First official flood for Dallas Waves, Trinity River Whitewater Project

The evening of April 4th, 2011 marked the first time since the completion of the Dallas Waves aka the Trinity River Standing Wave that it faced total inundation by the Trinity River. The coffer dam was removed in late December of 2010. Since that time the Trinity River watershed above the project has not received enough rainfall to submerse the site. I was half hoping to see gigantic rooster tails of deadly whitewater similar to what one might find on the Colorado in the Grand Canyon. No such luck. I imagine there must be a sweet spot around 1000cfs where the river is the most surfable.

Park is set to officially open in early May 2011. Another project on the same site, the Santa Fe Trestle Trail will allow bike and foot traffic a place to cross the river. It has a planned opening in the Fall of 2011 with improvements to Moore Park on the Oak Cliff side of the Trinity River.

Dallas Waves, Trinity River as viewed in a dry state 3 days before Trinity River returned to normal bed

I have casually followed the project since it was nothing more than a set of survey stakes hammered into the ragweed along the bank of the river in June of 2010. I visited the site numerous times over the course of the summer because it afforded an easy place to cross the river via mountain bike when I was out on training rides along the levees.

Location:
Currently one can reach the Dallas Waves, Standing Wave from either the north or south levee of the Trinity. Seems that most visitors prefer the Oak Cliff or south side since it can be reached by parking at the Corinth DART Rail Station or on the gravel access road near the construction site. Most of the amenities like put-in ramps, take-outs, viewing area etc are on the Oak Cliff side of the river.

The other access point is via the north side of the river where Riverfront (Industrial) Blvd dead ends at a gate. Walk from there.


Both entrances are roughly the same distance from the river. The Oak Cliff side offers a better view of Downtown and easier access to the river.

Old AT&SF bridge with DART bridge behind it prior to construction June 2010

By July of 2010, a diversion channel was built to detour the Trinity from its bed to allow an in-channel set of obstructions that are designed to create a "standing wave".

Cofferdam in place

Diversion Channel of Doom

When the water was diverted out of the old Trinity River Channel it created a slightly narrower, steeper, rocky version of the old bed. The result spelled doom for some inexperienced river goers who had rented some canoes earlier in the day. I believe there were a couple of superficial injuries and some finger pointing between the city, contractor and the canoeists in regard to liability and overall safety.

In the video above the water does not look too dangerous until you realize it's only a couple of feet deep and armored with sharp rocks.

Temporary construction bridge over diversion channel prior to river being diverted

A bone dry Trinity River bed

November 2010

December 2010

Trinity River Standing Wave with cofferdam 25 percent removed in December 2010. During a "normal" flow, the structure looks just like the video above.

Bald Eagles of the Trinity River, Dallas

Dallas is lucky enough to have at least two resident bald eagles in the Great Trinity Forest that overwinter.

The national bird of the United States since 1782, the bald eagle is the most well-known bird of prey in North America. Like many other species, the majestic bald eagle's continued existence has been severely threatened by human development, pesticide use, and poaching. In the past twenty-five years, however, the bald eagle has made great strides towards recovery thanks to federal legislation, bans on harmful pesticides such as DDT, public education, and other conservation and rehabilitation efforts. In some areas of the United States, bald eagle populations have recovered to such an extent that they have been downgraded to threatened rather than endangered species status.

The Bald Eagle is one of nature's most impressive birds of prey. Males generally measure 3 feet from head to tail, weigh 7 to 10 pounds, and have a wingspan of 6 to 7 feet. Females are larger, some reaching 14 pounds with a wingspan of up to 8 feet. Adults have a white head, neck, and tail and a large yellow bill.

Pair of Bald Eagles over the Trinity River in 2011 

Bald Eagle over the Trinity River near mouth of White Rock Creek, winter 2011

Unlike many other birds of prey in the Dallas area, the bald eagles in the Great Trinity Forest are extremely wary of people and will put as much distance as possible between themselves and a human. In many cases I have only seen fleeting glimpses of them. They roost in some of the tallest trees in the forest in one of the remote areas near the mouth of White Rock Creek where it enters the Trinity River.

The eagles seem to hunt the migratory duck population in the Lower Chain of Wetlands. In the winter of 2011 the population in these ponds were mostly Northern Shoveler Ducks and Coots.

Northern Shoveler ducks at Wetland Cells

McCommas Bluff Preserve and Trails

McCommas Bluff Preserve on Trinity River Dallas, Texas

The McCommas Bluff Preserve, in South Central Dallas County, is in a historical area, where Native American tribes, outlaws and folk heros once camped, and where boats attempting to bring commerce to Dallas from the Gulf of Mexico were hampered by curves in the Trinity River and low-water shoals. From the south part of the preserve, a dam and locks are visible, a testimony to long-abandoned attempts to navigate the Trinity. Shattered dreams of Trinity City are here too, the only ghost town site in Dallas. Belle Star, Cole Younger, the James Brothers called this their home after the Civil War. Much of it looks the same today as it did then.

