Friday Shoot-out, water

This week I had so many possible water, whet areas to choose from that I had a hard time finding a direction to take this Shoot-out.  Houston is just west of the ship channel that comes up from Galveston and ends just south of I-10.  It is 60 miles north of Galveston and is partially on the flood plane of the San Jacinto and Red Rivers. There is no limit to the photo opportunities.  But I am now visiting with my daughter and her two children, Carl and Marissa and she doesn’t really live in Houston but in Fort Bend County.  To the west and south of the Houston (Harris County) line in Fort Bend County there are three smaller communities, Sugarland, Stafford and Missouri City.  All three of these cities are on the Brazos River flood plane.   That means the area is FLAT, flat, flat and is crosshatched with creeks, ponds and horseshoe bends. 

Over the millennium as rivers snake their way across the flood plane, they gouge out new riverbeds, changing course and leaving behind small bodies of water called horseshoe bends.  Fort Bend County Texas  has thousands, well maybe hundreds of these small isolated horseshoe shaped bodies of water.  You don’t realize at ground level what they are but if you look at a map of the area they are apparent.  The local developers and city planners have used them to create private lakes for some very pricey homes and public parks for the rest of us.  The result is a very pleasant, garden like area with plenty of fountains, fishing holes, boat ramps and picnic areas in which to enjoy life.  

Private lake off Sugar Creek.

 

It doesn’t take me long to end up with too many photos.  

I decided to focus on the Missouri City park of Kitty Hollow.  Small, with a man made pond incorporating two horseshoe bends, this park has the requisite fishing pier, grassy knoll, park benches and picnic tables, wild birds and lots and lots of personality.   I can not wait to see this park as it matures, the cypress trees around its edge will be beautiful.  I Don’t know what the pink is on the base of the cypress, looks like pink fish eggs. 

 

Double click any you want to see a bit larger.