Thanks for watching my Texas headwaters road trip! Please like and subscribe. Check out some of my other fishing adventures: Catching a giant from my kayak - czcams.com/video/Q12fwsq6-FI/video.html Personal best redfish - czcams.com/video/nLcwVnZxeO8/video.html
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors so where does the Colorado begin? if it's not from mountain snowmelt or a tributary i don't get how it starts? could you explain it like i'm 10?
@@crackawood I can try, but I'm no expert. From what we saw, the Colorado starts at the base of a large escarpment that drops down in the Texas panhandle. The place we filmed was one of very many gullies that fed toward the main river channel, so much of what starts the Colorado is runoff. I wasn't able to reach the spot that google labels as the start of the river, so I cannot confirm whether there are also springs that feed the river - I just have to assume it collects a huge area of runoff from tributaries as it makes its way east.
As a kid, I got to see the headwaters of the Frio and Nueces rivers. You can't do that today. I knew the ranchers, they knew me, no problem. That was about 60yrs ago. The land has changed hands.
Yes, when researching this trip, we knew it would be tricky to get all the way up both of these. The Nueces just proved impossible with the properties, and we had to make sure we captured everything from the public road as to not trespass. I felt very fortunate to get access to the Frio headwater property, as that was one of our favorite areas of the trip. It's a shame we couldn't get closer to the source of most of these rivers, but I loved this adventure! Thanks for stopping by!
I grew up in Leakey. I still live in Rio Frio on the Frio. My cousins are the Habys, and they have owned the east prong headwaters for a long time. West prong still belongs to Prade ranch.
@@dustywclark Yeah, we're getting desperate here in Rockport, too. We got less than a 1/4" Saturday, and that was the first measurable rain we've got in over a month.
As a Native Texan I have been to many of these. Thank you for sharing and would love a part two with the Trinity and Sabine Rivers. Two other very important Texas rivers.
Another trip is definitely in the works, and the Trinity and Sabine are high on the list. I've even been made aware of some from folks comments that I wasn't previously aware of, so that gives me even more options. Stay tuned, and thanks for following along!
Enjoyed seeing you and your dad's adventure. I spent many years fishing and hunting with my father through a number of the areas you visited. My family began in Gonzales and continues today in San Antonio. Thank you for showing how great Texas is for fathers and sons. It would have put a smile on my dad's face, thank you for taking us along.
Thank you! I have been fortunate to be able to hunt and fish and camp with my dad for most of my life, and look forward to continuing that tradition as long as we're both able. I'm glad you enjoyed this one, and I hope to have more to share in the near future.
Like you I love maps and have spent many hours studying river sources. You essentially did what I've always wanted to do with this video. Good job..bet you and your dad had a great time. Thanks for this very entertaining and informative video. Cheers Joey Warren
San Marcos represent! I’ve been here for 4 years and it’s the most beautiful river in the world. I love it. I’ve lived on it and walked to it nearly every since I lived here
I enjoyed watching this video. In 2018, I took a road trip in which I followed the Red River from where I-44 crosses it all of the way upstream to Palo Duro Canyon State Park. I explored the Park and visited both Amarillo and Lubbock as well as driving on I-27 all of the way from its north end to its south end. This was the first time in my life that I have visited Palo Duro Canyon State park as well as Amarillo and Lubbock.
Awesome road trip idea! I too love charting the waterways, their sources and courses. Watersheds and geological divisions have always fascinated me. Thanks for sharing!
I have always been fascinated by the headwaters and enjoyed this. My family is blessed to have part of the headwaters of the west prong of the frio river. If you want to come check it out let me know. We have a campsite right on the springs and its amazing. Have a good one!
Great tour. I grew up in New Mexico (West of the Great Divide) but spent many years in Oklahoma and Colorado (East of the Divide), moved to College Station three years ago this June after retiring to be closer to my Son. Your tour brought some good memories and had been thinking about exploring the Brazos River basin before too long. As for now, glad to be here among all the Aggie fans and now 'I Stand with Texas'.
Thank you! As a born and raised Texan who loves to take road trips, I'm still amazed how much of this state there is to explore. This trip gave me the opportunity to see places and things I didn't know existed in this state and its neighbors. Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to share!
Love this. I have always been intrigued by where rivers begin. I trace them on google maps. I’d love to make this trip too. And after the TX rivers, I want to see the big boys, Miss., Arkansas, etc. I got pretty close to the head waters of the Colorado in the Rockies. So cool.
Thanks! I've spent WAY too many hours tracing rivers on google - this trip was a long time coming. I'm already planning another to see how many more I can see. More google map searches. 😆
I owned property on the Aransas River in Bee County many years ago. Of course, it’s a dinky river in comparison to these rivers, but it’s a lot closer to you and still a fascinating area to track the headwaters. Interestingly enough, highly treated wastewater from the city of Beeville is one of the biggest sources of water into this river basin. I had alligators and monster gar in the river on my property many years ago. Great channel. First time here.
Oh wow, that's pretty cool! I am planning another river trip, and the Aransas is on my list. I didn't know about the Beeville wastewater connection - that could be an interesting tidbit! Thanks for letting me know!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors absolutely. Highway 202 about 3 miles east of Beeville you will find a bridge over Poesta Creek (a tributary into the Aransas). There should be a small dirt road next to the bridge that allows access to the creek. Underneath, you’ll find clearish running water, huge carp, a decent photo spot for your next trip. I can attest this exists 20+ years ago. 😂
@@haroldbeauchamp3770 Excellent, thank you! I just looked on the satellite view and sure enough, looks like it's there. I'm not sure when I'll plan my next trip, but this is definitely on the list!
great video. really appreciated the part about hill country. i moved here from florida and it's beautiful not just because of the beautiful hills but also the rivers that flow through them
You passed about 30 miles just south of the headwaters of the San Saba near the ruins of Fort McKavett historic site. I drive by it going to my brother's deer lease
Guadalupe bass, a species only found in the Llano River. I grew up a few blocks from that river. About all I had to worry about as a child was to keep Goat Heads out of my bicycle tires and how to get the Cucklebur's out of my dogs hair. Growing up in the Texas Hill Country was paradise.
