When I heard that the port of Houston offered a cruise of the Houston Ship Channel, I thought it was a great idea! When I heard it was Free, I couldn’t wait to sign up! I took my parents, wife, and nearly two year old twins for a leisurely tour of one of the busiest ports in the world. Our trip was scheduled for 10am on the 24th of October. I wanted to schedule it on a weekend, so I had to wait a couple of months due to the scheduled maintenance of the vessel during the month of September, and the popularity of the tour. The timing was perfect, chilly in the morning and a cool breeze through the morning sun during the whole trip.
I made reservations for us online. The online process is simple to use, there is a calendar showing the times and number of slots available, or if you prefer, reservations can be made by phone as well. You’re required to make reservations 24 hours in advance for tours during the week, and at least 72 hours for weekend tours, which can be made up to 3 months in advance. They send you a confirmation to print and bring with you on the tour. Their rules are also simple and straightforward. Basically, they don’t allow any cameras, or use of cell phones equipped to take photos or video. It bugs me that people were taking pictures while standing several feet away from the signs that are posted in plain view asking them not to do so. No large baggage of any kind, and reservation confirmation and Picture ID will be required before being allowed on board. You can’t bring your own food or drinks on board either, but they did give us free coffee and soft drinks during the ride.
It wasn’t difficult to find the place; we followed the map provided on their website. We were the first to arrive at around 9:30, greeted by a small parking lot with a seating area under a covered pavilion, Restrooms and water fountain to one side, and a small building whose walls were covered with bright, colorful, mosaic murals on each wall. The building is for employees only so I can’t say for sure what’s inside. The murals depict the History of the port, as well as the scale, the importance, and its role in the community and environment. There are also a couple of historical markers with more information. The boat called the M/V Sam Houston was visible from the dock.
I was surprised to learn it has been used for these tours for over 50 years! On board, there is a spacious air conditioned lounge, with comfortable seating. A visitor’s log is also available to sign, there were people from all over the place coming to take the tour. There is a large oil painting of the dock in the center, and speakers so everyone can hear the captain. He asks that everyone be seated for the departure, and then passengers are allowed to choose if they want to ride inside or to step outside for the duration of the ride. I kept going from front to back, in and out, and one side to the other, not wanting to miss anything. Something worth mentioning, on a wall there is a certificate to commemorate the 1 millionth passenger on the tour, dated 1979!
I was blown away the moment I stepped outside. At ten miles an hour it is a very smooth ride. From the very beginning the captain describes what is visible on each side. I must admit, everything seemed enormous! There were huge cranes, boats, ships from around the world, docks, tractors, forklifts, machinery, and tug boats! I can’t count the number of containers, warehouses, storage tanks, mazes of pipelines, smokestacks, piles of scrap metal to be loaded on to barges for recycling. There were even railroad cars that either picked up or dropped off cargo. The captain mentions the thousands of pounds of gypsum, and grains, and cotton, and millions of barrels of gas, and hundreds of thousands of all sorts of things that pass through the port every day. The volume of commodities was staggering! Danger, and Warning signs everywhere for ships not to drop anchor or dredge since there were pipelines below. Caution signs galore! No Smoking, No Visitors, No Standing, No Entry, No Parking, No nothing! WOW! I never knew how much was happening behind the scenes. I’ve seen some of these things when I drive around, but from this point of view it’s like being totally submersed in it!
The tour lasts about an hour and a half. We made a U-turn between Galena Park and Pasadena, they offered us soft drinks and coffee and for a while on the return the captain was quiet. We headed back to the dock slowly reviewing everything that we had missed going in the opposite direction. I couldn’t help notice that the water was filthy, brown and layers of trash floating towards and around the edges. The actual buildings look old and run down and some even appeared to be abandoned, with broken windows. The air was filled with lots of different smells, none of which were very pleasant. The scents ranged somewhere between skunk, and gasoline or oil. I remember thinking to myself that this couldn’t be healthy if you had to breathe it day in and day out. They mentioned something about the impact of the ship channel and the environment, and now I wish I had paid more attention to what they said. There were fish though jumping out of the water, and large birds and sea gulls watched us float by as we watched them.
When we got back to the dock the captain asked us to return to our seats and thanked us for joining him. They had containers for trash and recycling bins for the aluminum cans. One lady slipped walking down the narrow path onto solid ground. The attendant was there and knew it could be dangerous because she kept reminding everyone to watch their step. I think it was a fun trip. I saw lots of things I never knew were out there and so close to home. I’d recommend this port of Houston boat tour to anyone who lives nearby and is interested in the workings of the Houston Ship Channel. You can get all the details at http://boattours.poha.com/boattour .
