This practical guide takes readers to the best trails found in the Great Trinity Forest, all within easy reach of Downtown Dallas. Destinations include less traveled, low-traffic areas for hiking, mountain biking and horseback riding in the City of Dallas. Joppa Preserve, McCommas Bluff Preserve, Trinity River Wetlands, Texas Horse Park, Dallas Trinity Paddling Trail, Lower White Rock Creek, Sycamore Dixon, Texas Buckeye Trail, Dallas Whitewater Wave, Levee Trails, Rochester Park and more.
Ahh yes, the cool unfiltered 68-70 degree water of White Rock Spring in the Great Trinity Forest sure does look like a thirst quencher on a day when the temperature is 102 degrees in the shade. Running colder and clearer than the more famous Barton Springs, San Marcos and Comal Springs to the south it sure looks tempting. But is it safe to drink? Safe to touch? Safe to even stand near? When someone brings up the Trinity River a number of sights, smells and sounds come to mind. The last thing anyone would dare do is to take a sip of it.
Known by some as White Rock Spring, Sam Houston's Spring, Pemberton's Spring and a whole host of lost ancient terms that Native Americans used too. Many dozens of centuries of humans have used the spring here as evidenced by what they left behind. Stone tools of ancient people are all around the spring, old iron bits from pioneers and presently an old car tire or two that floats down nearby White Rock Creek.
I have drank freely and liberally from this spring a number of times. It tastes great. In the back of my mind though, an egg timer starts with the thought of a case of Beaver Fever, Hanoi Two-Step or Montezuma's Revenge.
The decision to test the water was not my idea. It was Dr Timothy Dalbey. Tim wanted to test the water to get a baseline for the future. See what was in the water now so that some time down the road the water could be re-tested if development/contamination occurs in the watershed that could pose a threat. You get the idea. I merely tagged along as the official test tube/water bottle holder and temperature taker. Tim fronted the expense for the test out of his own pocket and for that we should all be grateful. He was also the driving force behind protecting the spring in June and for that he should be applauded as well.
Thermometer probe inside the head of White Rock Spring
Beats me what all the results mean. All Greek to me. If you were expecting some deep insight into words that I cannot pronounce, you will be disappointed. Good news is that the spring tested negative for all the chemicals with big long words! I thought for sure a bunch of heavy metals or lead would be in the water but that is not the case at all.
Comparing the results of the spring to an aggregate of other spring tests in the state, the numbers for White Rock Spring closely parallel the numbers found elsewhere for the region at the link below
The first table below is the City of Dallas Water Utilities 2011 Water Quality Report. I think there is a more extensive version available that requires an Open Records Act request. Not sure why it's not online since it's not like the secret formula for Dr. Pepper or something.
City of Dallas 2011 Drinking Water Quality
So that analysis above is what Dallas sends out to City Of Dallas residents as drinking water.
Below is the report from National Testing Laboratories on White Rock Spring. Taken June 25, 2012 from the head of the spring where the water first contacts open air. The spring flows out of a few different places and we chose the strongest flowing head to take the water sample from. The last previous precipitation occurred June 12, 2012 during the monster hailstorm in Dallas. Many of the leaves seen in the photos above were knocked off the trees from that storm.
First table is the Definition and Legend followed by the complete results sent to Dr Dalbey. The coliform note jumps out, E.coli was not detected.
Where the wild things are. A special place that for a few weeks
serves as a backdrop that I'm not sure even an African safari could
rival. These are scenes that had me shaking my head, amazed to see firsthand. To see different wild animals coexisting on some base level in the same body of water is not something I had ever seen before in the Great Trinity Forest. Throw in the fact that these scenes are all a five minute drive from Downtown Dallas, inside the city limits of Dallas and feature some very aggressive feral pigs and rare birds...makes it super exceptional to see.