The Guadalupe bass has jumped into other streams over the years. I've caught them on the Llano, the Blanco, the Pedernales, and of course, the Guadalupe. I love those little fighters, especially on light tackle, or a fly rod.
There were quite a few rivers in north and east Texas we simply couldn't get to on this trip. I am planning another trip to get to those, and the Trinity is definitely on the list! Thanks!
Since you were at the San Marcos headwaters I was a little surprised the Comal Springs just down the road wasn’t a part of your tour. Or the San Antonio.
Yeah, there were quite a few rivers close to our route that we didn't hit. Some we planned for but simply didn't have time, others we just hadn't considered. Based on folks' suggestions in the comments, I'm planning at least one more, if not a few, trips to explore some of the rivers we didn't hit on this one. Thanks for following along!
Nice video. Thanks, but just wanted to point out that the headwaters of the Red River are actually further west of Palo Duro Canyon along Palo Duro Creek and/or Tierra Blanca Creek. My family had a place from 1939 to 2018 right along the Palo Duro Creek below City Lake (formerly Bivins Lake). The creek starts further west northwest from the lake ( right on City Lake Road. The creek was spring-fed and crystal clear before all the wells lowered the water table.
Thanks! Yes, I saw that the source for the Red was further upstream, however, I chose Palo Duro as an accessible location with live water, where it is actually labeled as the fork of the Red River. I've heard over the years how much that water table has dropped - such a shame. I appreciate you following along!
Man you have a Channel now! May I suggest visiting the Paluxy river near Glenn Rose. Some special formations, a rare clear river in Texas, and of course the Dinosaur tracks! I live near the Sabine, a muddy river with rich history of Native Americans, oil boom (Kilgore). I'm ready for the next installment!
Thanks so much! I've seen the Paluxy on several of my comments now, and while I wasn't familiar with it before, it's definitely on my list. I have been collecting waypoints for my next trip to cover more of the north and east Texas river sources, and the Sabine is definitely on the list. Just need to plan it all out now! I appreciate you following along.
And if you check out the Paluxy headwaters may as well check out the Bosque River headwaters north of Stephenville. There are two other branches of the Bosque that all meet to form Lake Waco.
The head of the Prairie Dog Town Fork is many mile west of the Palo Duro Canyon. The Salt Fork head is in a field just a few miles north of Claude. The McClellan is a few miles west of Conway. You were close. The Pecos head is north of Pecos NM towards Cowles. To get to the head of the Rio Grande one must travel up Stony Pass Rd out of Creede, very beautiful country.
Our goal for this trip was to get as close as possible to each source, but had to be realistic about what we could legally access. Palo Duro was a great place to access the Red. We got as close as we could to the Pecos, just north of Cowles at the Iron Gate campground. From that point we were still a 24-mile round trip hike to the source in the mountains, and we were simply not prepared for that. I was disappointed to find the road closed on Stony Pass, as we really hoped to reach the summit for the Rio Grande, but still loved getting as far as we did - plus it gave us time to stop and fish at the reservoir. The areas we did access gave at least the spirit of where that water begins, and we had an incredible adventure. Thanks for following along!
@@olegig5166 Thanks! We were up there in the latter part of May last year. They had the road closed just past Lost Trail, so we were only 13 miles short of our goal.
@@olegig5166 Yeah, we knew it could be closed, but that's when we could do the trip. Funny enough, I did call about a week before the trip, and they were hopeful it would be open. I guess they were over-optimistic.
I may have misunderstood your intent - but the Brazos starts in New Mexico and the Prairie Dog Town Fork (Red River headwaters) starts in Oklahoma. Maybe you were getting as close as you could, and I just missed that point. Cool video, though.
Thanks! My intent was to get as close as I could to live water. I did notice the dry draws and gulches that eventually get to what is labeled the Brazos on the map, but felt the stop in Lubbock was our best best for access. For the Red, while we could have probably found a spot to access further upstream, Palo Duro was a good confluence of the disparate waters that flow regularly toward the main channel, plus it's just a cool area to appreciate it all. I'm planning a new route now to get as close to other rivers in north and east Texas that I missed on this route. Stay tuned!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors I lived in the Panhandle of Texas for over 50 years and always considered the beginning of the two rivers in question to be just as you suggested. The Brazos effectively starts at Lubbock and the Prairie Dog Fork of the Red River in Palo Duro Canyon. I guess the drainage areas for both start in New Mexico but are usually dry.
The Canadian river is the largest tributary to the Arkansas; which is the largest tributary to the Mississippi. Palo Duro and Red River in the Panhandle are great but I’m proud to call the Canadian my home.
We enjoyed following the Canadian. I would have liked to get further up into the mountains to see the source, but it's all private lands. I did reach out to the ranch where the headwaters are, but never got a response. Very cool river, though. Thanks for following along!
Yeah, that river is the lifeblood of San Marcos. So many great memories around that water. And yes, we were reminded about that vast amount of dirt with no water driving through west Texas. Thanks so much for stopping by!
It's an incredibly beautiful area up there. We enjoyed catching trout in the lake - until the snowstorm ran us off. I'm hoping to bring my family back up there to camp again. Thanks for stopping by!
