Nice Nature Trail

The Kirby Nature Trail is a nice place to hike and learn.  It is close to the Visitors Center off Hwy 287 and a popular place for elementary school field trips.  This is a great first stop if visiting the Big Thicket for the first time.

The Nature Trail features a shorter Inner Loop and a longer Outer Loop.  There are no distance markers along the trail so I don't know the distance of the Inner Loop, but the Outer Loop is longer (2.4 miles).  The Nature trail has a lot of educational placards to help you learn about trees and the ecosystem of the area.  The previous reviewer stated the trail signs needed to be more obvious, but I found them adequate.  What I did not have was an enlarged trail map, however.  I'm not sure one exists.  I only had the brochure map which shows the entire Big Thicket National Preserve.  On that large scale map, the Kirby Nature Trail is hard to discern, making it difficult to navigate.

What I found most impressive were the Bald Cypress trees down in the Slough.  They are nice specimens.  Take your camera.