With over 754 acres, Cullinan Park is one of the largest parks in Houston. As a nature enthusiast and a COVID-19 fearer, I decided that this park was good enough to quench my thirst for some outdoorsy adventures while being able to socially distance.

I donned my cap and packed my bike for a morning adventure at the park. As I arrived at the park, the first thing that greeted me was the park’s sign indicating that it was being managed by a non-profit organization known as Cullinan Park Conservancy. This group works to protect this park’s plants, wildlife and visitors.

Here’s a map with a few examples of animals you might encounter on the trail. To be honest, I did not run into any of them. Still be careful though.

This park is known for its alligators and swamps. They even have a small observation tower for spotting alligators! Obviously, I needed I made my way to the observation deck to check out some alligators.

I was dying to finally see an alligator face-to-face, but that didn’t happen. Maybe next time! I hope those people up there had better luck.

For fishermen out there, there are fishes to be fished here! I wouldn’t recommend eating them though as the swamp didn’t look that clean. I only caught a glimpse of some small fry, so I wouldn’t bet on them. They’re probably deep down there, as deep as you can go with that fishing rod.

Onto the dirt trails! There’s a trail leading into the wooded dirt trails next to the observation deck. There’s a small system of trails at this park, enough to keep me busy for a two hours. If you’re walking, be sure to bring some mosquito repellant because giant mosquitoes roam those woods. They’ll motivate you to keep going when you’re out of breath from all the walking. Never thought a swarm of mosquitoes could motivate me that much. Heh!

The trail was serene. It was as peaceful as it could be during an early morning bike ride.

Remember! No sitting unless you want to be mosquito food.

Initially, the flat dirt trails weren’t too challenging.

But as I snaked through the wooded trails, I encountered a few slopes that were too steep to bike up, so naturally, I hopped off my bike and walked up.

There were a lot of things to see in the woods. For bird watchers, there were quite a few colorful birds to see. As for me, I’m more of an anthophile. You know, someone who loves flowers.

I rain into some wild buckweeds.

I swear this picture is different from the portfolio image!

There were also some blue mistflower on the way.

For the vision-impaired like me, here’s a closer look.

I think I also ran into some grass-leaved goldenrods, but not sure if they really were, so correct me if I’m wrong.

Lastly, I ran into some rabbit tobaccos! Pretty cool name for a plant. I had to look this one up! Thanks, Google lens.

After biking for awhile, I needed to rest, but didn’t want to be mosquito food. Luckily, there was a way out to the other side of the park!

Look how peaceful this is! I could sleep here if there was a hammock.

After an adrenaline-filled morning, I was ready to leave the park. Hopefully, I’ll have time to revisit in the future! Maybe in the spring when there should be more flowers!

Until next time, Cullinan Park!