A Nature Preserve 10 Miles Down the Road
It is cloudy and cool today. Not cold. Not windy. Just pale gray gloom. Michael suggests it is time to get out of our rented cottage and visit one of the myriad nature centers on these barrier islands off the coast of Texas. One is Lafitte’s Cove Nature Preserve across from Pirate’s Beach on Galveston Island; the other is Smith Oaks Bird Sanctuary on High Island which entails a ferry crossing and more than one bird viewing option on the Bolivar Peninsula.
I choose the one closest to us, ten miles down the road, wishing to save the Bolivar Peninsula for a day more lovely than this. I’m sure it will come.
Lafitte’s Cove Nature Preserve
We have explored this island sanctuary before when the birds sang, and the sun shone—a different year—a different month. Currently there is only one car parked in the modest area reserved for the Lafitte’s Cove Nature Preserve, which is tucked in the middle of a tony neighborhood west of the town of Galveston. I still can’t help but wonder about how and why this island of wilderness exists; it seems such an unlikely location.
Walking the weathered boardwalk that crosses a large pond, we encounter our first glimpse of waterfowl on this trip other than seagulls. I am too far away to get a good picture, but Michael’s camera is a minor miracle, and he tells me he was able to capture the large, graceful pink and white creatures perched on the railing.
As we enter the maze of scrub and trees, signs warn us to stay on the trail. And then they warn us to beware of snakes, water moccasins, aka cottonmouths, in particular. We learn to tread lightly with ever-watchful eyes.
The paths are well-maintained cement walkways, leading us around and through nature’s sanctuary for our feathered friends. But today, these particular friends are elusive. Have they flown away, hoping to find the sun? Or have the birds of spring from years ago gone south for the winter? We sit for a while on a bench in the area where the colorfully shaded winged creatures are known to congregate. Nada. Nothing. Zilch.
The Flora and More at Lafitte’s Cove Nature Preserve
Since flights of color and the sweet sounds of a bird’s trill are lost us to this day, I begin to focus on what is here. Dried mosses. Trees of all sorts. Giant decaying leaves. Grasses.
Toothache Tree and a Lost Palm
And RUINS! I don’t remember them from years ago. How did I miss these old, damp, algae encrusted bricks — and their story? Stopping, I read a sign. The bricks are the remnants of a building from a ranch owned by John Egert. Five years after his death, in 1952, the land was sold and twenty years later conveyed to a developer. But Egert had a daughter, Eva, who fought against the intended housing development and rescued a portion of it to be turned into a sanctuary for these avian creatures.
We follow the trail until it splits. Michael points right. I want to see what’s left — just for a few yards anyway. Michael patiently waits during my adventurous foray into the unknown. As I turn, the clearing I happen upon is a pristine, well-manicured cul-de-sac. The houses are quaint, charming, impressive. Not ostentatious, but large nonetheless.
Then and Now
A Map
Close to the entrance of the clearing is also a small covered area with a trail map. Standing here looking at it, I realize there is no way to get lost — unless you are a small child and wander off the beaten path.
Following the trail, we eventually find our way back to where we started. The graceful egret left his perch on the railing and moved to the pond, partially hidden by the grasses and the brush at the waters edge. We pass a stand of daisies, and I wonder how they have survived the recent cold spell.
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