This wasn't on my radar, but looking over the maps, it's definitely on my list now. I was familiar with the Dinosaur park there, but didn't know the name of the river. Thanks for the tip, and I appreciate you following along!
The rivers across the state of Texas could have better fishing if the Wildlife Department were to add hornwort plant, starmoss, and freshwater amphipods to the headwaters.
I did see there were quite a few draws and dry washes that flowed into the Brazos basin. This was the first/best place I could access live water that flows regularly into the larger river, so this was my starting point for the Brazos. Thanks for following along!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors East of Muleshoe Tx on hwy 70 @ the Bailey/ Lamb county line, I was near washed off the road one morning trying to get to work. There was a torrent of water coming across the Hwy that was part of Brazos. Must of been one of those 200 year floods. That was back like in 1975 or 76. Now i live about 1 mile from Brazos river in Brazos Co.
@@nFlames2 Oh wow! Those flash floods are no joke. I helped out after the big Blanco River flood in 2015, and it's just amazing what damage water can do.
I am in the process of planning another trip to explore more of our rivers, and the Sabine, Trinity, Sulphur, and San Antonio are all on the list! Stay tuned...
That's interesting. I didn't have any secondary creeks on my list, though I just looked it up. I drive through that area all the time, and hadn't noticed that creek. Thanks for pointing it out!
Garcitis Creek is no longer marked on US 77. It is historically important as LaSalle built Ft. St. Louis on it's banks a few miles inland from the bay.
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors Thank you so much for the project and sharing it with the video record. And thanks for the responses to comments. I'm sure everyone appreciates your taking the time to do so; I certainly do! On thinking further about it, I probably should have never made my original comment. EVERY source of a stream that is shorter than it's two neighbors is a triple point! :-) Sorry for the "noise"; I'll try to think before I keyboard, but that's not likely for this 75 yo, I'm afraid. :-) Thanks again.
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors My family settled in the Concho valley in 1870 ish .And the Concho comes from a spring which was surrounded by what was called the Head of the River Ranch. The free Park on the East side of the river in town was donated by my grandfather. The river is much like the San Marcus as it stays 73° or so year round. It is a beautiful little deep river who banks are moderate limestone cliffs. The "Boathouse" was there during the the Great Depression. It is an elongated structure which canoe style ends, hence the name "Boathouse." My father, born in 1907, who was one of nine children ran motorboats up and down the river during that time to make a living. These were not much more than small fishing boats but some had windshields. Christoval is a nice little community. Grab a rope swing from on of the many overhanging Oaks and drop into the cold water. Grit your teeth and come to the surface with a big smile exclaiming to your buddies that the water is fine! You will be forgiven.
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors Yes, it's nice to know your roots. I wish we had gotten to Texas before 1836. The family came via way of Missouri. People were rewarded land for fighting in the battle of San Jacinto. The Moss family which owned Enchanted Rock prior to 1973 when it was sold to the State for the park and the Inks family are examples of land given in that manner. Due to a splitting of the sheets, we left Christoval and moved to Llano in 1958. So my up bringing was influenced by two awesome Texas regions and rivers. Now I reside near Sing Sing on the Brazos. Otherwise known as Texas A&M. That is an old old joke going back to when A&M was all male and corps. Love Texas content! Keep it up!
@@crawford323 Wow, that's some cool family history! We just discovered that my dad's family went further back in Texas than we thought, and we're digging into it to see if we had folks here before 1836. We just found my great-great-great grandparents' graves in Weesatche. My mom's side goes pretty far back as well, and doing more research there.
That's interesting - I didn't trace any of the streams for the Brazos up that way. There are some dry washes and creeks that flow in from around New Mexico that lead to the branch I visited, but I simply got to as close to the beginning of what is labeled as the Brazos. Thanks for following along!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors idk bud, if you told me that you were on the Rio Costilla, I’d believe that. Catching a Cutt on the Rio Grande is a 1 in million type of thing.
@@hunterxangler Well, we did catch quite a few of them in the Rio Grande reservoir, along with rainbows and browns. They were biting like crazy, and we would have stayed there all day if the snowstorm hadn't forced us off the lake. cpw.state.co.us/learn/Pages/ResearchRioGrandeCutthroatTrout.aspx
How do you not include two major rivers like the Sabine and Trinity?? The Sabine forms the State boundary line with Louisiana just north of Joaquin Texas and the Trinity may be the most important river in Texas... Sulphur and Angelina are two that i can understand not including because they're not as well known
The short answer is time. We mapped out what we could visit in the time we had, knowing we wanted to get up to the Rio Grande in Colorado. Another trip is definitely in the works, and the Trinity and Sabine are high on the list. I've even been made aware of some rivers from folks comments that I wasn't previously aware of, so that gives me even more options. Stay tuned, and thanks for following along!
Thanks! That's exactly how this whole thing started - following rivers using Google. I realized some of them had roads near the headwaters, so I kicked it up a notch and started planning.
This is true, and I should have clarified that. Since my channel is monetized, I did not want to jeopardize it by showing any footage that could cause trouble.
@@oscarb9139 As a monetized creator, you can choose whether a video is monetized. I believe CZcams can de-monetize a single video if it's determined to violate requirements, and then has the option to completely de-monetize a channel if the creator is regularly out of compliance. I simply like keeping it safe.
@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors I can't imaging you get much income from this video. I think you should have released it without monetization to show the beauty of the park. Obviously, it's your channel, your call.
I felt, traversing that area, that the river has an enormous watershed - it just doesn't get all that much rain. That escarpment is one of the coolest areas of Texas, and we loved the variety of wildlife we saw up there.
