Some friends and I are thinking of celebrating summer school ending this wknd, and we're thinking about getting dropped off at Hwy 21 and floating the Brazos to a friend's ranch south of Wellborn.

My question is this...
1) How safe is this in a tube? (last time i went to the brazos, I was able to walk across the whole thing without my chest gettin wet)

2) How long will it take?

I for one would be very wary to attemp said float, lots of debris and unpredictable/fast currents. Could quickly put a tube out of commission or worse. Canoe or kayak might be better.

Have someone mark the pickup point with a flag or something before you start. Frankly, the Brazos isn't the best river to float. Muddy, lots of snakes, LOTS of snags that lurk under the muddy water and will pop a tube, unpredictable currents, etc. I would suggest canoe/kayak... or if you're going to float, at least bring a canoe/kayak with you so that you don't have to swim the rest of the way home when a tube pops.

Or just save yourself the trouble and load up a big van and head to San Antonio.

Definitely gonna have the bank marked where we get out. We were thinkin of taking the canoe/kayak method also, and just hoppin in when it looks bad. Or if something were to happen to a tube.

Discussed the hwy 60 idea also...

Thanks fellas.

I have lived in Brazos County all my life and my dad grew up on the Brazos. Numerous people have drowned in the Brazos, lot of them I knew. It is nothing like the tubing rivers. If you were to ask my dad, he would tell you no way should you do it. Very dangerous.

^ Agreed with 72. Lot's of snakes/muddy water currents. Terrible river to tube. I'd stick to a canoe.

I would recommend the guadalupe unless you have a death wish. If so, then you might as well go all out and float the Trinity instead

Dude, it is a bad idea to tube the Brazos. My buddies and I did this is sometime between 97 and 99. We went from Hwy 60 to Batt's Ferry in July. (This was back when the Hwy 60 bridge was 2 lane and someone had spraypainted a giant bird under the structure on the west side, we called it the 'condor') It took something like 6 hours. The water was muddy, low, slow, and hot. Everyone I have ever told that we did this told me I was an idiot and I agree with them.

If the Brazos was any good for tubing, there would be several companies making money off it like on the Guadalupe.

I'd float the Bryan wastewater facility before I'd float the Brazos again.

Go the canoe/kayak route and have fun. Run the river when it's low, and you will be paddling quite a bit to make reasonable time.
Still stuff to see along the Brazos, and we have enjoyed our trips (but never did or will do tubes).
Hwy 21 to south of Wellborn? I would guesstimate 6-8 hrs, depending on water level and your effort.
You can check the river levels at the BRA and/or USGS sites.
http://waterdata.usgs.gov/tx/nwis/uv?cb_00065=on&cb_00060=on&format=html&period=2&site_no=08108700

I've canoed that stretch several times and there's no way in hell I'd do it in a tube. I think Hwy 60 to Batt's Ferry used to take 1.5 to 3 hours depending on how high the river was and how much paddling we did.


Finding something to mark the end point is a good idea because it's going to be hard to recognize things from the river.

I agree with 72. It is NOT a good idea to float the Brazos. I have a cabin on it and my family has several others. I have fished that river since I was about 6 yrs old. The last thing any of us would do would be to float the Brazos. That being said I do agree with the others to take a canoe instead. Make sure you have life vests as well...

Back when I was little, there used to be a sign by HWY 60 bridge (i think it was) that used to have the number of people that had drowned in Brazos River in Brazos County. I do remember it being 55 when I was around 9-10yrs old. That was 20yrs ago.

Whatever you decide please take the necessary precautions. That river isn't one to take lightly.

I did it years ago in a canoe....over a weekend; not pleasant.

Bad Idea, I have lots of experience on that river and it's just the worst for what you want to do - in a tube, kayak or canoe - very dangerous and really no fun......in the area you describe...but

If you head up to the Possum Kingdom Dam (where PK lets out into the the Brazos) its a different story- there are even guide services that will pick you up and drop you off - and it's pretty with high cliffs on most the first 10 miles or so...

But if your looking to just have fun, make the drive to N.B. or somewhere down there

I don't buy this "dangerous Brazos river" line, unless you choose to:
-go when the river is up and running hard, then debris and currents are an issue
-or while intoxicated, decide to swim/wade into unknown areas, or perform a "hold my beer, and watch this" stunt.
It's typically a lazy, slow moving river, with occasional channels that would be laughed at by a Hill country river rat.

Sure, drownings occur, sort of like car "accidents" happen on a stretch of road, and that highway is dubbed "dangerous"...though driver inattention is usually the cause.

you'll have a better chance of survival if you play Russian Roulette with a 1911

Dang y'all may have changed our minds (or saved our lives). We'll see what we end up doing and where we go, but according to on here, looks like we definitely shouldn't just float it. Thanks TexAgs.

quote:

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It's typically a lazy, slow moving river, with occasional channels that would be laughed at by a Hill country river rat.

