Great Trinity Forest

[AeroD]

I am no sound engineer, but I was on the river look trail at Buckeye and noticed that it was quiet. Few weeks ago before things started blooming, I could hear the freeway in the background. But I guess all the vegetation that is back acts like a sound barrier.

[CasperITL]

I rarely go down to the woods on weeknights but with the weather being so nice I went for a mountain bike ride from White Rock Lake down White Rock Creek to the Scyene Overlook. Glad I did. I got south of Bruton Road and started smelling smoke, got down towards Devon Anderson Park and the meadow was on fire! From the looks of things it had been on fire for quite some time and had gradually marched north towards the cedar thicket. If it had made it into the woods, especially the cedar trees who knows how bad it could have gotten. Guess the fire took out about an acre of meadow and licked at the woods. It's a couple hundred yards from the Devon Anderson trailhead. I called 911 from there. Interesting though, that the address listed on the sign for the park is wrong! I rattled off the address and the sign has an address that does not exist or is wrong in some way. Took a few minutes to get the right address; it's the signs fault.

The swift water rescue team rucked in water to put the fire out as the fire was pretty far from their truck. Nice guys. They know all the awesome places down on the river too.





Thank god this happened in 2012 and not 2011. Whole place would have gone up.

[Hannibal Lecter]

A little fire now and then is actually good for the ecosystem, especially forests. It clears out the underbrush and makes it easier for the larger trees. Many of the old forests in the western U.S. are in pretty bad shape because for 50+ years the government had a "no fires" policy. They're finally seeing the error of their ways.

[CasperITL]

A little fire now and then is actually good for the ecosystem, especially forests.

Yeah, but this was arson, I guess. I have read about beneficial fires and this one stayed under the trees for the most part. This is the same neighborhood, about a mile away, from where that dog Justice was burned. While waiting for the fire department, some neighborhood kids gathered around and they said someone burned down their playground, which is now just an empty pile of woodchips.

Just super lucky it did not get into the brush to the north. Or the south. One of the trees just to the south is many hundreds of years old, 400+ years old.

[tamtagon]

have i said it before? C-ITL, you rock!

[trolleygirl]

Yup there's another park address at another park entrance (can't remember the name) and when we did the tire cleanup we had to make sure that people did NOT use google maps...

[CasperITL]

Yup there's another park address at another park entrance

The Umphress Rd location is the one I have always used. There is another on Devon Circle in a cul-de-sac. That's the confusion with the sign mix-up. Probably been that way for a long time.

The trail from the "overlook" spot north to Bruton road is starting to get overgrown in spots, like the bottom of the ravines. It's hard to find the trail entrance where it starts south of Bruton Road. From the looks of things no one had been there in a very long time, weeks.

The trail north of Bruton Road to Scyene Overlook is in good shape.

[trolleygirl]

Yeah, but this was arson, I guess.

The kids in the neighborhood go back there and smoke pot (and write graffiti all over the bridge.) They burned down the playground years ago, about three weeks after it was installed. There are a few good neighbors over there, but mostly, no so much.

[trolleygirl]

The trail from the "overlook" spot north to Bruton road is starting to get overgrown in spots, like the bottom of the ravines. It's hard to find the trail entrance where it starts south of Bruton Road. From the looks of things no one had been there in a very long time, weeks.

Talk to your pal, Peter, with Groundwork Dallas.

[CasperITL]

Hawkeye from KSCS went hiking in the Great Trinity Forest recently and posted a story about it(including the Piedmont Ridge Trail and Scyene Overlook):

http://metroplexing.blogspot.com/201...ty-forest.html

I went back to the fire burned area about a week ago, drove down there with a chainsaw to take out the deadfall blocking the trail through Devon Anderson. Someone beat me to the downed trees(widow makers) that the fire consumed. It looks like from the chainsaw cuts that the fire department must have come back and done some work. I only got past the bridge which clears up most of the stuff to Bruton although the trailhead on the south side of Bruton is now really hard to find.

Here is the burned area, about 2 weeks later. Some of the grass is already coming back. Looks like the fire was set in two areas instead of just one. I still have no idea how someone could not have spotted that fire. It consumed cedar trees and all kinds of things that would have generated TONS of smoke.

