The Best Laid Plans…

Sitting in front of our travel computer, I do something I rarely ever do.  I check for information on today’s adventure. Looking at the screen, I can’t believe what I am reading. The Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge is closed on Saturday and Sunday. That is hardly logical. I check another site — it says the same thing.

Refusing to accept what I see, I finally click on the US Government website and read the following:  The refuge is open 365 days a year during daylight hours (sunrise to sunset) and no entrance fee is required. Enjoy wildlife-related activities, including wildlife watching, hiking, hunting, fishing, and wildlife photography. 

I turn to Michael and tell him it is possible, though highly improbable, that the refuge is closed. He tells me that today will be the last halfway decent weather day for the next seven; we should go for a ride anyway and see what happens.

We Are Here – Now What?

What happens is that on Hwy 2004, we pass the entrance — backtrack — and find a locked gate. But there are three large signs. I tell Michael, “I’ll go read those signs. Maybe they will tell us something.”

Standing here, scanning the colorful billboards, they tell me virtually nothing of what I want to know. But there is a map in one corner of the last sign showing me where the information center is located. It is not anywhere close to Hwy 2004.

Back in the car, we continue our journey driving another fifteen miles, turning left twice until finally, we reach a small group of low-slung buildings. Michael has little faith they are open.

The sign on the door says OPEN, and there is a QR Code taped on the window for an informative auto tour. The reflection in the glass keeps my phone from doing its thing — but I keep trying.  After a few minutes, the visitor center attendant comes to my rescue. I try my phone to illustrate the problem. She tries her cellphone. No luck.

We go inside, and the attendant tries to loosen the paper from the window. Eventually, my phone and the QR Code get together, and the audio auto tour is installed. Meanwhile, the attendant looks at me like I may be a tad crazy when I tell her about the Closed on Saturday and Sunday information I get when checking the Internet. Her reply is, “Never.”

Before beginning the one-and-a-half-hour auto tour, we are urged to check out the Big Slough Trail near the boardwalk.

Big Slough Trail

Alone in the seeming wilderness, we dawdle at the boardwalk. I love the colors and the quiet. I would stay here and just look, but we walk on, taking the trail that parallels a portion of the Big Slough.

The sun hides behind a sky full of clouds, and the breeze causes both Michael and me to look for something to cover our ears—it is more than chilly. I will forever be grateful to myself for the purchase I made years ago of the lightweight, wool-like scarf that accompanies me everywhere I go during the winter. However, as we progress down the trail, we are sheltered by windbreaks on each side — a high line of tall scrub, leafless trees, and oaks.

The only thing I see is the trail before me and the green-brown tunnel on each side, but what I hear is an entirely different story. Along with the chirps, burps, hiccups, popping, crackling, snapping, musical sounds of the swamp, I hear what I think is a deep snort — huffing and puffing.  I think wild pig. Michael says, “Alligator.”  Neither option sounds safe. I walk faster.

We reach a closed gate; the sign basically says STOP, but not in those words. We are at the turning point of the1.1-mile loop trail. To our right is a platform with a bench jutting out over the swamp—the first place we have had a view of the Big Slough since we started on the trail. The sun is chasing away the clouds, and Michael and I both head toward the viewing deck. We sit and listen and look, feeling like we are in the middle of a documentary about life in the wetlands of the Gulf Coast.

The Audio Auto Tour

Sunny and warm when we reach the parking area, Michael puts the top down on the car for our one-and-a-half-hour auto tour of the Big Slough. Even when the sun decides once again to hide behind a blanket of clouds, we keep the top down. Driving 7 MPH is almost like standing still.

Michael is fascinated by the waterfowl, while I am amazed at the colors of this flat land. We pass a deserted picnic shelter; freshwater Olney Pond; Crosstails Pond, a freshwater marsh; Teal Pond; Rogers Pond constructed to collect rainfall and provide fresh water to the salty environment; Mosquito Crossing; Alligator Watch. When we stop, and I hear words on our audio tour like ranch and hurricane and gone emanating from my phone, the only thing I wonder is — HOW? How could anyone come to this marshy land and say YES — this is a good place for a ranch!

For the longest time, we are the only vehicle on the road as we stop at various waypoints, listening to the story of this land and the wildlife that inhabit it—if only temporarily. Suddenly a Texas-sized pick-up truck comes toward us, and another, and another. I feel like we are back in England on those no-name roads that I love that are only one lane wide, holding my breath while Michel tries to figure out a safe place to pull off the road.

Reaching the end of the tour, the clouds have succeeded in covering the sky; we become a car with a top once again, glad we took the chance. Took a drive. Explored this fascinating land.

Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge

The Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge is a 43,000-acre refuge with salt grass prairies, mudflats, fresh and saltwater marshes and lakes, and salt cedars. These habitats make it a favorite for many coastal and migratory birds. An auto tour, boardwalks, and air-conditioned discovery center have broad appeal to Texas birders. Areas on the refuge to explore are Big Slough Boardwalk & Trail, Cox Lake Trail, Otter Slough Trail, Salt Lake Public Fishing Area, Teal Pond, Olney Pond, and Rogers Pond. Combined, they make for one of the best waterfowl viewing sites on the Texas coast. During the winter months, geese, ducks, and sandhill cranes fill the ponds and sloughs.

Location

• 2022 County Road 227 Freeport, Texas

Website

https://www.fws.gov/refuge/Brazoria/

Hours

• Open daily from sunrise to sunset.

Comfort

• Bring insect repellant in every season.
• Be prepared for the heat and sun.
• Carry drinking water and sunscreen.

Safety

• Do not feed the alligators or any other wildlife.
• When walking the trails, watch out for venomous snakes, and fire ants.
  

Rules

• No camping, fires, or fireworks are allowed.
• Keep pets on leashes.
• No firearms are permitted except for waterfowl hunting. Please check refuge website for details.
• Off-road travel and all-terrain vehicles use is not permitted.
• Camping and open fires are prohibited. 
• Disturbing or collecting any plant or animal is prohibited.