I did see a marker in my search just south of that area that was labeled Source of the Brazos River, however, there was no immediate access to the area. I simply followed the water course further upstream along the Double Mountain Fork of the Brazos which led me to Lubbock, and that access was much easier and more along our planned route. I was glad to access the water there, and it gave us the chance to see all the prairie dogs as well. Thanks for following along!
We were at Guadalupe mountains, but from what I read, all national parks require permits to film for monetary purposes. I did not know that before the trip, so didn’t want to use my footage from there and cause trouble with my channel.
I haven't heard that. Where the road runs closest to the mountain summit where it starts is called Stony Pass, just east of Silverton, CO. Beautiful area - just wish the road had been open so we could have gone all the way to the top.
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors , Sorry you took it seriously. I was just making a bad joke. Not so jokingly, I have always suspected the original border of Texas (as specified by the Texicans) extended to central Wyoming because it is impossible to tell which direction the CO Parks will drain (either E, W, S, or not at all depending on pass blockages).
@@ernestsmith3581 Ha! I've had a lot of questions coming in about the places we've been, so it didn't register as a joke - I just want to get as accurate of information back to folks. Thanks so much for taking the time to comment, and for coming along on the journey!
The Red River in New Mexico is its own stream and actually flows west from the mountains around Red River, NM and flows into the Rio Grande just north of Taos. And while it is in itself a beautiful river, it is a completely separate water system from the Red River that flows across the northern border of Texas. Thanks for stopping by!
@@danieldonegan6914 Excellent, I love Texas history! My kiddo will be in 7th grade next year, and I'm looking forward to her learning it. Thanks for taking the time to comment. We had fun making this one!
@@rpc9578 Absolutely! When we moved to San Marcos in 1980, it was free to get in, and we used to go to feed the ducks, walk around the park, say hi to "Ralph" the pig. Such good memories of that place!
Wow! Surely you had to “fly” to cover allll of those miles ‘ >> We shouldn’t worry about the “sources ” of the river, GOD has a plan after HE tills the ground and the mountains ⛰️ come down.
Thanks for watching! We definitely logged a lot of miles on this trip, but it was worth every one. I am glad we got to enjoy the mountains, while they still stand.
Much of the land in Texas (93%) is privately owned, so access to many of these river sources is simply not possible. We got as far as we could for each river, knowing we couldn't get to most of the actual sources.
I have waypoints marked for all the places we stopped, along with some notes. Feel free to reach out at goodelifeoutdoors@gmail.com if you'd like me to share them. Thanks for following along!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors Well; I don't know about anyone else but you moved your camera too fast and left me trying to focus on items you panned over and then you moved on. I saw the horned toad; barely. I too stayed in San Marcos that river was crystal clear....even in deep water. I was amazed at seeing fish swimming around in water that was so clear and cold and deep. I went to several head waters of creeks in the area of Cleveland, Texas when I was much younger (I'm 75 now) but I don't think I would try to do that now. Everyone is afraid of the folks that are invading our land. They can be very troubling when you encounter them while you are out hikiing around They think the National Forest is theirs for the taking....probably will be too. Anyway, thanks for sharing your videos.
Thanks for watching my Texas headwaters road trip! Please like and subscribe.
Check out some of my other fishing adventures:
Catching a giant from my kayak - czcams.com/video/Q12fwsq6-FI/video.html
Personal best redfish - czcams.com/video/nLcwVnZxeO8/video.html
I don’t guess you know Joel Goode from Uvalde?
@@dustywclark No, I don't believe I do.
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors thought I’d ask. Joel is a old friend. He moved to Colorado. Take care buddy.
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors so where does the Colorado begin? if it's not from mountain snowmelt or a tributary i don't get how it starts? could you explain it like i'm 10?
@@crackawood I can try, but I'm no expert. From what we saw, the Colorado starts at the base of a large escarpment that drops down in the Texas panhandle. The place we filmed was one of very many gullies that fed toward the main river channel, so much of what starts the Colorado is runoff. I wasn't able to reach the spot that google labels as the start of the river, so I cannot confirm whether there are also springs that feed the river - I just have to assume it collects a huge area of runoff from tributaries as it makes its way east.
As a kid, I got to see the headwaters of the Frio and Nueces rivers. You can't do that today. I knew the ranchers, they knew me, no problem. That was about 60yrs ago. The land has changed hands.
Yes, when researching this trip, we knew it would be tricky to get all the way up both of these. The Nueces just proved impossible with the properties, and we had to make sure we captured everything from the public road as to not trespass. I felt very fortunate to get access to the Frio headwater property, as that was one of our favorite areas of the trip. It's a shame we couldn't get closer to the source of most of these rivers, but I loved this adventure! Thanks for stopping by!
I grew up in Leakey. I still live in Rio Frio on the Frio. My cousins are the Habys, and they have owned the east prong headwaters for a long time. West prong still belongs to Prade ranch.
@@dustywclark Oh wow, that's a beautiful area to grow up in! I'm hoping to get back up that way this summer to camp a few days.
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoorsI hope we get some rain soon so we’ll have a River to enjoy.
@@dustywclark Yeah, we're getting desperate here in Rockport, too. We got less than a 1/4" Saturday, and that was the first measurable rain we've got in over a month.
As a Native Texan I have been to many of these. Thank you for sharing and would love a part two with the Trinity and Sabine Rivers. Two other very important Texas rivers.
Another trip is definitely in the works, and the Trinity and Sabine are high on the list. I've even been made aware of some from folks comments that I wasn't previously aware of, so that gives me even more options. Stay tuned, and thanks for following along!