[CasperITL]

This was shot Saturday 5/19 at Joppa Preserve, Lemmon Lake in the Great Trinity Forest. Not my video, I had a bunch of underwear model chicks emailing me last week wanting to know how to get there. Glad to see someone using one of the most photogenic places in Dallas to do a photo shoot. In this case, organic underwear.

[CasperITL]

Long story but the previous tenant running the slaughterhouse at 811 Pemberton Hill Road(Texas Horse Park) moved his operations(not sure if he left or was evicted). He moved north up the street. Said he did not want to buy city water for his commercial operations so he started stealing it out of the famous White Rock Spring. Sucking it out. I got pissed. Took some work and a bunch of wandering around over the last few weekends to document it all and forward it to someone else who forwarded it to city hall.

What happened at 811 Pemberton Hill pisses me off too. Place is a wreck and so many archeological sites are ruined.

http://dallastrinitytrails.blogspot....hreatened.html

[AeroD]

Long story but the previous tenant running the slaughterhouse at 811 Pemberton Hill Road(Texas Horse Park) moved his operations(not sure if he left or was evicted). He moved north up the street. Said he did not want to buy city water for his commercial operations so he started stealing it out of the famous White Rock Spring. Sucking it out. I got pissed. Took some work and a bunch of wandering around over the last few weekends to document it all and forward it to someone else who forwarded it to city hall.

What happened at 811 Pemberton Hill pisses me off too. Place is a wreck and so many archeological sites are ruined.

http://dallastrinitytrails.blogspot....hreatened.html

What's the best way to get here? Just park off of Pemberton?

[CasperITL]

What's the best way to get here? Just park off of Pemberton?

Most of the frontage along there is private property that goes back a couple hundred yards. Plus not many places to park. Not the best neighborhood either. 811 Pemberton Hill Road, no clue what is in store for that place. Last couple times I was there, the driveway was wide open. http://goo.gl/maps/8JSv 888 Pemberton Hill is a turnout for a electric right of way and a cell phone tower site. You could walk down the power line right of way to the base of the hill and cut over.

Or I could take you there sometime.

[AeroD]

Sweet! I'll PM you.

I have been wanting to go down in that area, but because of recent - although much need - rains over the last months I know hiking can be a bitch with the mud.

[RCdave]

Not sure if this is considered part of the Great Trinity forest, but I flew yesterday at River Oaks Park by Lemmon Lake. It wasn't the prettiest day for picture taking, but there are some good shots of the Lemmon Lake and the area around Lemmon Lake.


http://www.flickr.com/photos/4878365...7630317451158/

I had hoped to go to the old Texas Stadium site after fly hear, but wind gusts over 20mph grounded my rc plane and any thoughs of additional flights that day.

[CasperITL]

Got a good little view of a River Otter this past saturday in the Great Trinity Forest. Took RCDave down there on his first hike along with Bill a hiking friend. Made a big loop of a dawn hike starting at the Loop 12 Boat Ramp, down through Joppa Preserve, over to the Audubon Center and back over an old landfill to the Loop 12 lot. Had a deer jump out in front of us just on the other side of the river too. Maybe 50 feet away or less. Things get hot down there very quickly this time of year so exercise caution if you go. Two days later I'm still dehydrated.

[tamtagon]

I bet most people living in the Metroplex have no idea otters live so close. The only truly successful Trinity River Park will be the one that embraces the natural attributes to the Trinity River system.

Long term, 800 year, flash flood water management cannot depend upon 40' high mounds of dirt. A system of catacombs & cisterns, windmills and aqueducts, cascading lakes ( http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/fallinglakes/ ) and gouged out canyons will help clean the ecosystem, put a natural park right through the middle of the population center, and become a major tourist attraction. The Trinity River Park should be a contiguous wilderness management area for mostly passive interaction from people.

[BigD5349]

Got a good little view of a River Otter this past saturday in the Great Trinity Forest. Took RCDave down there on his first hike along with Bill a hiking friend. Made a big loop of a dawn hike starting at the Loop 12 Boat Ramp, down through Joppa Preserve, over to the Audubon Center and back over an old landfill to the Loop 12 lot. Had a deer jump out in front of us just on the other side of the river too. Maybe 50 feet away or less. Things get hot down there very quickly this time of year so exercise caution if you go. Two days later I'm still dehydrated.

