5 Places To Hike in Memorial Park
One of central Houston's best-kept secrets is Memorial Park inside the 610 Loop. One thousand five hundred acres and many miles of trails make it the gem for many living in Central Houston. Once you begin to explore it, you will be surprised. After all, it is nearly double the size of Central Park in New York.
Most people think of the running trail along Memorial Drive when they think of "walking" in Memorial Park. But the Seymour Lieberman Trail used by walkers and runners differs from what we hikers are speaking of when discussing hiking Memorial Park. Indeed, that three-mile walking/ running trail of crushed granite holds something for runners, but we hikers are looking for the trees.
For years, busy Memorial Drive fractured the space between the north and south parts of the park. Memorial Park Conservancy completed a three-year project connecting the two sections by the Land Bridge and Prairie Project on February 10, 2023. And that has also become a new destination for hiking.
Memorial Park holds a special place in the history of Houston Women’s Hiking, as these are the woods that birthed our group.
Five Areas of Hiking Trails in Memorial Park
Eastern Glades Area Trails
Easy Trails | Oval Promenade .5 miles, Lake Trail .3 miles, Wetland Boardwalk .4 miles
The Eastern Glades differs from the other trails I mention in this article. It is on the northeastern side of Memorial Park, with Parking off of East Memorial Loop Drive. Think of the Eastern Glades as the formal dining room of the house. The trails are quite nice, but not back woods trails.
Bayou Wilds Green Trail
Hard (This is subjective; The park lists it as hard. It is not, but there are some ups and downs.) | 2.2 miles
The Green Trail is one of my favorite trails in Memorial. Well, it's one of my favorites...I have a lot of favorite trails.
The Green Trail is an in-and-out trail. It begins in a strange place at the entrance to the picnic loop outside the gate. When you turn off Memorial Drive, look to your left before the gate. You can see the trail there. You must make a right, as the loop is a one-way circle. An excellent place to park is near the bike racks and bathrooms, but parking is all along the picnic loop, as mentioned above.
This trail is also a biker and runner trail, so please use trail etiquette. Some hikers like to cross Memorial Drive at the light, continue on the outer loop trail, through the Eastern Glades, and back.
The Triangle Trail
Hard | 0.8 miles
The Northwest quadrant of the park holds several trails. The Triangle Trail is another one of my favorites. Especially when you have to go through the owl to get to it, you can get to it other ways, but that is the most fun. Getting to the owl is a challenge and a secret, so I have created this video to show how. The Owl is a painting by Anat Roe painted in 2020, and you can see it from the bridge on the ravine trail in the Houston Arboretum. Please don't scramble down from the bridge. Use the appropriate entrance to the owl. (The Houston Arboretum trails are separate from Memorial Park trails.)
When you go through the Owl, stay to the right to do the Triangle Trail. The trail is for both hikers and bikers and can be dangerous with its ups and downs, so be careful. If you have hiking poles, be prepared to use them, especially if it rains. You may also use them going through the Owl. This entrance and going through the Owl may not be possible at times, especially after a hard rain.
The Gold Trail & The Brown Trail
In the same area as The Triangle Trail are the Gold and Brown Trails. The Gold Trail, between Memorial Drive and Woodway, connects to this Triangle Trail. The Gold Trail runs .64 miles west of the Triangle. The one part of this trail, closest to the freeway and in a field, is my least favorite. The grass is always very high, and the noise from the 610 highway is loud.
North of Memorial Drive, in this same quadrant, is the brown trail. The park lists it as moderate at 1.11 miles. The Brown Trail is the trail that members of the Polo Club frequent, just north of the park, so be watchful of horses and remember trail etiquette.
The Land Bridge
Easy
Though it is called the Land Bridge, two areas cross over Memorial Drive. There is the West Lawn, and bikes are allowed on this side of the bridge. The East Lawn is for hikers only. The land bridge has paved walkways and The Emily Clay Family Scramble on the north side. Because we don’t have hills and elevations in Houston, this might be an excellent place to train for such a thing. The park created it using the old concrete they took up to make this Land Bridge. It is a stair-step feature that challenges your calves and maneuverability in a fun way.
When walking the Land Bridge, it is exposed, so it is hot in the summer and cool and windy in winter. However, they have done a marvelous job creating a prairie representing the endangered native Gulf Coast Prairie.
A Memorial Park Conservancy press release states. “The new 100-acre project thoughtfully reconnects the park and converts previously degraded and inaccessible land into healthy native ecologies for the benefit of Houstonians, wildlife, and the environment.”
“The newly created Prairie that surrounds the Land Bridge re-establishes endangered native Gulf Coast prairie as well as savanna, wetlands, and reforested areas to promote regional biodiversity and strengthen surrounding ecologies.”
They created the newly enhanced green space to help manage stormwater, though we have yet to see that in Houston, and I live too far away to know. So I hope those living in the area will take photographs and let us know. Time will tell. Also, do keep an eye out. It is rumored that a bald eagle frequents the prairie.
