A series dedicated to educating our geofriends about some of the interesting trees and vines that can be seen along the latest secton of the Spring Creek Greenway (SCG) Trail. Reading the descriptons and searching for the containers BEFORE you read the hint is strongly encouraged! When complete, the Spring Creek Greenway will encompass 12,000 acres and over 40 miles, from Highway 59/69 at the San Jacinto River in Humble, to Spring Creek Park, west of Tomball. This Phase III-C section of the trail is officially open, and construction of Phase V-A of the trail (Holzwarth Road to Mossy Oaks) is currently underway. The completed secton of the Spring Creek Greenway Trail begins atHighway 59/Interstate 69 in Humble and extends almost 17 miles to the end of this new section. Please note that trail hours are dawn to dusk, and replace all containers as you found them.
River Birch (Betula nigra) is commonly found near waterways throughout East Texas, and can easily be identified from a distance by its peeling...seeming to come off in rolled-up sheets. In fact, this quality caused early inhabitants of the area to use the bark as a rudimentary paper substitute. All you had to do was char the end of a branch, and voila! Instant pencil and paper. Although not a favored source, the bark of some types of birch trees has been used to make birch-bark canoes. But the most common modern-day use of these trees is as a deterrent to erosion! Their fibrous, netlike root system works very well to stabilize loose soils; and this phenomenon can be seen along the Spring Creek Greenway from many vantage points, including this one!