YouTube Link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xANbhBG9Dgk

Now that is seriously cool!

[RCdave]

Casper

I had no idea where we were hiking was called the Joppa Preserve. Is there any place that you know of that has a map with all of the different names of the nature areas around dallas?

And yes it was seriously hot, and seriously cool all at the same time.

[CasperITL]

Now that is seriously cool!

For all the bad press that is generated in/around/about city hall concerning the Trinity River, there are some really special places tucked in there where one can find stuff like this.

About a month ago I built a temporary blind down there, even stuck some fake doves on it(don't laugh too hard)



Something keeps on kicking the doves asses, either a hawk or a raccoon climbs up there. The feral pigs use it as a clubhouse too, biting at it and junk, hanging out inside, taking naps. I told some other guy where the blind is at, he saw a sounder of feral hogs there on the opposite bank yesterday, his website

http://dfwurbanwildlife.com/2012/07/...ing-the-beach/

Those are the special oreo colored feral pigs that are so common in the Great Trinity Forest. I like the pigs, they all have unique personalities if you watch them for a little while.

[CasperITL]

I had no idea where we were hiking was called the Joppa Preserve. Is there any place that you know of that has a map with all of the different names of the nature areas around dallas?

Not that I know of. We did Phase 1, 2 and the more open prairie route of 3a.



Phase 1 is complete, 2 is 75% finished, 3 has not yet started. 3 probably would not start till the Horse Park is complete, I would guess.

[RCdave]

Here are a couple of the shots I liked from Saturday's hike. More are available on my Flikr photostream http://www.flickr.com/photos/48783655@N04/


IMG_9719 by RCdave, on Flickr


IMG_9757 by RCdave, on Flickr

[tamtagon]

I cannot say it enough: ecotourism is one of Dallas County's most promising "economic engines."

Flood management infrastructure must be brought out of the dark ages: mounds of dirt are ridiculously unproductive.

[Hannibal Lecter]

^ I know when I'm thinking of vacations spots, the first thing that comes to my mind is "swamp".

[tamtagon]

^ Okefenokee has been one of my favorites for years. I'd love it 100x more if it was 5 miles from the heart of a big city.... Canoeing, bird watching, fishing, hiking are stuff I love on a certain vacations, and if I could stay at a nice downtown hotel, eat at fancy restaurants in between nature excursions, I'd be very happy!

[CasperITL]

^ I know when I'm thinking of vacations spots, the first thing that comes to my mind is "swamp".

Yeah, it's not for everyone and there is plenty of raw and ugly to go along with the natural beauty. After work yesterday I met with an archeologist down there regarding something we found recently. It's not human. I'm hesitant to mention what it is since I'm not sure how politics will turn it into a mess. I can say that it will literally blow you away and I hope that one day maybe it can be in a museum or actually something for kids to view at the Audubon Center.

After visiting with the archeologist and even talking with some cool dudes from the Trinity River Authority I went to see if the Wood Storks were back in town. Sure were!





The flock of birds taking flight in the background are a flock of Wood Storks. Not many of them left in the world.

I'm not sure why most of the birds ignore the pigs. That is some weird interaction!

[tamtagon]

The flock of birds taking flight in the background are a flock of Wood Storks. Not many of them left in the world.

Thanks for the great video! Do you know whether or not Whooping Cranes have been spotted in the area?

Managing the wilderness in the SE quadrant of Dallas County on behalf of migratory birds, Monarch Butterflies, bat colonies etc. will create natural spectacles that could bring millions of annual visitors to Dallas every year. It's a booster club cop-out anytime folks lament that Dallas lacks the natural beauty to inspire. The beauty of a river may not be as dramatic as the ocean, or mountains, but a river can certainly be much more engaging. It's all in the presentation.

Additionally, as the Trinity River moves through the wilderness 'recharge zone' the water is cleaned for our friends downstream.

[AeroD]

A shout out to the Forum's own Casper who organized a tour yesterday. I was fortunate enough to visit the Pemberton Farm and venture around in the forest. And yes, Mr. and Mrs. Pemberton are salt of the earth.