The Rainbow Trails
A Collection of Trails Make Up The Rainbow Trails
I can't tell you how many hikers I have taken into these trails, saying things like, "Wow, I never knew this was back here. You would not know you are in the city." Many are afraid they will get lost back there. I have gotten lost, especially on the easter portion of the blue. I tell people to start on the yellow going south and keep going left until you don't. Let me explain.
My favorite trail route is to begin on yellow going south and stay left when it shoots off, make a left on purple, and pick up the orange, making a left. It will loop north, then east, and then back south, and you will pick up the purple for just a bit, going back in on orange and up to purple again. Then you can make a left on the blue and a left on the red, bringing you back to the Cyvia and Melvyn Wolff Prairie. If you parked at the running center or Rally Pavillon, you would turn left, and if you parked at the Picnic Loop, turn right. The length of these specific trials in this order is about three miles, considered moderate to difficult. Though again, this is subjective.
The best part of the Rainbow Back Trails is that you can mix them up however you want and explore. There is so much to explore. You will find some maps along the way, but they need more. Let's get together with the park to make this happen.
Memorial Park has the length of the trails in the rainbow listed below, along with their size and difficulty.
The Trails Which Make Up The Rainbow Trail
Aqua
Moderate | 0.74 miles
Blue
Moderate | 0.95 miles
South Coastal Prairie
Easy | 0.70 miles
Orange
Moderate | 0.86 miles
Purple
Moderate | 1.58 miles
Red
Moderate | 0.73 miles
Yellow
Moderate | 0.79 miles
Details About Memorial Park
Hours & Events
These are great places to hike, Before setting out do check the events schedule at the park, a marathon, golf championship, art event or rodeo may put a damper on your visit and keep you from parking. I would like to say that last February my granddaughter and I parked in the running center and walked over to see the parade of trail riders. The trail riders also camp in memorial park, so we were able to see some horses.
Picnic Loop hours:
8 am- 7 pm, 365 days a year.
Cullen Running Trails Center Hours:
Monday – Friday: 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Saturday: 6 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Sunday: 6 a.m. to 2 pm.
Directions to Memorial Park & Parking
There are several entrances and parking areas in the park. For me, the place I park depends on a few things. The first is what trail I’m going to hike. For example, if you hike the green trail and park behind the running center, you will have to add about 2 to 2 a half miles to your hike to get there. It would be better to park in the picnic Loop. As a hike leader, I like to start hikes near bathrooms. We start early in the morning, and I want everyone to have that luxury before we take off or return. Or maybe I do that for myself. The other thing is security. Often, I feel better parking with many cars instead of parking on the picnic loop, where I’m the only one in the parking lot. Explore the different parking areas on your visits, and do not leave valuables in the car.
The Running Center and Rally Pavilion
The Running Center is on the south side of Memorial Park off of West Memorial Loop Drive. Coming from the west, you will make a right on West Memorial Loop Drive; coming from the East, you will make a left. There is a light here. When on West Memorial Loop Drive, make a right to get to the Cullen Running Trails Center. There is parking in the front, and also, after driving into the parking lot, make a left and go around the backside. There is parking along the railroad tracks. At the writing of this article, parking is free at the running center. The Rally Pavilion area also has paid parking near the new running Timing Track. You will go left instead of pulling into the Running Center and going right. Parking fees, according to the Memorial Park Website, are as follows:You can pay for your parking with cash. Note the machines will not give you change. It is only $1 for three-hour increments. If you choose, you can pay with a credit card or pay-by-app via ParkHouston.
Picnic Loop
Picnic Loop has lots of free parking. If I’m hiking the Land Bridge trail or the “rainbow” trails, I might park at the parking across from the bike racks. Or the Rally Pavilion mentioned above. This area in picnic look is also good if you are hiking the green trail.
The Eastern Glades
The Eastern Glades has its own paid parking.
Trail Etiquette
Runners, hikers, bikers, and sometimes in Memorial Park, horses frequent the trails. Remember trail etiquette. Trail etiquette is everything yields to horses, bikes, and runners yield to hikers. I always tell our group that it is much easier for a hiker to get out of the way for a rider, so please try to step to the side, to the right, if you can do so easily. If you are in a group, the leader should yell, Runner, Rider, etc, if they see one coming from the front, and each hiker in the group should yell this down the line. You would be surprised how hard it is to hear the person right in front of you when you are walking.
The same goes for the sweep in the back. That is the last person on the hike. If someone comes from the back, yell it to the front, and each hiker will shout it forward while stepping out of the way.
Dogs must be on a nonretractable leash. This is important for the safety of the hikers and the bikers. A biker coming around a corner can be seriously injured or killed by a loose dog on the trail, same with horses. For the same reason, I suggest not to let toddlers lead the way.
Trails may be closed after heavy rain. Please don’t ride or hike muddy trails. Also, please stay on trails.
These trails are incredible and so much fun. You will have hours of exploring ahead of you. Memorial Park is my favorite and closest park, so I may just, see you in the woods.
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Bridgette Mongeon
Bridgette is the creator of Houston Women's Hiking and admin, writer and artist. She loves camping, hiking, and exploring Texas State Parks with her family.