Well, I finally did it. After living in north Texas for over 5 1/2 years, I finally made the pilgrimage to Mecca; in north Texas kayaker's speak per say.

I made the 3 day float from Hwy 16 to Rochelles. I can NOW call myself a North Texas Kayaker.

The gears were set in motion a long time ago for this trip. It all started in Sept. 2011 when I purchased my Ride 135 followed by the accusation of camping gear suitable for backpacking plus a few "luxury" items. I've been prepared for a multiday kayak trip for 2 years now, but I was just now finally able to make it happen.

A little over Two weeks ago I was having a couple beers with my good friend, and college colleague, Andy when our talks steered towards camping and spending time outdoors. I brought up the 3-Day Brazos float and he was all for it. We initially scheduled it for the weekend of the 21-23. However, the weather forecast leading up to that weekend wasn't looking promising; rain, thunderstorms, etc. We decided to postpone for the following weekend. And wouldn't you know it clear skies and no rain, thank you weather forecasters.

This past weekend the forecast for our trip was looking B-E-A-Utiful. I spent the entire week prepping for my first multiday kayak camping trip, and to be honest I probably over thought everything. Like my kayak purchase, one of the first items that popped into my mind was a cooler/rod holder that I read about from armadillomojo back in April of 2012. The next thing I made was a shoulder strap and lead (a harness really) to attach to the front handle of my kayak for portaging; which was an idea I got from The Ninja from a fishing trip we made on the Brazos River below Whitney in June of 2012. Even though I've been kayak fishing for over a decade I'm still learning about new rigging ideas for my kayak from fishing with my fellow kayaking brethren and reading forums. A word to the wise (and novice) you can teach an old dog new tricks, so get out and go fishing with those on the forum and keep on reading too; you will always learn something new. The other thing I made was a harness that allowed me to utilize the internal storage of the Ride 135 by allowing me to slide gear down the pontoons of the kayak from the front hatch. Down the sides of the kayak I stored the tent, camp table, dry bag with food/electronics, breathable waders, and two camp chairs. So when you opened the front hatch all you saw was my emergency bag and another that had my camp cookware and other miscellaneous items. It worked very well. I also created a River Mile map so that we could plan our campsites and breaks. Along with a watch to make sure we reached our check points on schedule it was a very valuable piece of equipment for the trip that every kayaker, both advanced and novice, should have.

Friday finally reared it's head and, to be honest, I was a bit deflated. Radar was not looking too good. While I was gathering gear and making final preparations I could not help but check in on the radar every 15 minutes. Would it rain? Would we have to prepare for a potential flash flood on our first river trip? We stuck to our plan hoping that what rain that would fall wouldn't be too much to cause a problem on our trip. We had scheduled a rendezvous at Rochelles for 2pm, with an estimated launch from Hwy 16 at 3pm. When we were west of Weatherford we heard the last thing anyone would want to hear come across the radio, "errrrnk errrnk errrnk The National Weather Service has issued..........." FFFFUUUUUUUUUU........ Luckily, the storm they were warning about wasn't going to affect our trip,crisis averted.

We arrived at Rochelles at 2, paid our fees, and had Ricky hop in my truck for the drive to Hwy 16. Ricky was patient with Andy and I as we fumbled through our gear trying to get things inside and strapped down on to the kayaks. I'm sure he, in his mind, was laughing at the amount of gear we tried stuffing into the kayaks. As we finished up loading the kayaks we took a minute to appreciate our surroundings.

A sunny sky.

Cool temperatures.

And Stunning surroundings.

With that I shut off my cell phone and would not turn it back on for over 48 hours. Andy chose to leave his in my truck which was on it's way back to Rochelles. And with that we were on our own. Minimal technology. No communication with the outside word. Just nature. At that moment life could not get any better.







We had decided that with our late jump on the river that we would make a larger effort towards making it around RM 5 to set up camp than fish. We did fish at a few of the larger pools around the 3 and 4 RM markers, but we truly wanted to find a campsite and setup our camp and relax for the evening. We found a spot on the riverbed next to some flowing water. We pitched the tent, setup our sleeping pads and bags, set up the camp chairs and table, made a fire and relaxed for the evening listening to the water flow by and observing the ever appearing stars.

