Big Thicket National Preserve — Attraction in Silsbee

I've lived in the big thicket area most of my life.... So you could say the thrill is gone as far as enthusiasm goes...it's old hat to me! I've been all over these woods creeks and river...I love this area...it's the people I don't trust. People here are different ...a new comer would have a hard time fitting in, and gaining the trust of the locals, and knowing who to trust who not to trust...so my advice when visiting the thicket is just be careful...don't trust anyone....there's a lot of mystery, and history here....lots of ghost stories fact and fiction....lots of bigfoot sightings ...I've seen bigfoot and so have lots of other people. It's something that doesn't get discussed often...and the locals like it that way...there's lots of swamps...ancient cypress trees, and bird species that only here do they thrive and reproduce. The thicket is very important to the ecosystem, and environmental well being of wild life....we have numerous kinds of sources here from animals to reptiles, and birds. Almost any kind can thrive in this environment....so if your an outdoor enthusiast this is the place for you....8t is dog friendly...my advice is to keep them leased...we do have gators who like to snack on pets...be careful of them and don't get to close because gators are faster then they look and can have you in their grip in no time at all....fishing is great ....the lakes and streams are filled with catfish...sun perch....white perch ...bass....blue gills...and gars....they bite best on live bait such as minnows, and worms. Lots of camp sites around the area... Most have rv hook ups.... And are also dog friendly .... I would check in advance to make sure. The weather is hot and humid in the summer so dress cool.... In the winter cold and hot depending ... Always humid. Bring cool and warm clothes in the winter.... You never know when it will change. Lots of indians were around back in the day so keep your eyes open for arrow heads and stone tool artifacts... You just may get lucky and find some....if your planning on visiting have a great stay, and enjoy the...

I usually like to give high reviews, but I am going to be hypercritical as there are serious concerns to safety in this national preserve. Note, there are many different units, all allow for hiking and my wife and I are avid hikers. We went with the Woodlands trail as it was a good distance for what we wanted to put in during the morning. The trails have decent marking. There is hunting allowed in the different units and we were prepared and had neon orange on. The trails are primitive which requires a decent boot, but they are also heavily damaged from feral hog activity. I would not bring our dogs back generally due to the issue of ticks, but we are on proper medications already so no big worry.

The primary issue is feral hogs. I have hiked different areas of this state and around other states, I have never been too concerned about wildlife, including mountain lions, coyotes, bear, wolves... but within about 1.25 miles we had too close for comfort experiences with 6 very large feral hogs, during the later morning. If you are not aware, these beasts can maim or kill with little effort. We were on the trail and the hogs were paralleling us. We were not aggressively attacked, but we decided to not stay and find out.

What we learned is hogs are not just nocturnal. There was plenty of opportunity to break/twist your ankle if you wore common shoes(we were in sturdy boots) and if you have a dog they at least alert you to the presence of the wildlife..

There are trails in the main section along 287 which will likely be better maintained, but there are other areas that you can visit for a hike and these are not going to be family/dog friendly without...

This is a very low key national preserve. It is very isolated and hardly has visitors. The visitors center features a museum which informs people about the flora/fauna and local native culture. The preserve is broken up into units. The units are located in different areas and even different counties. It would take several days to visit and complete all the trails within every unit. Every unit features a different ecosystem, so it is important to keep that in mind while visiting. I visited three different trails and each were in different units at the preserve. The first trail I ventured was called the Kirby trail. It was full of wildlife, Mosquitos, and very heavily wooded. The second trail I explored was the sundew trail. This was my favorite trail! It's a very short trail made up completely of boardwalks and has many wildflowers, ferns, and carnivorous plants. The third trail I went on was my least favorite. It was the beaverslides trail. I felt like this trail was very difficult to find. I passed it up almost four times before noticing it. I also felt as if it was not very well maintained. The grass hadn't been mowed in a while and it was very easy to get lost. It was a very short trail and i kept going around in circles because it was confusing to decipher which path lead where. I would not recommend that trail. The Big Thicket is very beautiful and is a lovely way to experience several different ecosystems within the piney woods region of Texas. I would highly recommend coming here if you are looking for short or long...