Feral Hog Wading Across Lake in Dallas Texas evening of July 3, 2012
The enlarged version of the photo above has 62 Wood Storks in it. Mostly in the background foraging for fish. There is one Wood Stork in the near foreground in the left of the photo. I almost missed seeing this feral pig entirely. It was laying motionless like a hippo in the lake with water up to the nostrils. You can clearly see the distinct water marks on the pig. It stood up and approached the near shoreline not 50 feet from me, entering the 8 foot high saw grass that rings the lake. I could hear grunts, squeals, stomping in the grass. About a minute later 3 feral hogs emerged and began a slow methodical crossing of the lake. The video of that crossing is below.
The birds you see in the far background of the video that take flight are all Wood Storks. Numbering over 150+ that evening it was a spectacular sight. Previously an endangered species in the United States and mainly a bird of the coast, a sighting of just one is a rare event. Over 100 is just not heard of. Unless you are in the Great Trinity Forest. Of course!
Hard to tell the height and weight of the pigs. The Great White Egrets seen in the photos and video average 31-41 inches in height according to the Audubon Field Guide. The pigs are roughly somewhere in that range. I would guess given their similar coloring and weight that they are either siblings or the sow is the mother with the other two being full grown juvenile pigs.
Watching the pigs cross, I see a similarity in their venture across the lake in the same way 3 humans would cross. Everyone follows the lead pig, you look around the whole time being a little vulnerable, you stick close. As you approach the shore your pace quickens and when you get across you breathe a sigh of relief. I guess the pigs had somewhere to be since they wasted no time entering the grass on the other side.
The Pigs Don't Belong
Reveau Bassett's 1953 painting of the same lake
Reveau Bassett
World famous artist Reveau Bassett often chose Lemmon Lake as a backdrop for his oil paintings. Looking basically the same as it did in the 1930s-1960s when he did many of his paintings, the lake is like a time capsule where the growth of the city around it had no effect. Except for the pigs. The invasive feral pigs don't belong in this environment. Apex predators, they eat bird eggs and juvenile young of every animal from small birds to deer fawns. The pig problem is more of a poor stewardship and management issue by those tasked with eradication of the population. In an era of tight budgets and staff cutbacks, using volunteers who would gladly pay a fee to hunt is a logical solution.
:Lemmon Lake July 2012
One of the very real dangers in going to a place like this is encountering large animals on their own turf. This was the same spot a couple weeks ago where a pack of coyotes wander up to see what I was doing. It's their house, their playground and not mine. A three pig sounder or an overprotective sow with piglets could really ruin someone's day in high grass like that. Pigs often bed down in the high grass and cool mud to escape the heat of the day. I have come across pigs sound asleep like this and when awakened are like sticks of lit dynamite in the anger department.
I think it would be a great idea to allow responsible private individuals to hunt out the pig population down here. There are many citizens who are experts at discreet hog hunting with silenced firearms and would jump at the chance to rid the Great Trinity Forest of these pests.
Wood Storks
Once listed as an Endangered Species in the United States, the birds are
given threatened status in Texas. The Endangered listing applied to Wood
Storks who live and breed east of the Mississippi in the Deep South and
Florida. Wood Storks are still afforded a Protected
Status here in Texas. Wood Storks were once hunted for their feathers
and have also lost much of their habitat to swamp draining in Florida.
In Texas, the Wood Storks migrate north in the early summer from Mexico
to take advantage of drying lake beds and the abundance of fish found in
them. There have been only a handful of sightings in the DFW area of
Wood Storks. Lemmon Lake is special in that so many can be seen at one
time. Wood Stork sightings are more numerous further to the south in the
Houston and Corpus Christi areas where the habitat lends itself to Wood
Stork feeding tactics.
Wood Storks Are Big Birds
Large wingspan of Wood Stork compared to Great White Egret
Few people in North Texas have seen a Wood Stork. The photo above of a landing Wood Stork on July 3rd illustrates their large size compared to what many would consider a big bird for Dallas, the Great White Egret. Wood storks are large water birds that stand 2-4 feet tall and are the
only stork in North America. They have wingspans as wide as 5 1/2 feet.
