Got an early start walking to the Ensemble/HCC Metro station and was on a train around 6:00 AM (foolishly trying to beat the heat) heading north.
Took it to the end of the line and then starting hiking west on Crosstimbers. Five miles (or so) later I was on the White Oak Bayou Hike/Bike trail looking for a way into the bayou.
The bayou was flowing nicely. I had found a NOAA website that shows flow rates and depths of the bayous around Houston (NOAA) . It showed that the bayou was a bit over it’s nominal low depth from the recent rains.
This was my second “channelized” bayou and, like Braes Bayou, the current was moving nicely, making for easy paddling. But there is NO SHADE at all so I’m glad it was early in the morning.
Did not see as much wildlife as on the wilder bayous (as expected) but did see some birds, a few turtles and the ever-present fish. And there are some big guys in there. And something causing the fish to jump, one almost ended up on my boat.
For the first 8 miles or so the bayou moved nicely with even a few short sections of rapids. The cross-section of the bayou is not a uniform depth. The sides are quite shallow, sometimes even dry. I had to stay in the deeper center part which is only about 10-12 feet wide so I had to pay attention to keep from bottoming out. On the plus side, there were almost no obstructions (i.e. tires, trees, shopping carts).
I took one short side trip a few hundred yards up Little White Oak Bayou which enters into WO Bayou just west of the I-45, I-10 interchange.
As I neared downtown the flow slowed to almost no noticeable movement and the concrete ended. It got prettier and harder. Typical.
After about 10 miles of so White Oak Bayou empties into Buffalo Bayou just across from Allens Landing. I paddled over and pulled out. Buffalo Bayou was moving well from all the recent rain. Then a short walk to the UH Metro station and heading home.
Our Adventures 