longer to bring back a refuge, a park, or a wetland than it does to rebuild a house (even though that can seem to take forever). But there are a lot of volunteers working behind the scenes and without a lick of publicity to get things back in shape.
I am glad to see that the Cistern is open again. One of the things on my to-do list is to take one of their photography tours. Then, of course, I’ll come home, figure out why my photos looks so bad, and then go back and try again! Have you been down there yet?
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You are always so informative about your adopted state! I had wondered how Brazos Bend was faring. We had a great walk there this summer, but the terrain suggested that it would not do well with lots of extra rain. It’s great to know about all the nurseries, not to mention the volunteers collecting seeds. The park here has had a number of volunteer events (a different type, of course), but I’ve been away for all of them so far, which has been disappointing.
Now, about that cistern … I had seen references to it but had NO idea it was so cool! I have to go, absolutely must go, and soon. I am so intrigued! I may even beat you to one of those tours. 🙂 Have you been there at all, or would the photography tour be your first visit?
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It looks like a nice place to get back to nature, even now. Maybe the lower area isn’t as manicured as it was, but time will cure that too. Happy trails.
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The upper paths are indeed already a great escape back into some green space right in the city. I walked a while down below, and it was fine (a little scrubby and dirty, but still feeling like part of nature), but it may be a while before bicyclists can make it through with all of the thick sandy deposits in some places. Maybe it’ll be good to separate the two exercise species! Our weather is perfect right now for outdoor pursuits, so maybe the volunteer clean-up efforts will ramp up at the same time.
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Such a gorgeous park and wonderful resource in your “backyard”. I really like that first photo which shows the skyline of the city and the path through nature, it gives a good idea of proximity and context.
So many extreme weather events lately… flooding and fires and earthquakes. With regard to flooding, the climate reality is that there will be not only more frequent flooding, but more extreme flooding as sea levels and water levels rise from global warming. Many people in Sri Lanka suffered from flooding early this year and very recently our other “hometown” of Hoi An did as well.
Wonderful to observe resiliency especially when it happens quickly and easily.
Peta
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I could take a photo like that first one every day, each one from a different bridge and vantage point from within the park and looking downtown. It is my favorite view in Houston, especially at sunset when the western sunlight hits all those glass-clad buildings! Can you tell how much I like my new city?!
But yes, I do worry about the climate realities here; we have had three 500-year floods in the last three years. As one pundit said, that means we either have 1500 years coming up with no floods, or the model needs to be recalculated. Obviously, it’s the latter, and that’s pretty sobering.
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great to see life returning! great post!
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Thank you, Andy – it really is great to see people flocking back to our urban green space!
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That looks like an amazing park, and reminds me of similar ones in Austin, Denver and even here in San Diego. What a treat to have a “playground”, or better, exercise ground so close to home. And, the view in hat first photo is hard to beat. I agree with Peta! I’m glad to read that things are slowly turning back to normal. When I was reading your post, I really wanted to get to the park and start collecting all the plastic bags and garbage. I hope such initiatives are underway as well. Happy fall walking, Lexie! You will be able to see the transformation from devastated habitat to a vibrant new era for the bayou.
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As I replied to Peta, I could take a photo like that first one every day, each one from a different bridge and vantage point from within the park and looking toward downtown. It is my favorite view in the city, especially at sunset when the western light hits all those glass facades.
There have been many clean-up groups working in the park. Some alumni from my school (not even located here) organized a Saturday work day, but I was unfortunately out of town. I pick up little things as I go, and really, the junk stuck in the tree limbs is much reduced already, which is great.
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In all honesty it looks amazingly good given your description! I imagine the mild climate has helped the plant life recover more quickly. Truly resilience in action.
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It’s good to hear that! As an insider, I see mostly the mess, but from your perspective, I could see that there is still lots of green there, and given the fact that so much of this area was submerged for so long, it really is sort of amazing that it’s not all dead. We’ve had fantastic weather almost from the day after the rains finally abated, so things did dry out and see some nice sun and other conditions for the last few months.
The parks were certainly not the first priority for clean-up with so many thousands flooded out of their homes, so seeing a little progress here also means good things about those more urgent needs being addressed!
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It sounds like you lost a lot, but it also sounds like a new normal is slowly emerging from the debris. In a year or two you’ll never know – it will be different, but probably still wonderfully green and lush. It must feel good to be able to go there again even if it has changed.
Alison
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It felt so good to be back in there this past week and weekend! It’s technically been open all along, but it was just so raggedy and sandy. And I think many of us were busy with our own or others’ rebuilding and cleaning and even grieving. Nature is a great reminder that things can spring back, sometimes faster than we imagine they can, and that gives hope for our lives as well.
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Thanks for the update Lexi! Looks like the kind of place I’d love to hang out in. That is what I love so much about Minneapolis… all our endless parks, running hiking and biking trails. It is what makes living in a city great!
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Best of both worlds, right? All the amenities – restaurants, museums, shops, nearby offices, etc – but with some urban green space thrown in! We love where we ended up, and I know Minneapolis has a great quality of life as well. We are both very lucky. I think you’re off to Chile soon – have fun!
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SO very sad Lex – good to see nature coming back though. Must feel great to get back to a place you love and know it will be back to itself soon.
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It’s sad, but it really pales in comparison with the more personal messes people have dealt with. I have a few friends who will be in rentals for the next year or more as they struggle to rebuild (or even decide whether to rebuild) their ruined houses. Like nature in the park, though, almost everyone I know has shown a resilience and a positivity that are impressive to behold!
