News Release
NPS Photo / Scott Sharaga
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Contact: Megan Urban, 409-951-6700
KOUNTZE, Texas — Come enjoy the winter weather at Big Thicket and join a ranger-led program, view the new art show at the visitor center, or get a hog trapping permit. Big Thicket National Preserve is excited to announce multiple ways for the public to enjoy the thicket.
Ranger-Led Programs
Explore Big Thicket with a ranger! Join rangers on free nature walks on weekends, where you can learn about carnivorous plants, wildlife, and more. Our popular canoe trips provide a free and relaxing way to experience our waterways (reservations open 2 weeks prior to each trip). Check our calendar of events for more information and call 409-951-6700 to reserve your spot.
Annual Art Show
This year’s art show theme is titled “Past, Present, and Future of America’s First National Preserve” and was created in partnership with the International Fiber Collaborative (IFC). The IFC worked with students from across the country to create more than 70 pieces of art highlighting the people who explore and enjoy Big Thicket. The exhibition will be on display at the visitor center through the end of April.
Volunteer Planting Days
Volunteers are invited to continue restoring the longleaf pine ecosystem in Big Sandy Creek Unit by planting native grasses on the Martin Luther King Day of Service, Monday, January 15, and on Presidents’ Day, Monday, February 19. Volunteers can register on volunteer.gov to get more details and directions to the planting site. Volunteers who don’t pre-register can call the visitor center at 409-951-6700 after Friday, January 12, to get more information, including the location of the planting event.
Feral Hog Trapping Season
Preserve staff will issue free feral hog trapping permits at the visitor center beginning Monday, February 5, at 9:00 am. Permits will be issued first-come, first-served until all 74 have been claimed. A Texas hunting license is required for trapping in the preserve. Feral hogs are an invasive species descended from pigs brought to North America by European settlers and have increased in recent decades due to a lack of natural predators. Hogs’ feeding habits can cause major resource damage.
Before arriving at the visitor center, those interested are highly encouraged to review the Big Thicket feral hog trapping regulations and scout out several trap locations to be approved upon receiving a permit.
The recreational pursuits of hunting, fishing, and trapping have been a part of the preserve since its establishment. Each fall, Big Thicket National Preserve permits public hunting of white-tailed deer, squirrel, rabbit, hog, and waterfowl. Public trapping of furbearing species in the preserve has also been a long-standing tradition since the preserve was established in 1974. Our website has more information on hunting and trapping in the preserve.
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Big Thicket National Preserve is in southeast Texas, near the city of Beaumont, and 75 miles northeast of Houston. The preserve consists of nine land units and six water corridors encompassing more than 113,000 acres. The Big Thicket, often referred to as a “biological crossroads,” is a transition zone between four distinct vegetation types: the moist eastern hardwood forest, the southwestern desert, the southeastern swamp, and the central prairies. Species from all these different vegetation types come together in the thicket, exhibiting a variety of vegetation and wildlife that has received global interest.
Last updated: January 8, 2024