McCommas Bluff Lock and Dam #1 circa 1910

South of Loop 12, the Trinity River crosses a boundary between two worlds, leaving behind the barren chute of the Dallas floodway to slide beneath a leafy canopy of trees, sloughs and dramatic limestone cliffs. It's McCommas Preserve that holds the distinction of being the only true wilderness one can find within Dallas. Abandoned, forgotten and ignored for decades it is literally the land that time and humans forgot.

Location:

Riverwood Road

Note on parking: This area is a notorious dumping area for stolen vehicles. I would not suggest parking at the actual bluffs unless you intend to stay close to your vehicle. You would be better off parking further up Riverwood in front of a home there and then hiking the rest of the way in.

Trail map:

McCommas Preserve Map, park at Riverwood Rd Trailhead or Trinity Audubon Center

The trails at McCommas Bluff are primitive. The trails are easy to follow in the winter and early spring. They can become difficult to follow in the summer as they are not marked with signs, tape or blazes. A primitive trail exists from Riverfront Road west following the river to a back gate of the Trinity Audubon Center. Above this trail you can see a large dirt bluff that sits about 25 feet above the river. The flat area above on the high ground was the platted site of Trinity City. Little remains. Beyond Fairport Road is Woodland Springs. This was once a popular summer camp for kids in the 1930s-50s. The spring still flows.

Trinity River rapids at McCommas Bluff

McCommas Bluff as viewed from the middle of the Trinity River

Spring wildflowers on the bluffs overlooking the Trinity River

Whitetail Deer at Trinity City ghost town May 2010

McCommas Bluff is a great place to see deer in the late spring May-June. There is an abundance of Mustang Grapes on the high ground on the Trinity City site and the deer forage for them. Quite a few feral hogs too.

Trinity City was promoted by the Peters Colony but was never substantially developed. It was envisioned as the northernmost of twenty-nine port towns that were to be laid out every twenty miles on the banks of the Trinity River, in the hope that the river could be made navigable from the Gulf of Mexico to the most northern port town. Though indicated on the Peters colony map of 1852 as a sizable town, it was probably never more than a small frontier community.

The old lock and dam # 1 built in the late 19th century and later improved upon over the next 20 years still exists as a concrete structure just downstream of the McCommas Bluffs. Above the bluffs sits a century old lock keeper's house that was built as a residence for the man in charge of the McCommas Lock system. The home is still there and is occupied today. The home is on private property and no trespassing signs are up.

Lock keeper's residence at McCommas Bluff

The building materials for the home were floated by barge on the Trinity River to the site.

Lock Keeper's home in 2010

Methodist Chapel at Trinity City

Great Trinity Forest Trail, Joppa Preserve

Great Trinity Trail at River Oaks Park

The Trinity River Spine Trail is the longest paved path currently in the Great Trinity Forest. The path can be accessed in three spots:

Loop 12 Boat Ramp

River Oaks Park

Simpson Stuart Road





Phase I of the trail is 2.1 miles long.

Great Trinity Forest Trail Phase I

This trail is inside the Joppa Preserve, part of the Dallas County Open Space Project. Originally this land was part of the Millermore Plantation. Many of the pecan trees in the area were planted by the Miller family when it was a working farm. The original Miller cabin and the later Greek revival Millermore Mansion are now preserved at Old City Park in Dallas. The area later became known as Joppa and Floral Farms. Both were unincorporated freedman's communities for many decades without access to running water and city services.

Miller Cabin

Millermore Mansion

The path itself is the same width as the Katy Trail in Uptown. Currently there are not any public restrooms or working water fountains along the path.

The path roughly follows the shoreline of Little Lemmon Lake and then Lemmon Lake as it winds its way towards Simpson Stuart Road. Phase I of this trail was completed in the summer of 2010. Phase II which will run down the south bank of the Trinity towards McCommas Bluff will be completed some time in 2011.

Great Trinity Forest Trail, Joppa Preserve

Little Lemmon Lake, River Oaks Park

Video of the trail from Simpson Stuart area towards River Oaks Park

Foot bridge spanning creek that separates Little Lemmon Lake and Lemmon Lake. This was the filming location for the Texas Ranger scene in the movie Bonnie and Clyde.