I was kinda disappointed in that I was probably the only young guy on this trip (I'm 30). Young people are so quick to complain about nothing to do in Dallas or that we have nothing "outdoorsy", but it is there. It just does take some effort.

It is amazing we have this within city limits. It is kinda surreal.

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[CasperITL]

^ Hey now! I'm just a few years older than you! My mountain bike trips are all 20s and 30s age people. BBQ, beer, messing with stuff etc. are the norm. Frankly it's hard to get someone my age to wake up early on Saturdays. Until about a year ago, all my trips down there were late on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon simply because I hate waking up before dawn on a weekend. Most of my early morning photos are taken with me having a hangover, actually. One of my posts from the summer, the one where I went down to the river at 4am, I just went straight from a concert in Deep Ellum to Joppa Preserve. Screw it I said, it turned out awesome.

In order to meet most of the folks who go down there, I have to plan trips for mornings. The people I hike with down there are all experts in their field and are awesome to be around. I would not know much of anything without them. I'm totally blessed that people who are twice as smart as me would share some of their free time.

I'm glad you came along, I probably should have invited more people from the forum here. I'll be sure to do that next time. Billy Ray said he wants to have a chuckwagon breakfast at his place. I think that would also involve the historical re-enactor guys dressed in Texas Revolutionary War period stuff. Which would be cool to see. I think I might dress up as an Indian complete with war paint. I wonder how that will go over.


Above is Olympia the goat, she was born during the 2004 Olympics in Greece. She most recently had kids on last Christmas Eve. The rock she is standing on was probably the front stoop of the cabin built by Mr Pembertons grandfather or that of John Neely Bryan and his wife.

Many of the people yesterday were affiliated with the Dallas Historical Society, historic groups etc. So that naturally attracts an older set. Just like you, I had pretty much never met anyone else in that group yesterday other than the Pembertons and Bill H. Everyone else I knew just about as well as I know you! BCWorkshop folks were interested but it was the morning after PARKing day. Many of the people that were there yesterday have been working a decade or so on getting a historical marker, entry to into the National Register of Historic Places and so on for that place. Like you, I'm sort of new to all this stuff.

Mr Pemberton is literally one with the land there. He is really deep on his appreciation of the environment, taking care of it and preservation.



People just don't understand what is down there. To have the skyline of Downtown as a backdrop walking along Billy Ray's 130 year old path is hard to comprehend. We were there at mid-day by then and everyone was getting a little tired but at dawn or dusk with the owls hooting and coyotes howling its really special.

[AeroD]

^ Hey now! I'm just a few years older than you! My mountain bike trips are all 20s and 30s age people. BBQ, beer, messing with stuff etc. are the norm. Frankly it's hard to get someone my age to wake up early on Saturdays. Until about a year ago, all my trips down there were late on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon simply because I hate waking up before dawn on a weekend. Most of my early morning photos are taken with me having a hangover, actually. One of my posts from the summer, the one where I went down to the river at 4am, I just went straight from a concert in Deep Ellum to Joppa Preserve. Screw it I said, it turned out awesome.

Oh, I don't want my words to suggest I was disappointed with anyone in our group yesterday. I am disappointed in my own demographic.

[CasperITL]

The Trinity has been bad mouthed for so long that it has a stigma attached to it. One that's hard to crack. The only way to change that is to bring people down there, open their minds to things they did not know existed. People have lived in that spot for thousands of years, you saw that nut/seed crusher Indian tool that must be as old as time itself. The river has so much bad press and fighting among city officials that it's hard to get any of the planned projects moving down there.

Previous generations did their best to ruin the river. Now that it has been untouched for a couple decades, the bottomland down there is starting to heal itself. Ready to rebrand itself.

The main barrier I see is not what was left behind by damage 50 years ago but by the dysfunction of city hall. The disorganization and absentee landlord mindset really hurt the ability of the city to move forward. The left hand does not know what the right hand is doing. Someone sat me down a year ago over breakfast and warned me not to fall into that. Luckily I took their advice and I'm steering clear of the soap opera issues that crowd some things down there. Frankly, some of it is pretty spooky shady stuff that would be better served by a local investigative reporter-journalist. I want no part of that. I pulled the ejection handle after I got a couple weird phone calls. It goes far deeper than that and not worth discussing, really.