The Sabine rises in Lake Tawakoni...
Wow! What an ambitious project. Unfortunate how few true sources are accessible but great effort. Thank you!
Thanks! Yeah, there was definitely some frustration around accessibility, but we had a blast! Such a memorable trip, for sure.
Wanted to see the headwaters of many of the rivers you visited. Thanks for the ridealong. Nice.
Thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it!
Enjoyed seeing you and your dad's adventure. I spent many years fishing and hunting with my father through a number of the areas you visited. My family began in Gonzales and continues today in San Antonio. Thank you for showing how great Texas is for fathers and sons. It would have put a smile on my dad's face, thank you for taking us along.
Thank you! I have been fortunate to be able to hunt and fish and camp with my dad for most of my life, and look forward to continuing that tradition as long as we're both able. I'm glad you enjoyed this one, and I hope to have more to share in the near future.
I love hydrology too! Totally fascinated with finding headwaters!
Yeah, I'm ready to get out there for another trip soon! Thanks for stopping by!
Like you I love maps and have spent many hours studying river sources. You essentially did what I've always wanted to do with this video. Good job..bet you and your dad had a great time. Thanks for this very entertaining and informative video.
Cheers
Joey Warren
Thanks, Joey! This trip was built on years of looking and planning (which was fun, too). I appreciate you following along!
When I first moved to Texas, I sought out the beginning of the San Antonio River and found the Lone Star beer brewery. It's hard to top that.
That’ll work! Thanks for following along!
San Marcos represent! I’ve been here for 4 years and it’s the most beautiful river in the world. I love it. I’ve lived on it and walked to it nearly every since I lived here
It’s got 2 sets of Chevy keys that I gifted it 💔
Awesome! Glad you enjoy it there! Thanks for following along.
Ha! Oops!
I enjoyed watching this video. In 2018, I took a road trip in which I followed the Red River from where I-44 crosses it all of the way upstream to Palo Duro Canyon State Park. I explored the Park and visited both Amarillo and Lubbock as well as driving on I-27 all of the way from its north end to its south end. This was the first time in my life that I have visited Palo Duro Canyon State park as well as Amarillo and Lubbock.
Thanks for following along! Sounds like you had a great trip on the Red! Palo Duro is definitely a cool spot, and I'm looking forward to getting back.
Great adventure with your dad. Thanks for posting.
Thanks for following along!
Heb Foundation Camp is a beautiful place. Keep up the good work.
Yes, it is! We were really fortunate to be able to access it on this trip. Thanks for following along!
Haby ranch is north of HEB. Archeological sites everywhere.
Awesome road trip idea!
I too love charting the waterways, their sources and courses.
Watersheds and geological divisions have always fascinated me.
Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for following along! I'm already putting together my waypoints for the next one.
I have always been fascinated by the headwaters and enjoyed this. My family is blessed to have part of the headwaters of the west prong of the frio river. If you want to come check it out let me know. We have a campsite right on the springs and its amazing. Have a good one!
Wow, thank you! Please reach out at goodelifeoutdoors@gmail.com as I would like to learn more. I appreciate you following along on our trip!
Great tour. I grew up in New Mexico (West of the Great Divide) but spent many years in Oklahoma and Colorado (East of the Divide), moved to College Station three years ago this June after retiring to be closer to my Son. Your tour brought some good memories and had been thinking about exploring the Brazos River basin before too long. As for now, glad to be here among all the Aggie fans and now 'I Stand with Texas'.
Thank you! As a born and raised Texan who loves to take road trips, I'm still amazed how much of this state there is to explore. This trip gave me the opportunity to see places and things I didn't know existed in this state and its neighbors. Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to share!
Love this. I have always been intrigued by where rivers begin. I trace them on google maps. I’d love to make this trip too. And after the TX rivers, I want to see the big boys, Miss., Arkansas, etc. I got pretty close to the head waters of the Colorado in the Rockies. So cool.
Thanks! I've spent WAY too many hours tracing rivers on google - this trip was a long time coming. I'm already planning another to see how many more I can see. More google map searches. 😆
Hey Goode Life, I think the guitar music is an enjoyable soundtrack!
Thanks for sharing these spots on our Texas rivers.🍦
I'm pleased you enjoyed it! Choosing music for a video is always tricky, so I'm glad this hit a note (pun intended). Thanks for following along!
SO thankful you made this video!! I have Always wanted to see the Origins of the Rivers in Texas!! 🙏🙏🙏💯
I'm glad you enjoyed it! We had a lot of fun on this adventure, and happy to share it!
I Enjoyed your trip with Dad. A few more rivers to do… look forward to the piney woods/ east Texas video.
Thanks so much! And yes, I'm already putting together some waypoints for the next adventure. I appreciate you following along!
Thank you I didnt think I would enjoy this content as much as I did! Ain't nature grand!
Yes it is! Thanks so much for following along!
Thanks for sharing your journey. I love our river systems, and it is neat to see where they all start. Rockport is nice too.
I appreciate you coming along. We love living here in Rockport, and of course, exploring our state!
Texas when its green!
Thanks for the trip. Very good shots of wildlife.
Thank you! Yes, taking this trip in May gave us some beautiful weather and greenery.
Great video! I've always been curious as to where a lot of our rivers origionate.
Thanks so much! I'm hoping to plan another trip to explore even more. Stay tuned!
Very good video and nice adventure with Dad.
Thanks! We really did have an awesome time. Looking forward to the next trip!
I owned property on the Aransas River in Bee County many years ago. Of course, it’s a dinky river in comparison to these rivers, but it’s a lot closer to you and still a fascinating area to track the headwaters. Interestingly enough, highly treated wastewater from the city of Beeville is one of the biggest sources of water into this river basin. I had alligators and monster gar in the river on my property many years ago. Great channel. First time here.
