Terry Hershey Park Follows Buffalo Bayou Through West Houston

Terry Hershey Park strings more than 11 miles of trail along about six miles of Buffalo Bayou through west Harris County — 496 acres of shaded paths that have become daily exercise ground for the Energy Corridor and west Houston.

The name is the best part of the story. The park honors Terry Hershey, a conservationist who fought in the mid-1960s to stop the banks of Buffalo Bayou from being concreted over. Because she won that fight, this stretch stayed a living bayou with trees and trails instead of a paved drainage ditch.

So the next time you are on the path here, you are walking through a piece of Houston that exists because someone refused to let it be paved. Check Harris County Precinct 4 for trail access, reservations, and any closure advisories before you go.