Little Lemmon Lake

Same spot as photo above from Bonnie and Clyde

Great Trinity Trail Bridge between Lemmon Lake and Little Lemmon Lake

Same spot as photo above filmed in 1967

Good fishing in all three lakes. There is also a population of alligators in these lakes and one should be careful walking the shoreline near dawn or dusk. As a result, there are a number of warning signs near the lakes:

Feral Pigs in the Great Trinity Forest

Feral Pig along Trinity River Trail

Almost anywhere you go in the Great Trinity Forest you will see evidence of feral pigs or actual feral pigs. I have seen them upstream as far as the Corinth Street Bridge and as far south as Dowdy Ferry Road @ 1-20. Everywhere inbetween. Feral pigs along the Trinity move in family groups of 2-3 adults and 6 or more piglets. Rarely will I see a solitary pig. They seem to stay in their family groups. Adults weigh well above 100 pounds with many matching adult humans 150-200 pounds in weight.

Domestic pigs were introduced from Europe to the Americas by Spanish explorers here in Texas. Over time, some pigs escaped or were intentionally released into the wild. Subsequently, free-ranging, feral populations established themselves here in the state. Here in Texas there are three strains of wild hogs. Eurasian, feral hogs and hybrids between the two. Inside the city limits of Dallas, the feral pigs here are a hybrid between the two. They exhibit alot of domesticated marks but have the distinct longer hair and snout of Eurasian/ Russian Boars.

Feral pigs have sharp tusks and will attack if provoked or if they feel threatened. They have no natural predators in the Trinity Forest here in Dallas. Nothing hunts them, eats them, harasses them. They are the top of the food chain.  Feral pigs are opportunistic omnivores that eat whatever plants or animals happen their way. They can run over 25 mph for over 100 yards or more. I had one chase me this summer while mountain biking and it was running a solid 25-30mph. On foot a human would stand little chance of avoiding injury.

WARNING: These pigs will attack pet dogs if provoked. They will not attack dogs that bay at pigs but if threatened the pigs will charge your dog. Some of the locals who run their dogs with their horses on rides down in the riverbottoms place thick men's rodeo style western belts around their dogs necks to prevent injury. Great care should be taken to insure the safety of your pet anywhere south of Loop 12.

In the summer of 2010 their concentration was south of Loop 12 and north of Simpson Stuart Road. In the fall of 2010 and winter of 2011 they had shifted north of Loop 12 and up White Rock Creek as far north as 175. The population is quite large. I rarely see the same sounder of pigs twice.

Feral pig sounder at Joppa Preserve, south bank Trinity River

The pigs in the photo above are eating pecans that have fallen off of the surrounding trees. Pigs seem to have very poor eyesight, great hearing and a great sense of smell. As a result you can often get too close to them without you or the pigs knowing. In high grass, like Johnson Grass you can come across sleeping pigs and literally almost step on them as I have done.

Feral pigs in Dallas

Feral pigs in the video above were eating pecans from the same trees as the other pigs in the photo above. They are a different family group and were seen on a different trip to the river bottoms. Pigs, even the piglets are excellent swimmers and can easily cross the Trinity River without issue.

Feral pigs on levee

The pigs in the video above are rooting a levee NE of the McCommas Bluff Landfill. The levee forms an oxbow kidney shape lake that serves as a buffer between the riverbottoms and the landfill. A group of pigs such as these cause enormous damage very quickly. Erosion, loss of vegetation and habitat destruction.

If you ever wanted to know what the migrating range of one of these might be, I
found out.

The pig with oreo colors in black and white in the upper right of this photo was seen around Thanksgiving near I-20.

Path of pig from south to north during winter of 2011

Two months later I found the remains of the same pig north of the Texas Horse Park, west of Pemberton Hill Road near White Rock Creek. I had to double check my photo of the live pig from months before. It's indeed the same pig. Just shows how far and wide these pigs will roam. Loop 12, 175 and I-20 all have underpasses for the creeks that are very wide and offer great avenues for pigs to travel up and down the waterways.

In 2011 the City of Dallas constructed a large feral pig trap in the Great Trinity Forest near the Trinity River:

Irving and Arlington also have large feral hog populations. They began feral pig control programs of their own in 2010 due to complaints from citizens. The City of Dallas feral hog trap is in a rather remote part of the city. This location is heavily used by the pigs as a gateway to the rest of Dallas. The pigs follow the waterways and roam freely from the Wilmer Hutchins area up into the City of Dallas. The trap or pen is in a very good location to intercept the pigs as they move up and down the river.

William Blair Park(Rochester Park)and Texas Buckeye Trails

Pirate Island at Rochester Park now known as William Blair Park

William Blair Park in the Bonton neighborhood of Dallas has an ever growing number of soft surface trails to compliment the paved trail built in 2008-2009. Previously known as Rochester Park it hosts three trail components. The Texas Buckeye Trail, the soft surface trails that lead to and from the Trinity River Overlook and a third set of trails east of the Buckeye Trails that are located near the "Bart Simpson Lake".