Oh wow, that's pretty cool! I am planning another river trip, and the Aransas is on my list. I didn't know about the Beeville wastewater connection - that could be an interesting tidbit! Thanks for letting me know!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors absolutely. Highway 202 about 3 miles east of Beeville you will find a bridge over Poesta Creek (a tributary into the Aransas). There should be a small dirt road next to the bridge that allows access to the creek. Underneath, you’ll find clearish running water, huge carp, a decent photo spot for your next trip. I can attest this exists 20+ years ago. 😂
@@haroldbeauchamp3770 Excellent, thank you! I just looked on the satellite view and sure enough, looks like it's there. I'm not sure when I'll plan my next trip, but this is definitely on the list!
great video. really appreciated the part about hill country. i moved here from florida and it's beautiful not just because of the beautiful hills but also the rivers that flow through them
Thanks so much! Yes, the hill country has a special place in my heart as well.
Wow, you guys launch some serious miles. Great video and great idea. Thanks for sharing that beautiful footage.
It was a heck of a trip for sure! Well worth the effort. Thanks for stopping by!
You passed about 30 miles just south of the headwaters of the San Saba near the ruins of Fort McKavett historic site. I drive by it going to my brother's deer lease
It’s on the list for my next trip! That’s an awesome area for a deer lease. Thanks for following along!
Thank you, enjoyed swimming and fishing in Guadalupe and other rivers in Texas. Enjoyed the videos!
I love the Guadalupe! I've had many fond memories there as well. Thanks for dropping by!
Had no idea Texas is so beautiful.
It really is, as are the neighboring states. This trip really showed this to us! Thanks for following along!
Guadalupe bass, a species only found in the Llano River. I grew up a few blocks from that river. About all I had to worry about as a child was to keep Goat Heads out of my bicycle tires and how to get the Cucklebur's out of my dogs hair. Growing up in the Texas Hill Country was paradise.
The Guadalupe bass has jumped into other streams over the years. I've caught them on the Llano, the Blanco, the Pedernales, and of course, the Guadalupe. I love those little fighters, especially on light tackle, or a fly rod.
You might want to remove the word only in that first sentence.
Love Texas✝️
Me, too! Thanks!
Thanks for sharing this video. I was surprised that you didn't get to the Trinity river.
There were quite a few rivers in north and east Texas we simply couldn't get to on this trip. I am planning another trip to get to those, and the Trinity is definitely on the list! Thanks!
Since you were at the San Marcos headwaters I was a little surprised the Comal Springs just down the road wasn’t a part of your tour. Or the San Antonio.
Yeah, there were quite a few rivers close to our route that we didn't hit. Some we planned for but simply didn't have time, others we just hadn't considered. Based on folks' suggestions in the comments, I'm planning at least one more, if not a few, trips to explore some of the rivers we didn't hit on this one. Thanks for following along!
Nice video. Thanks, but just wanted to point out that the headwaters of the Red River are actually further west of Palo Duro Canyon along Palo Duro Creek and/or Tierra Blanca Creek. My family had a place from 1939 to 2018 right along the Palo Duro Creek below City Lake (formerly Bivins Lake). The creek starts further west northwest from the lake ( right on City Lake Road. The creek was spring-fed and crystal clear before all the wells lowered the water table.
Thanks! Yes, I saw that the source for the Red was further upstream, however, I chose Palo Duro as an accessible location with live water, where it is actually labeled as the fork of the Red River. I've heard over the years how much that water table has dropped - such a shame. I appreciate you following along!
Thank you for sharing this fascinating video.
It was definitely a fun trip. Thanks for following along!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors you're welcome
12:00 During the Texas Republic years , he is standing north East on the bank of the Rio Grande river, Texas territory.
Yes! If only Texas borders still encompassed Taos and part of the Rocky Mountains! Thanks for joining me on this journey!
Cool project. Enjoyed the video!
Thanks so much! It was definitely a fun trip!
Man you have a Channel now! May I suggest visiting the Paluxy river near Glenn Rose. Some special formations, a rare clear river in Texas, and of course the Dinosaur tracks!
I live near the Sabine, a muddy river with rich history of Native Americans, oil boom (Kilgore). I'm ready for the next installment!
Thanks so much! I've seen the Paluxy on several of my comments now, and while I wasn't familiar with it before, it's definitely on my list. I have been collecting waypoints for my next trip to cover more of the north and east Texas river sources, and the Sabine is definitely on the list. Just need to plan it all out now! I appreciate you following along.
And if you check out the Paluxy headwaters may as well check out the Bosque River headwaters north of Stephenville. There are two other branches of the Bosque that all meet to form Lake Waco.
@@artied1807 Awesome, thanks!
Thank for the road trip just to let you know the Red river flows into the Mississippi river in Louisiana
Yes, thank you, that is correct. I simply said it eventually flows into the gulf, but did not specify how. Thanks for coming along on the journey!
Great idea and video!
Thank you!
The head of the Prairie Dog Town Fork is many mile west of the Palo Duro Canyon. The Salt Fork head is in a field just a few miles north of Claude. The McClellan is a few miles west of Conway. You were close. The Pecos head is north of Pecos NM towards Cowles. To get to the head of the Rio Grande one must travel up Stony Pass Rd out of Creede, very beautiful country.