They are mostly white, but have a black tail and many black feathers
under their wings. Storks are related to ibises, herons and flamingos.
They have no feathers on their head and neck, so the black skin
underneath shows. This makes wood storks the only tall water birds with
black, bald heads. Since they have no muscles attached to their voice
box, they are very quiet birds.
Video of a Wood Stork flock feeding at Lemmon Lake
Roseate Spoonbills
Roseate Spoonbills are skittish. Hard to approach and sneak up on I don't have much luck getting close to them.
Other than a few long shots and accidental flushing out through the grass I have not had much luck.
Roseate Spoonbills can be seen infrequently in the shallow drying ponds
and swamps in the Great Trinity Forest. Spoonbills are traditionally
coastal birds and are a regular site along the Texas Gulf Coast. Rare to
see them hundreds of miles inland in not only a prairie but also a
densely populated urban environment.
This species feeds in shallow fresh or coastal waters by swinging its
bill from side to side as it steadily walks through the water, often in
groups. It feeds on crawfish, water beetles, tadpoles, insect larvae
and very small fish other wading birds ignore.
Roseate Spoonbills and Wood Storks in flight together
Price of Admission
The barriers to entry to experience this place are high. I don't recommend a visit unless you are very well versed in outdoor skills and have a broad sense of personal safety. Just to get a glimpse of the lake requires a tough slog through willow swamp followed by hard hike through 8-10 foot high sawgrass. Any loud movements or noise will spook all the birds. Venomous snakes are always underfoot and snakeproof chaps are a must. The Wood Storks are not always at the lake. They puddle jump between this lake and other small lakes that dot the area between I-20 and US 175. Instead, I would encourage a recon from the Loop 12 bridge over the Trinity River looking north into a grove of high Cottonwood trees that line the river. The past two years Wood Storks have roosted there and would afford a better and much safer viewing.
North American River Otter in Great Trinity Forest Dallas Texas June 30, 2012
A rare sight indeed to see a River Otter inside the city limits of Dallas. Many fishermen, hunters and outdoorsmen can spend every weekend of their lives on the water in Texas and never see one. The matrix of ecology needed to support a River Otter limits sightings here. Just the right mix of food, wetlands and cover are needed to support an otter population. They feed on crawfish, fish, shellfish, frogs, snakes to name a few. All in abundance where we spotted this River Otter on the morning of June 30th.
I'm not sure how rare River Otters are in North Texas. As sighting of one is uncommon but how uncommon are they in population? An animal that spends so much time in the water is hard enough to spot. Compounded by the fact that it does not fly, have bright colors and favors hunting at dawn/dusk. TPWD says that their numbers are restricted to the eastern 1/3 of the state but sightings have been made as far as Wichita Falls and into West Texas.
Below is a video clip of the River Otter checking us out. I have found that the deeper in the woods you go, the less likely that an animal will bolt. Usually they sport a puzzled and interested look on their face. Just like the otter featured here.
Up close and personal with a River Otter
I think I get more joy out of others seeing things like this than I do seeing it myself. Joining me were once again Bill Holston and someone I had not hiked with before David Mimlitch. David is best known for his great aerial photography of the Trinity River and this was his first hike downriver. I had met him on other occasions around the Calatrava bridge in Dallas but had not hiked with him on the river proper. If he had a blank checklist of things he wanted to see on our hike, I think he left with many things checked off. River otter, a whitetail deer jumped across the trail not 30 feet from us, green tree frogs, snakes, raptors, buntings and waterfowl species too numerous to mention. To catalog what we saw could fill a zoo.
In a jungle town Where the sun beats down To the rage of man and beast, The English garb Of the English sahib Merely gets a bit more creased. In Bangkok At twelve'o'clock They foam at the mouth and run, But mad dogs and Englishmen Go out in the midday sun. Noel Coward's Mad Dogs and Englishmen(1930)
That old song sums it up. It got hot!