Anyone reading this is more than welcome to join in on another hike, bike ride or whatever. AeroD took some initiative this past year and hiked a bunch of these weird places and I'm really happy he came along. Mrs Pemberton gave us each a slice of the Beeman Walnut tree cake she makes.

[CasperITL]

AeroD,

Remember those birds we saw at a distance that were really too hard to identify? After getting home one of the members of the group checked his photos and it was an Osprey aka Fish Eagle. That's the third eagle species I have seen in that area. The previous two were Bald Eagles and a Mexican Caracara which is the eagle featured on the Mexican flag. Usually I see one weird animal when I take groups down there. I thought well, we were kind of making some racket this time around and with it being so hot we would not see anything, well, an osprey is pretty cool.

His photos are here
http://dfwurbanwildlife.com/2012/09/...sprey-a-first/

[AeroD]

Osprey? So it is not just a military project being built in FW? Is that the same bird some were calling a turkey vulture?

I'm sure he'll post on his website, but anything yet from those cameras he installed by Bryan's Slough?

[CasperITL]

Well, I always see weird stuff on their back forty. Humans don't go back there. I guess Billy Ray last cut that trail in May or so, I went down to the creek the week or two after. That might have been the last time anyone was beyond that pasture.

That guy who goes by the handle "Dismuke" if you recall was interested in feral hogs, coyotes, bobcats. I thought he was asking me all those questions because he was worried about seeing them. I was wrong about that. He emailed me today to say that Sunday, the day after the hike, he went down to Joppa and had an encounter with a feral hog. That's pretty darn cool.

[CasperITL]

AeroD,

Here is a writeup Bill Holston did of our trip, posted today on the DMagazine blog Frontburner

http://frontburner.dmagazine.com/201...ll-holston-26/

The spring thing for those who have not been there, sits in a pasture basically. Walking up to it you would not know the spring is there until you stand on the lip.


The vegetation I'm standing in is watercress and is edible. Above the lip and in the background is the 1908 flood marked walnut tree.

Far removed from the river and White Rock Creek, the Pembertons pointed out that they spotted catfish in the spring outlet. I went down there just for a short visit this weekend and stuck an underwater camera in the outlet, a couple hundred yards away from the spring, hundreds of yards from any real source of water that could hold fish of any size. I let the camera run while we did some brush clearing and farm work. Came back and was surprised to see all the catfish but also a spotted bass, the native species of what we call largemouth bass. Living in what is basically an old cow pasture.

[AeroD]

Let me this wrong...those fish are in that same exact spring where the watercress are at? Or is this a different spring?

[CasperITL]

Let me this wrong...those fish are in that same exact spring where the watercress are at? Or is this a different spring?

Same spring but just below where that pipe is located. You know how the water spills out of the spring then enters a very narrow channel as it heads through the pasture towards the watermelon patch. In that area. The fish must have been small fry last spring when the river rose and deposited them in the spring channel. The spring itself is full of minnows that must have gotten there the same way.

[drycreek]

I LOVE this thread. So cool. When do you guys take your next trip out there and can I join you?

[AeroD]

I LOVE this thread. So cool. When do you guys take your next trip out there and can I join you?

If you want to start small, definitely check out the Audubon Center and the Buckeye Trail. I know at first you might get nervous parking at the end of Bexar, but the times I did it nothing happened.

But I am sure Casper will plan another activity. Although the weather is getting nicer, I am not sure he is gonna get all the cool wildlife shots from Lemmon since the birds probably are heading elsewhere.

[tamtagon]

Although the weather is getting nicer, I am not sure he is gonna get all the cool wildlife shots from Lemmon since the birds probably are heading elsewhere.

Fall migration is probably about to kick into overdrive.... as the Trinity River Park evolves into more of a managed wilderness area, the wetlands become more extensive and productive, birding in Dallas will drive a significant increase in tourism. While most out-of-state birders are destined for South Texas and the coast, the TRP is a supremely excellent stop-over.

I still think the delux horse park will be a great amenity deserving patient diligence, infrastructure for overnight camps would find immediate use, immediately generate the touted ROI, and help pay to build the trails already planned.