Our goal for this trip was to get as close as possible to each source, but had to be realistic about what we could legally access. Palo Duro was a great place to access the Red. We got as close as we could to the Pecos, just north of Cowles at the Iron Gate campground. From that point we were still a 24-mile round trip hike to the source in the mountains, and we were simply not prepared for that. I was disappointed to find the road closed on Stony Pass, as we really hoped to reach the summit for the Rio Grande, but still loved getting as far as we did - plus it gave us time to stop and fish at the reservoir. The areas we did access gave at least the spirit of where that water begins, and we had an incredible adventure. Thanks for following along!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors very good video and even greater adventure. Sorry about Stoney, it's very beautiful country.
What time of year was your trip?
@@olegig5166 Thanks! We were up there in the latter part of May last year. They had the road closed just past Lost Trail, so we were only 13 miles short of our goal.
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoorsYelp I usually wait until the middle of June and then call ahead.
@@olegig5166 Yeah, we knew it could be closed, but that's when we could do the trip. Funny enough, I did call about a week before the trip, and they were hopeful it would be open. I guess they were over-optimistic.
Very Cool video! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you! I appreciate you following along!
I may have misunderstood your intent - but the Brazos starts in New Mexico and the Prairie Dog Town Fork (Red River headwaters) starts in Oklahoma. Maybe you were getting as close as you could, and I just missed that point. Cool video, though.
Thanks! My intent was to get as close as I could to live water. I did notice the dry draws and gulches that eventually get to what is labeled the Brazos on the map, but felt the stop in Lubbock was our best best for access. For the Red, while we could have probably found a spot to access further upstream, Palo Duro was a good confluence of the disparate waters that flow regularly toward the main channel, plus it's just a cool area to appreciate it all. I'm planning a new route now to get as close to other rivers in north and east Texas that I missed on this route. Stay tuned!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors I lived in the Panhandle of Texas for over 50 years and always considered the beginning of the two rivers in question to be just as you suggested. The Brazos effectively starts at Lubbock and the Prairie Dog Fork of the Red River in Palo Duro Canyon. I guess the drainage areas for both start in New Mexico but are usually dry.
@@georgevan2589 Thanks for the thoughts on this! I appreciate you following along.
"The Colorado River has its beginning in Dawson County in West Texas." That would be be somewhere near Lamesa. Interesting.
Yes, we were just southeast of Lamesa at the point we found access. Lots of farm roads out that way! 😆
Nice trip. Thanks.
Thank you for following along!
When you were at the Frio you could have driven just a few miles to Tarpley. The head waters of the Hondo. Enjoyed the video beautiful scenery.
Yes, we missed a couple rivers in that area - the Sabinal and the Medina - and plan to pick those up on the next trip. Thanks for following along!
Outstanding
Thanks so much for taking the time to watch and comment. We enjoyed this adventure, and look forward to doing something similar in the future.
The Canadian river is the largest tributary to the Arkansas; which is the largest tributary to the Mississippi. Palo Duro and Red River in the Panhandle are great but I’m proud to call the Canadian my home.
We enjoyed following the Canadian. I would have liked to get further up into the mountains to see the source, but it's all private lands. I did reach out to the ranch where the headwaters are, but never got a response. Very cool river, though. Thanks for following along!
I went to college in San Marcos. I miss the river. I live in West Texas now, with no water, and lots of dirt.
Yeah, that river is the lifeblood of San Marcos. So many great memories around that water. And yes, we were reminded about that vast amount of dirt with no water driving through west Texas. Thanks so much for stopping by!
Native Texan here. Sad that you can get to many of the headwaters any more. I remember visiting many in my younger years.
Yeah, we knew we wouldn't be able to get to the very beginning of most of them, but it was still a fun trip. Thanks for following along!
my parents would take us camping in Colorado. We would fish the lake were the rio grand river starts.
It's an incredibly beautiful area up there. We enjoyed catching trout in the lake - until the snowstorm ran us off. I'm hoping to bring my family back up there to camp again. Thanks for stopping by!
Very cool video! There is a book called Ladder Of Rivers about Texas, very interesting.
Thank you! I hadn't heard of this book, but I'm definitely interested in reading it!
The tres rios, paluxy, brazos, and squaw creek river meet in glen rose
This wasn't on my radar, but looking over the maps, it's definitely on my list now. I was familiar with the Dinosaur park there, but didn't know the name of the river. Thanks for the tip, and I appreciate you following along!
The rivers across the state of Texas could have better fishing if the Wildlife Department were to add hornwort plant, starmoss, and freshwater amphipods to the headwaters.
That’s interesting! Thanks for sharing!
The headwaters of the Brazos is just north of Portales NM Blackwater Draw.
I did see there were quite a few draws and dry washes that flowed into the Brazos basin. This was the first/best place I could access live water that flows regularly into the larger river, so this was my starting point for the Brazos. Thanks for following along!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors East of Muleshoe Tx on hwy 70 @ the Bailey/ Lamb county line, I was near washed off the road one morning trying to get to work. There was a torrent of water coming across the Hwy that was part of Brazos. Must of been one of those 200 year floods. That was back like in 1975 or 76. Now i live about 1 mile from Brazos river in Brazos Co.
@@nFlames2 Oh wow! Those flash floods are no joke. I helped out after the big Blanco River flood in 2015, and it's just amazing what damage water can do.
What about the Sabine river and trinity and sulfur and san Antonio rivers.. white oak creek is big water shed.
I am in the process of planning another trip to explore more of our rivers, and the Sabine, Trinity, Sulphur, and San Antonio are all on the list! Stay tuned...
It goes beyond Possum Kingdom and the lake north of there.
That's right, in fact the Brazos travels almost all the way across the state, as some of the washes and creeks that feed it extend into New Mexico.
Google Earth shows the start of Garcitis Creek to actually be a triple point, separating it from both the Lavava and Guadalupe R. drainages.
