THE GREAT TRINITY FOREST
Dallas is not known for its natural beauty.
We have paved much of our prairie.
And while we may pass forest, river and wetlands as we drive somewhere else, few give it much more than a passing glance.
Although I would rather not admit it, I was the same way.
While I have photographed many of Texas’ natural highlights, I had never ventured into the forest right here in my home town.
It did not help that for decades, this was a forgotten zone – filled with trash and tires and abandoned boats washed into the forest.
It had a long legacy of misuse and abuse that tainted everything about the forest. And let’s not even discuss the reputation of the Trinity River itself.
One day I was coming back from a long drive to south Texas to photograph wildlife and I glanced at the Great Trinity Forest from the highway like I had so many times before.
But this time I decided to quit looking and start exploring.
I was amazed at the beauty, diversity and wildness I found.
Through the determined efforts of an awful lot of people and the City of Dallas, the forest is now being cleaned up, protected, even cherished.
Places like the Trinity River Audubon Center have opened up access and dedicated naturalists and advocates have fought for it, battle by battle and inch by inch.
There are many better advocates for the Great Trinity Forest than I.
The one thing I can do is take a decent picture.
So my goal is simple. Take my camera, get into that forest, and take pictures that help people learn to love the Great Trinity Forest and that big river that runs through it.
America’s largest urban bottomland forest
ACRES
Owned by City of Dallas
Bobcat, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
Great egret in flight above reeds and cattails, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.- Barred owl (Strix varia),"Secret Bird Pond" near Trinity River Audubon Center, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Snow-covered bridge, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Backlit great egrets in pond, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Great egrets preening, Lemon Lake, Great Trinity Forest near Trinity River, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Crawfish in defensive posture with claws extended, "Secret Bird Pond" near Trinity River Audubon Center, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Indian paintbrush and other wildflowers on McCommas Bluff above Trinity River, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Ripples and branches reflecting in Trinity River, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Sunset on wildflower field, Big Spring historical and natural area, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Backlit great egret fishing in pond, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Palmetto grove, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Wood duck (Aix sponsa) male on pond flapping wings, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Ducks on snowy pond, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Praying mantis and ladybug, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Forest path abstract, Texas Buckeye Trail, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Southern copperhead (Agkistrodon contortrix contortrix) ,Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Great egrets, wood storks, and roseate spoonbills on pond in Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Coyote tracks, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Praying Mantis, Great Trinity Forest near Trinity River, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Reflection of Great Egret in tree , "Secret Bird Pond" near Trinity River Audubon Center, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- White ibis (Eudocimus albus), "Secret Bird Pond" near Trinity River Audubon Center, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Wolf spider mother with babies on back above floodwaters, Texas Buckeye Trail, William Blair Park, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Young raccoon in tree, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Abstract of submerged forest after Trinity River flood, Texas Buckeye Trail, William Blair Park, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Female (mother) raccoon, "Secret Bird Pond" near Trinity River Audubon Center, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Young bobcat walking through forest, Trinity River Audubon Center, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Juvenile beaver on adult's back, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, TX.
- Trees in snow, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Wood stork, "Secret Bird Pond" near Trinity River Audubon Center, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Wildflowers, Big Spring historical and natural area, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Tree trunks and spring grasses, Texas Buckeye Trail, Trinity River, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Hummingbird moth(White-lined sphynx) (Hyles lineata) on Texas Buckeye Tree (Aesculus glabra var. arguta) in flower, Texas Buckeye Trail, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Eastern Cottontail rabbit (Sylvilagus floridanus) running, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Foxglove penstemon wildflowers on McCommas Bluff above Trinity River, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Backlit great egrets in pond, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Benches and trees in fall color on Piedmont Ridge overlooking the Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA. HDR composite to add dynamic range).
- Trees and grasses, Texas Buckeye Trail, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Red winged blackbirds (predominantly female) in flight, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Great egrets, Lemon Lake, Great Trinity Forest near Trinity River, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Coyote peering through grass, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Coyotes in snow and fog, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Portrait of copperhead snake near Little Lemon Lake, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Dickcissel, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Wood stork, "Secret Bird Pond" near Trinity River Audubon Center, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Wildflower field, Big Spring historical and natural area, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Ladybug on native grass, Trinity River Audubon Center, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Spotlight above Trinity River Audubon Center building, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA
- Pond still life (sticks and still water), "Secret Bird Pond" near Trinity River Audubon Center, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA.
- Reflections in ephemeral pond at dusk at"Secret Bird Pond" near Trinity River Audubon Center, Great Trinity Forest, Dallas, Texas, USA.
