By Brandt Mannchen

I like to visit City of Houston and Harris County Parks and enjoy the adventure of never having been before, or in welcoming back an old friend (park) that I haven’t seen for a long time.

This time it’s two parks that I haven’t visited before.  The first is Sims Bayou Park, 5534 Lakefield Dr., 77033, at the corner of Sims Bayou, Airport, and Martin Luther King.

This is primarily a recreational park with several baseball fields, playground equipment, basketball court, and scattered Live Oak, Loblolly Pine, and other trees to provide shade.  There is a lot of open space, non-native grasses, and the park has a wastewater treatment facility which isn’t the best feature for visitation.

However, there are two “wild” things that this park has going for it.  At the very back of the park, its west end, is a restored riparian forest that the City of Houston is nurturing with American Elm, Green Ash, Willow Oak, Sugarberry, Pecan, and other native trees, shrubs, and vines.  There’s a nice educational sign to clue you in on why this is important.

The second “wild” thing is Sims Bayou.  The Sims Bayou Trail System is also found just south of the park.  The day I stood on the sidewalk that crosses Martin Luther King Bridge, Sims Bayou was clear enough that I could see fish swimming upstream.

I also saw an Osprey dive down to catch one a fish, a Black-bellied Whistling Duck, White Ibis, Killdeer, and a flock of cormorants flying west along Sims Bayou.  It’s “cool” to see some “wild” in the city.

The second park I visited is Robert C. Stuart Park, 7250 Bellfort Avenue, 77087, which is between Mykawa and Telephone Road, on the south side of Bellfort. 

There are several picnic tables and some gravel trails that lead through a mostly forested area, with some open grassy areas, that lie next to Sims Bayou and the Sims Bayou Trail.  Grassy areas contain Eastern Gama Grass, Common Morning Glory, Prairie Gerardia, Giant Ragweed, Canadian Goldenrod, Frog Fruit, Wild Axocatzin, Petunia, Snow-on-the-prairie, and others.

In the forest there is a mix of trees, shrubs, and vines including Cherry Laurel, Willow Oak, Sugarberry, Green Ash, Trumpet Vine, greenbrier species, Pecan, Baccharis, Water Oak, Eastern Red Cedar, Deciduous Holly, Turk’s Cap, Post Oak, Rough-leaf Dogwood, Marsh-Elder, Privet forestiera, Poison Ivy, grape vine species and planted Bald Cypress, Bur Oak, and Cedar Elm.

I saw or heard Bluejay, dragonfly, Gulf Fritillary Butterfly, Snowy Egret, and Northern Cardinal.

If the non-native plants like Chinese Privet, Chinese Tallow, Japanese Honeysuckle, King Ranch Bluestem, and Waxy-leaf Legustrum can be removed or reduced in number the forest will better exemplify the riparian (streamside) forest that used to grow along Sims Bayou before it was channelized, deepened, and ditched.

This park is a much “wilder” place and one with more welcome shade to use during sunny days.  Both parks provide a small hint of “wild” and will give pleasant memories and joy to take with you when you leave.