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from the top, this is true... Since none of them have survived, you can't really ask anyone that has caught an undertoe on the Brazos... I'm sure they'd tell you that it was anything but "lazy".

I canoed the navasota river. I have the scars to prove it! I'm surprised I didn't die of infection in that stinking mud river.

What is there to see on when going down the Brazos other then trees and muddy banks? any good structures or wrecks to see?

I'm sure if you look in the right spots you'll find a car or two...

In a nutshell:

The Brazos: An undpredictable, muddy, debris filled raging torrent of a river filled with snakes, killer gar & giant catfish feeding on the bodies of all the dead tubers.

I talked to a couple that tubed just a couple of bends recently. They really enjoyed it.

If you really want a local river to tube in, consider the Little River from up by Cameron down to the Brazos. You can get out at the bridge below Sugerloaf Mountain and never have to mess with the Brazos. Much cleaner, with more springs, more of a view relative to landscape, etc.

Just my $.02.

I say just go fishing and drink a few beers, instead of floating the Brazos. Just my opinion.



[This message has been edited by Matt788 (edited 7/2/2010 12:01p).]

Holy Hell! I grew up on this river. I would NEVER, NEVER, NEVER put my ass in a tube and float that river south of Hwy 21.

But...It is great fun to fill a flat bottom boat or a canoe with some brew and float down in a boat.

Go rent some canoes from A&M outdoors for like $20 bucks and have a ball!

Take some pictures and post them. Here are 3 from our last excursion in a jon boat:

Mixing up some Bloody Marys:




Hwy 21 bridge in the background




[This message has been edited by LuckyAgg01 (edited 7/4/2010 1:19p).]

As someone who also knows a couple of the lower stretches of river fairly well:

1. The Brazos is pretty much a kitten when it is summer low. You can walk/wade across MOST of it. The few exceptions are deep holes and channels near bridges and channels near rockpiles, where you DO have to be wary of sudden dropoffs, currents and strainers. I've swam and waded in it when it was "green low" and it's not bad at all. I'm most familiar with the stretch from 105 to the Navasota.

2. When the river is up, it is muddy, and all those lovely willow trees on the banks become strainers, and the currents are less predictable, and the bridge areas are dangerous. Only an idiot would get out on it when it is really moving, and when it is up a little, only boating is safe.

As with anything, people are prone to exaggeration. I know a single spot on the Frio river that's killed almost a dozen people. That doesn't make the whole river deadly.

When it is like this, it's no big deal to swim in it, even...





These are a couple miles downstream of 105...

MouthBQ98,

DId y'all catch some fish from those kayaks? What bait did you use and how did you fish?

Chicken livers, nightcrawlers, and we caught lots of catfish, mostly undersized unfortunately. We did eventually bag enough for "shore lunch" of fried catfish nuggets.

quote:

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I don't buy this "dangerous Brazos river" line, unless you choose to:
-go when the river is up and running hard, then debris and currents are an issue
-or while intoxicated, decide to swim/wade into unknown areas, or perform a "hold my beer, and watch this" stunt.
It's typically a lazy, slow moving river, with occasional channels that would be laughed at by a Hill country river rat.

Sure, drownings occur, sort of like car "accidents" happen on a stretch of road, and that highway is dubbed "dangerous"...though driver inattention is usually the cause.

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BS. I grew up spending just about every weekend at the river out past Wellborn and bailing hay on the farms around it. No way in hell would I attempt to tube that river. For Christ sake, companies use to take empty gas bottles and launch them into the river to dispose of them. It's full of trash, thus making unpredictable currents all over the place. Hell, go look at the river at the end of Hoppes Creek Rd, you can see the twisting currents at the surface there.

I have canoed, tubed, and floated in my own riverside built raft, swam and many 'other' things in the Brazos in low, medium, and swift currents. People can drown in their bathtubs. If you are averse to danger, take showers. You either got it or you don't. The river is much more dangerous when it is running hard, and it has hazards as described above. Now that I am 'older', I won't tube in it any more. I don't like how aggressive water mocassins can be, so I want access to a dry area and some defensive device.

The Brazos has its own attractions and at low summer green water levels, it can be very pleasant. I have had big gar roll a coupla feet from me, and water mocassins try to climb in a canoe with me....I had to take a paddle to them to keep them out. If you are in a tube, and they are heading for you, well....you figure it out. It might get a bit more exciting.



[This message has been edited by Yuccadoo (edited 7/5/2010 8:11a).]

Ive floated that same stretch many times with my buddies. I will agree with everyone that it is a very dangerous river, but we always floated it when it was low and slow moving. Never had a problem. Heck, half the time the water was only 4 feet deep. We always had a good time, but once again... I would NEVER do it when the river is even slightly high.

6 year thread bump.

Nice. Very nice.

Man, how did you even stumble upon this thread?

The thought of tubing the Brazos....blech. Great river to drive over.