Location:  7000 Bexar Street Dallas Texas 75215

Map of Rochester Park and Texas Buckeye Trail System

The Buckeye Trail was originally a soft surface nature trail in 2003-2005. In late 2008 construction started to pave a good portion of it from the Rochester Park Levee south to the bank of the Trinity Overlook. This paved trail is the most widely used path by groups and individuals in the Great Trinity Forest. Easy access and defined parking at the cul de sac on Bexar make this more inviting to less adventurous.

The concrete path intersects with soft surface trails at a number of points. From these, one can travel the half mile to an alternate Trinity Overlook downstream from the concrete plaza built at the end of the concrete portion of the Buckeye Trail.

Follow the trail signs, survey tape and blazes on trees heading east by south to make your way to the lake in Rochester Park nicknamed "Bart Simpson Lake". The lake holds this nickname because it resembles Bart Simpson's head. The lake features an island in the middle which can be accessed during dry weather via the south shoreline. At the present time you can only walk or mountain bike around 90% of the lake. The creek that drains the lake towards White Rock Creek prevents a complete circumnavigation. It's a swampy gooey mess if you try and cross the creek. Not recommended.

The trails in this area are meandering loops through oak, elm and smaller trees. If you include the Buckeye Trails and the newly built trails near the Bart Simpson Lake, they total about 5 miles without double backing.

Lower Rochester Park Trail cut in 2010

These trails are well suited for dogs and small children compared with others inside the Great Trinity Forest. Very little poison ivy and no cactus. Some other sections of the Trinity Forest hold quite a bit of prickly pear cactus and could injure a dog. I have not seen any feral pigs or feral pig activity in this area either.

Whitetail Deer of the Trinity River Forest in Dallas

Deer are a common sight in the more remote areas of the Trinity River south of Loop 12. They can be seen usually in the early evening on some of the game trails they frequent.

These photos were taken in the fall of 2010 and winter of 2011 in Dallas south of Loop 12

Six point whitetail buck in Great Trinity Forest near future phase III of Trinity River Trail

Whitetail deer at McCommas Bluff Preserve at the Trinity City Ghost town site

The deer in the video below were inbetween the Trinity River and McCommas Bluff. Two whitetail deer are in the video. They were chasing a doe that had crossed the same stretch of ground a minute prior. Since this is inside the city limits of Dallas and in a park the deer have no natural predators

The deer can be easy to see but quite difficult to photograph. They often move in heavy brush and you usually only get a quick glance.

Lower Chain Of Wetlands, Trinity River Project

Horseback riders at Linfield Flat, Wetland Cell Project, Trinity River, Dallas

The lower chain of wetlands are comprised of half a dozen cells that extend from the I-45 bridge south to Loop 12. The wetlands are not a part of the Trinity River channel. They sit up and above grade from the Trinity. As a result the land and water are much cleaner than the river channel nearby. Hard to even find a piece of trash in this part of the Trinity River Project. Much of the land used by the chain of wetlands was originally part of the Sleepy Hollow Golf Course and Country Club.

The Chain of Wetlands extends about four miles in length from Cedar Creek to Loop 12. The three wetland cells located between Cedar Creek and Interstate 45 are interconnected and actually flow upstream and are continuously fed by discharge (or treated water) from the Central Wastewater Treatment Plant north of I-45.  The plant's water is treated against harmful bacteria before being discharged. The remaining three wetland cells extend from the Interstate 45 vicinity to Loop 12 and are also interconnected and continuously fed by treatment plant water.

Thunderstorms in Kaufman County as viewed from Fellows Lane Gate at Trinity River Wetland Cell Project

Location: 4800 Fellows Lane

Currently there is not any on-site parking available to access this portion of the Trinity River Project. The best parking option is at 4800 Fellows Lane where it dead ends at an access gate. Other options include parking at the Loop 12 Boat Ramp parking lot and heading north. The Great Trinity Forest paved path can be visited on the same trip which lies directly to the south of Loop 12.

Trinity River Wetland Cell Trail Map
Routes above are a mixture of dirt roads and some trails

Downtown Dallas skyline as viewed from Trinity River Wetland Chain of Lakes

Gravel road at Fellows Lane gate looking south towards Loop 12

Currently no formal hike and bike trails exist in the wetland cell project. There are a few dirt roads that skirt the perimeter of the lakes and also meander along some treelines along the river. This area is fairly open and easy to negotiate in dry weather. At the present time there are not any water fountains or restroom facilities available.

Wetland Cell as viewed from Union Pacific Trestle

Thundershower over Fair Park during Tropical Storm Hermine

When the river floods the Wetland Cells absorb much of the excess water creating a buffer for areas downstream. The video above illustrates this. It was taken in September of 2010 during the flooding cause by Tropical Storm Hermine. At the time, the river was roughly levee to levee downtown. As you can see, the wetland cells are doing their job. Water is moving from cell to cell and carrying it away from the river as designed.

There are fish in the lakes but I believe they are transient coming in during flood periods. I do not believe the lakes have been stocked.