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Your post made me realise how quickly we forget the news. Couple of months back disturbing images of natural disasters, from different parts of the globe, were being continuously played on our TV screens. We never think about life after the disaster. I remember your early posts on the park and walking tracks. Things looks very different now. I hope life has found a way to triumph destruction. It always finds a way!
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The fading of grim news from our memories must be a coping mechanism! The floods all around the globe, the fires … it was all so fresh just a few months ago, and now, as you said, we have almost forgotten. Even here at the epicenter of one of the worst floods in U.S. history, I mainly go about my business with only a vague recollection of the events of late August. At times, I wander into the devastated-but-coming-back park, or talk with a friend who is still displaced, but life does go on. Thankfully!
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Hey, Lex. Happy to see that things are getting better. We should definitely learn to respect nature more!
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Thanks! That is especially true here, where bad flooding has occurred in the last three years. Hoping some lessons have been learned …
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Nice to see the wildlife returning to your park. As media outlets long ago moved onto other topics, it is interesting to see the slow healing process that goes on through your eyes after the main event is forgotten.
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So true. Many have already forgotten the epic floods here and the fires shortly afterward in California and the Pacific Northwest. Not to mention natural disasters in India, Sri Lanka, and … the list is long. We’ve almost already moved on from the volcano in Bali, it seems!
Many people here are still totally displaced, and the cleanup goes on in many homes and neighborhoods. We will work in the park this coming weekend, which should be a little more “fun” than the mucking work we’ve done in some houses around the city!
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That’s wonderful! This is reality for every place you mentioned: the community continues to work to slowly but surely rebuild, learn from the disaster, and grow together. It’s so important that you remind us of what comes after the news crews leave and the headlines fade.
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There were some serious floods in Calgary, Alberta where my parents live a few years back, and many landscapes were changed irrevocably, but Mother Nature always has a way of coming back with something, doesn’t she? I hope you’ll get to enjoy your park again soon…even if it’s not in the way you did at first! 🙂
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Thanks, Shelley – it is already rebounding so nicely. This weekend my husband and some friends are planting new bushes and plants in the park, and I might go and pick up more trash. As bad as parts of Houston still look, it breaks my heart even more to see the devastation of the California fires. Ugh – so scary and awful!
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OMG that is heartbreaking. I am hopeful that mother nature’s resiliance (with a bit of help from the humans where needed) will bring this lovely oasis back to Houston again soon.
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It’s getting better every day! Last weekend, my good-hearted husband went down there to put in new plants, and there were actually too many volunteers! Even in its currently uglier form (mainly because of all that silt piled up), the park is still a wonderful oasis. Thanks for checking in and hope all is good on your side of the world!
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Resilient indeed. So glad things are getting better day by day in Houston.
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Thanks! It’s been (and will continue for some people) a long haul, but Texans are tough, I have learned!
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Saddened by the visuals and your account of the devastation Lex. This brings back horrific memories of the Dec. 2015 floods that brought my own city to a standstill and left millions homeless. The resilience of ordinary people during times like these is always inspiring. Hope Houston, and Buffalo Bayou Park in particular, get back to normal soon.
PS: Warmest wishes for a joyful Christmas to you and your loved ones!
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Oh, yes, you had it as badly or worse than Houston did, and perhaps with less infrastructure to deal with it. Mother Nature can be very cruel. Our kids have been here for Christmas, and we’ve spent time in the park, both enjoying the parts that have sprung back to life and viewing the parts that are still depressingly destroyed. Holiday and New Year’s good wishes back to you!
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Ah, this brings back memories. When I was in Houston for a few months, I also went to Buffalo Bayou Park after a flood, and remember passing through some of these very same paths. Will probably go back for a few days in January!
Have a great 2018,
Verne
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Hey Verne, thanks for the blog visit! I do remember you spent some time in Houston, but I can’t remember if I was already here or not (have been here less than a year). I hope this month warms up before your visit; it is uncharacteristically FREEZING at the moment, and I can’t imagine venturing into the park for any reason at all! Happy New Year to you and Jules!
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Yup, it was before (2016). I can’t imagine a freezing Houston, that is indeed uncharacteristic!
Have a great 2018,
– Verne
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I’m just catching up on your posts. What horrible devastation but I’m glad that people, plants and animals have reemerged. It looks like a glorious park with all those trails.
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Really sad to see what nature can wreak … and now we are seeing the terrible mudslides in California, right after the fires. 😦 We are on the mend here, but it will definitely take a while. I am just glad to see Houstonians using the park and many other flooded areas again. These people are a resilient bunch!
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So sad! I lived there for 13 years and have so many friends/family impacted. Many decided to leave their homes and relocate. Two to the Hill Country. Homes they lived in for over 20 years. It was such a bummer.
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We’ve not been here even a year yet, but even we have too many friends flooded out of their homes. Some are rebuilding and some moving elsewhere here in Houston. It really is terribly sad. We stayed high and dry, so I hope that bodes well for future storms because I want to stay here a while! Did you like living here? Did I see you are in CO now? (I was looking quickly – will have to re-read.)
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I lived in TX most of my life! I need the outdoors! Memorial Park wasn’t doing it for me. I think I logged 5,000 mile s there. lol. I do miss my family and friends though so I try to get down there yearly. And yes, I live in CO now. It’s been 17 years? LOVE IT.
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CO is pretty amazing. My son lives in Denver, so we get there quite often to hike, ski, etc. That might be next as a place to live!
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Nice!! Yes, you should consider it!!
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