[CasperITL]

I LOVE this thread. So cool. When do you guys take your next trip out there and can I join you?

Sure! If I'm in town I go down there for a couple hours on a weekend. I have kind of gotten the hang of the seasons now down there, when things are certain places at certain times.

As I have gotten to know people down there I kind of get spread somewhat thin with time. Some places are also accessed only by private property and I don't want to wear out my welcome. So I have to balance all that out. I had no idea so many people would be interested in this stuff.

[tamtagon]

So I have to balance all that out. I had no idea so many people would be interested in this stuff.

The lure is that the wilderness is 15 minutes from the heart of the city. Excursion negativity about Dallas because there's no beach or mountains will be relevant only until the river ecosystem is no longer ignored.

[drycreek]

Yeah I've hit up the Audubon Center and the Buckeye Trail already. Both were great, was wanting to do a little more exploring though!

[CasperITL]

Caught some poachers red handed this weekend in the Great Trinity Forest. I'm really pissed about it. Both poachers were armed with shotguns and shooting birds off the powerlines in Rochester Park. They did not give a damn, other than being spotted. Both kind of hid off in the woods, I got off the trail and I went right up to one of them sitting who was sitting in a ball under a tree with a 12 gauge. Asked him what he was hunting and where they lived etc. I was hiking with a couple other people and felt confident the poachers would not shoot me, the poacher I talked to would not even look me in the eye. He just stared into the ground. I made it clear where we were headed and not to shoot that direction.

We did not get more than 200 yards away from them when they opened up again with a couple shots. Jerks.

[drycreek]

Caught some poachers red handed this weekend in the Great Trinity Forest. I'm really pissed about it. Both poachers were armed with shotguns and shooting birds off the powerlines in Rochester Park. They did not give a damn, other than being spotted. Both kind of hid off in the woods, I got off the trail and I went right up to one of them sitting who was sitting in a ball under a tree with a 12 gauge. Asked him what he was hunting and where they lived etc. I was hiking with a couple other people and felt confident the poachers would not shoot me, the poacher I talked to would not even look me in the eye. He just stared into the ground. I made it clear where we were headed and not to shoot that direction.

We did not get more than 200 yards away from them when they opened up again with a couple shots. Jerks.

Wow. I'm an avid bird hunter and poachers are horrible. But I think it was a really bad idea for you to confront them like that. Not worth it man. Call the game warden and let him handle it next time. You never know what kind of mental state somebody is in. Just sayin'.

[Bhops]

Agreed that it is not wise to confront poachers. I’m told that game wardens have some of the most expansive powers of any law enforcement, based on the fact that they routinely have to approach bands of armed men. Not a job I would want. Regardless, I admire your courage and conviction, Casper.

On a side note, we should start something like this on the Trinity:
http://www.texaswatersafari.org/

Anybody ever done this race?

[tamtagon]

C-ITL is hardcore, has been for a long time

[CasperITL]

Agreed that it is not wise to confront poachers. I’m told that game wardens have some of the most expansive powers of any law enforcement, based on the fact that they routinely have to approach bands of armed men. Not a job I would want. Regardless, I admire your courage and conviction, Casper.

On a side note, we should start something like this on the Trinity:
http://www.texaswatersafari.org/

Anybody ever done this race?

There is canoe race every year down the Elm Fork:

http://www.down-river.com/trc/

The problem with the "Main" stem of the Trinity is that depending on the time of year and flows, the water is unfit for human contact. Literally touching it is ill advised.

In regards to the poaching, it's a problem that needs to be addressed. I can understand the police not wanting to put their officers in harm's way in what is for all practical purposes, real wilderness. This latest poaching thing happened right where the dallas history group went on a walking tour of the John Neely Bryan/Beeman homestead. It happened on the old farmland once owned by Bryan, Beeman etc. I wonder what they would have done. Maybe that's why I was so angry.

I have not had any luck in the past couple years discussing anything with the city council people who have the GTF in their district. This latest event happened in a new district though, Dwaine Caraway's District 4. Maybe I'll ask him to see what can be done.

[Bhops]

Yeah I saw the Elm Fork race website... interesting.

Why is the main stem so polluted? Is it pesticide? Pig's blood?