The next morning we made breakfast, broke camp and hit the water around 9am; looking forward to to catching fish and covering a few miles of river. The silence was deafening. The sights; blissful. It was new Texas for the both of us and it was beautiful. I managed the first fish of the trip fairly early that morning. Nothing special really, just a pound maybe a pound a a quarter bass, but still a fish. A fish we hoped that signaled a great day.

For miles and miles we were the only people enjoying the river. The sights along this river are some of the best I've seen in Texas.









We finally encountered our first anglers around RM 14. And then another. And then another. And then another. Well, you get the idea. We met canoeist from Rochelles and, to be blunt, was a bit of a buzz-kill. We had had the river with all its peacefulness to ourselves, but no more. We squeezed in our campsite around RM 16 and made camp. No, you didn't accidentally skip past or miss the fishing report, because "I managed the first fish of the trip fairly early that morning. Nothing special really, just a pound maybe a pound a quarter bass, but still a fish;" was the fishing report. No matter how many fallen timbers or crevices between boulders we made casts at, Andy and I could not get a bite. We had originally planned at camping around RM 13 for the second night, but ended up down around RM 16. This time we made camp about 10 feet above the river, and once again we sat back and enjoyed our surroundings.

Given the poor fishing from the prior day we still gave it a solid effort the next morning to rectify the situation on our last stretch of the river. Or attempt was once again squashed by mother nature. To our defense we did talk to those we met on the river and NOBODY was catching fish. Even the guys who left catfish lines out all night came up with zeroes. Fishing was bleak. However, the Brazos river did still offer new some glimpses of formations that I have not seen.



Andy and I ultimately ended up getting off the river at 11am on Sunday; roughly 5 hours ahead of what we had planned for. Ultimately us postponing until this weekend was truly a blessing in disguise. Not only did we have absolutely gorgeous weather, but the BRA was release more water that they had for awhile; 65 cfs. Prior to that they were releasing no more that 25 cfs. So, from our trip I can say that if you plan to do this float make sure there's at least 65 cfs. In my heavily loaded Ride 135 I had to make about a dozen portages on this trip. They weren't hard, mainly as soon as I got my 200lbs out of the the kayak it was able to float down the shallow waters with some guidance (that's where the harness I mentioned earlier comes in handy).

All I can say is this trip is worth and I give it a two thumbs up for anyone who wants to enjoy the Texas outdoors.


When it comes down to it I learned a lot about how to pack and what to pack for overnight, kayak fishing trips on rivers. Andy and I are already planning our next trip; where, we don't know. As experienced as I am when it comes to kayak fishing I can't help but be amazed about this trip. It's opened my eyes even more to the capabilities of these crafts and has only fueled my appetite to go exploring a the waters Texas has to offer. What a great sport!

P.S. I thought this was interesting. This is a photo I snapped of the same two kayaks. Well the one on the left is the original Wilderness Systems The Ride, my very first kayak I got in 2004. The one on the right is the current Wilderness Systems Ride 135 that I purchased in 2011 (2012 model). Even though these are the same model kayaks it's amazing how far kayaks have come in such a short time.

Awesome write up!! Always enjoy your adventures.

Nice report! Its got me itching to get on the river....

Wow!! Great trip! And great photos, too. That trip is on my "to do" list. I've been on the Brazos below Whitney, but not below PK. Great write up, too.

Awesome! Good job.

Great fun.

Good read. Thanks for the report.

I think I first did that trip in 1999 and have kept going back ever since. I have a long term goal to paddle from 16 to my folks place on Granbury.

Very cool thanks for sharing love the pics

Great report and pics, Josh. Unless I missed it I don't see where you had to do any dragging mentioned. Thanks, I almost felt as if I was there. It's not all about the fishing, it's more about the adventure!!!!

Nice report on a nice stretch of river. I don't feel as bad now either. I have been on that stretch twice in the last two weeks and barely managed a few small LMB and sunfish. I came across a gentlemen yesterday as he was loading up his yak and he said that he didn't get a single bite.

Thanks guys, it really was a fun trip despite not catching fish. Andy has already sent me a text about doing a trip on the Lower Colorado.

Jerry, I mentioned towards the end that I made about dozen portages (non in the first 14/15 miles, actually) because may kayak had most of the gear. Andy had to get out for about 5 or 6 portages. As soon as I was out of the kayak it was floating, so I didn't have to do any dragging. We made most of the trip at 65 cfs which I feel is the minimum I would want to do this float.

So jealous! Thats a Kayak Bucket list trip. Great write up!

man that sounds like fun. maybe one of these days i can go.