The flat, treeless ground west of Houston is the surviving edge of the Gulf Coast tallgrass prairie, which once ran roughly six million acres from Corpus Christi into Louisiana. Well under one percent of it is left in anything like original condition, which makes it one of the most reduced ecosystems in North America. What kept this stretch open was rice: flooded fields imitate the seasonal wetlands well enough that hundreds of thousands of geese and ducks still winter here, and as rice acreage falls the birds have fewer places to go.
Getting there
29.8500, -95.8300
Locations are approximate and may be inaccurate, on private land, or otherwise inaccessible. Check before you travel.
Hear it from the road
Whistlestop tells you this story automatically when you drive past. No searching, no tapping, nothing to ask.
