In 2019 I had a chance to visit Anahuac NWR. With COVID-19 driving many of us to seek out activities that can be done safely with social distancing during the COVID pandemic.
The Anahuac NWR Bird Rookery part of Anahuac NWR is a bit odd, its tucked many miles from the main visitor infrastructure but it has some great short trails to get you into the lowlands where the gulf of Mexico and the State of Texas blend together.
The first parking area will put you at the live oak trailhead. The area is well paved, easy for my sedan to navigate. Its buggy, I suggest you bring your bug spray. The total length of the trail is less than 1/2 a mile and you will move across a diverse set of landscapes ending at a waterway where you can feel far away from everything.
The second parking area you will come across puts you at the Rookery trial head. This trail is better developed (Fewer bugs), longer perhaps 1- mile with an equally diverse set of landscapes, ending at a large field that is half marsh, half solid land. This trail is a birding dreamscape. We saw a couple out looking for a few feathered friends who were on their trips back north.
I think that I most enjoyed was the water crossing at the very start of the trail, so many fish, birds, and turtles to be seen. We easily lingered for 30 min spotting these animals as they enjoyed the warm sun and cooler water.
We coupled our trip to this part of the refuge with an afternoon on Bolivar flying kits and enjoying the gulf.
The total trip from downtown Houston and back was 9 hours. A great chance to get out of the city for the day.
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