Spring Creek, a tributary of the San Jacinto River, runs along the southern
border of The Woodlands forming a boundary between Harris and Montgomery
Counties. Spring Creek begins in the western part of Montgomery County past FM
249, flowing eastward,
north of Hufsmith Road, through the southernmost part of The Woodlands past
Kuykendahl and Gosling Road, under Interstate 45, north of Cypresswood Drive
and past U.S. Highway 59 where it enjoins the San Jacinto River.
When it is within its banks, Spring Creek meanders peacefully through a
biologically diverse forest that is habitat to many different wildlife species.
We are fortunate to live near the creek, providing our family with a quiet
retreat and unlimited fishing. While our family was marooned on our property by
Spring Creek
’s rising waters during the flood of ’94, we witnessed an unexpected gathering of wildlife—opossums, armadillos, snakes, raccoons, stray dogs, a deer and an army of
squirrels
—driven upland by the waters to the highest point, which happened to be ours,
taking sanctuary in our lawn and trees. Since 1994, our area has benefited from
re-engineering of the several-mile radius that comprises our neighborhood, and
thankfully, during heavy rains in subsequent years, we have had little trouble
driving around and out of our subdivision. Re-engineering the lands in
neighborhoods like ours near Spring Creek works in tandem with the creek
’s projected 15,000-acre preservation effort under-way in both Harris and
Montgomery counties.
An organized plan for the Spring Creek Greenway began to take shape in the early
1980s when Jon Lindsay, then Harris County Judge Lindsay, acquired several
parcels of pristine forest on either side of Spring Creek including the lands
that now comprise Mercer Arboretum, Jessie Jones Park and the Cypresswood Golf
Course. Harris County Commissioner Jerry Eversole and Montgomery County
Precinct 3 Commissioner Ed Chance, seeing the opportunity to connect the
parcels into a 33-mile contiguous corridor of parks and preserves, collaborated
to develop a preservation program involving the resources of both counties. The
Greenway project will ensure that the fragile ecosystem, threatened by
encroachment of development and flooding, will be protected. In an effort to
preserve the land on either side of the waterway, both commissioners have
worked to purchase additional parcels, which will complete the linear forest
along Spring Creek. Plans for the future include biking trails, bird-watching
sanctuaries, fishing areas, canoeing and kayaking, and paths for exploration by
foot.
It is anticipated that the vision of Jon Lindsay, Jerry Eversole and Ed Chance
will see fruition in a few short years as the remaining pieces of land along
the corridor become available to the project. This timbered land, once the home
to Akokisa Indians, eventually will provide a peaceful respite for the benefit
of all and a legacy of preservation on the border between Harris and Montgomery
counties.
The Woodlands Lifestyles & Homes Magazine features
The Woodlands Homes, Upscale Living, Health and Well-Being,
Shopping, and Entertainment in The Woodlands Texas.