The day started on a much cooler and darker note.........................
Venus and Jupiter aligned in the NE sky over the Great Trinity Forest before dawn June 30
The planetary alignment of Venus and Jupiter in the pre-dawn light was something to show up a little early for, 5:30am. Looking to the northeast the other planets were clearly visible just after nautical twilight. Starting this early is not so much a function of getting into the woods before the animals are up. This time of year the sultry steam of the summer sun makes a visit down there a tough go anytime between 10am-7pm. Finish before 10am or head down there after 7pm.
American Green Tree Frogs among the head high swamp grass in the Great Trinity Forest
Great Blue Herons fishing in the early light of dawn
Anhinga taking off from it's perch
Some of the wetland areas in the Great Trinity Forest offer long views where wildlife can be viewed at some distance. Other areas the views are short and restricted meaning you often spook birds off their roosts long before they can be seen. Such is the case with most of the Anhinga anhinga currently along the river and swamps. Fast to take flight and noisy to boot, they often spook other birds too. Spending most of the year in tropical rainforests and sub-tropical areas south of the border, Anhinga anhinga feel right at home in the oppressive heat of an early Texas summer.
Adult and Juvenile Wood Ducks
White Faced Ibis
Similar in appearance to the Glossy Ibis, the White-Faced Ibis can be identified by their red eyes, reddish legs and reddish feathers. In mating season, the White-Faced Ibis will develop a white ring around their face. The White-faced Ibis frequents marshes, swamps, ponds and rivers. Like other wading birds, they prefer small aquatic insects, fish, worms and frogs.
Swamp Coyotes in the Great Trinity Forest dawn June 23, 2012
Staring down three coyotes at 6:00 on a summer saturday morning among a labyrinth of head high swamp grass is quite a way to start a day. I could not tell if they were interested in me or the beeps of my camera. More photos mean more beeps which brought them in closer and closer. Uncomfortable to the point where I started to wonder whether or not they were curious or hatching a game plan to eat my camera for breakfast. Since it was technically nautical twilight they might have been wrapping up a long night of hunting before calling it a day.
They are the swamp coyotes. An elusive and fleet footed pack that roam the oxbows, ponds and swamps along the Trinity River. Very hard to see since they run among the reeds and willows that surround the old meanders of the river. It's not the sight of this pack that is exciting rather their liberal use of vocal calls. Since they cannot see one another in this swamp country they call to each other constantly. Many times, I have been in this same spot only to be surrounded by yipping and calling coyotes. A little unnerving but fun. Healthy adult coyotes pose no real threat to adult humans and attacks are very rare to non-existent. This pack in particular are true ghosts. They will often howl and call from areas where you just walked, as if they were following you. The coyote pack in the photos here worked their way behind me then stood their ground for some time before melting back into the swamp grass.
Wading through the swamp is no small feat. The high grass and marshy peat bottom make for a tough go before sunrise. The reward is catching a glimpse into a world few people see.
White Ibis in the pre-dawn light
Wood duck mother with her young and two Great Blue Herons
Black Necked Stilts
Snowy Egret
Little Blue Heron
Sunrise Through The Eye Of A Green Tree Frog
The photo above and below are opposing views 180 degrees of the sun as it climbs above the tallest grove of trees in Dallas. Seen first through the reflection of an American Green Tree Frog's eye.
Sunrise over the foggy Dallas Trinity swamps June 23, 2012
These frogs really crank up their calls after sunset. Hard to carry on a conversation they are so loud.
American Green Tree Frog Hyla cinerea in the Great Trinity Forest
If you have a pair of 3d glasses(red/cyan) anaglyph check out the 3d photo below of the tree frog. 3d works well in reeds like this as they give a depth of field. Coupled with a stationary subject like the frog and no wind, it was a good time to setup a shot using multiple exposures. The photo can be "clicked on" to enlarge.