"Lavaca"
That's interesting. I didn't have any secondary creeks on my list, though I just looked it up. I drive through that area all the time, and hadn't noticed that creek. Thanks for pointing it out!
Garcitis Creek is no longer marked on US 77. It is historically important as LaSalle built Ft. St. Louis on it's banks a few miles inland from the bay.
@@ernestsmith3581 I didn't think about the LaSalle connection. My wife grew up in Port Lavaca - I should know these things! Ha!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors Thank you so much for the project and sharing it with the video record. And thanks for the responses to comments. I'm sure everyone appreciates your taking the time to do so; I certainly do!
On thinking further about it, I probably should have never made my original comment. EVERY source of a stream that is shorter than it's two neighbors is a triple point! :-) Sorry for the "noise"; I'll try to think before I keyboard, but that's not likely for this 75 yo, I'm afraid. :-)
Thanks again.
The South Concho River flows into the quaint town of Christoval then on to near San Angelo.
We overlooked the Concho, and the north watershed was on our route. Maybe we'll plan a part 2 for all those we missed.
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors My family settled in the Concho valley in 1870 ish .And the Concho comes from a spring which was surrounded by what was called the Head of the River Ranch. The free Park on the East side of the river in town was donated by my grandfather. The river is much like the San Marcus as it stays 73° or so year round. It is a beautiful little deep river who banks are moderate limestone cliffs. The "Boathouse" was there during the the Great Depression. It is an elongated structure which canoe style ends, hence the name "Boathouse." My father, born in 1907, who was one of nine children ran motorboats up and down the river during that time to make a living. These were not much more than small fishing boats but some had windshields. Christoval is a nice little community. Grab a rope swing from on of the many overhanging Oaks and drop into the cold water. Grit your teeth and come to the surface with a big smile exclaiming to your buddies that the water is fine! You will be forgiven.
That's awesome!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors Yes, it's nice to know your roots. I wish we had gotten to Texas before 1836. The family came via way of Missouri. People were rewarded land for fighting in the battle of San Jacinto. The Moss family which owned Enchanted Rock prior to 1973 when it was sold to the State for the park and the Inks family are examples of land given in that manner. Due to a splitting of the sheets, we left Christoval and moved to Llano in 1958. So my up bringing was influenced by two awesome Texas regions and rivers. Now I reside near Sing Sing on the Brazos. Otherwise known as Texas A&M. That is an old old joke going back to when A&M was all male and corps. Love Texas content! Keep it up!
@@crawford323 Wow, that's some cool family history! We just discovered that my dad's family went further back in Texas than we thought, and we're digging into it to see if we had folks here before 1836. We just found my great-great-great grandparents' graves in Weesatche. My mom's side goes pretty far back as well, and doing more research there.
Great video
Thanks!
There's an old saying from early Texas. There's no law West of the Brazos and no God West of the Pecos.
In my travels, I've found there's far too much of one, and not near enough of the other. Thanks for stopping by!
Great trip. I really enjoyed the video. Tpack
Thanks!
The Brazos starts up in Oklahoma. I traced it on a map
That's interesting - I didn't trace any of the streams for the Brazos up that way. There are some dry washes and creeks that flow in from around New Mexico that lead to the branch I visited, but I simply got to as close to the beginning of what is labeled as the Brazos. Thanks for following along!
I’ve caught wild cutthroat trout on The Canadian in New Mexico.
Nice! We were catching cutthroats in the Rio Grande!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors idk bud, if you told me that you were on the Rio Costilla, I’d believe that. Catching a Cutt on the Rio Grande is a 1 in million type of thing.
@@hunterxangler Well, we did catch quite a few of them in the Rio Grande reservoir, along with rainbows and browns. They were biting like crazy, and we would have stayed there all day if the snowstorm hadn't forced us off the lake. cpw.state.co.us/learn/Pages/ResearchRioGrandeCutthroatTrout.aspx
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors the RGC trout you can target in the head waters of the Rio Grande, but that’s it, so Creede
@@hunterxangler Exactly
How do you not include two major rivers like the Sabine and Trinity?? The Sabine forms the State boundary line with Louisiana just north of Joaquin Texas and the Trinity may be the most important river in Texas... Sulphur and Angelina are two that i can understand not including because they're not as well known
The short answer is time. We mapped out what we could visit in the time we had, knowing we wanted to get up to the Rio Grande in Colorado. Another trip is definitely in the works, and the Trinity and Sabine are high on the list. I've even been made aware of some rivers from folks comments that I wasn't previously aware of, so that gives me even more options. Stay tuned, and thanks for following along!
Kinda bummed that the headwaters of the red river wasn't an old big red bottling company
Ha! True!
Great video. I like to follow rivers to their source using Google Maps.
Thanks! That's exactly how this whole thing started - following rivers using Google. I realized some of them had roads near the headwaters, so I kicked it up a notch and started planning.
You dont need a permit to film in a national park unless it is a commercial venture.
If your channel isnt monetized, you can film all you want.
This is true, and I should have clarified that. Since my channel is monetized, I did not want to jeopardize it by showing any footage that could cause trouble.
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors Can you demonitize a video, or does it apply to the channel and all videos?
@@oscarb9139 As a monetized creator, you can choose whether a video is monetized. I believe CZcams can de-monetize a single video if it's determined to violate requirements, and then has the option to completely de-monetize a channel if the creator is regularly out of compliance. I simply like keeping it safe.
@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors I can't imaging you get much income from this video. I think you should have released it without monetization to show the beauty of the park. Obviously, it's your channel, your call.
What a fun trip to do with your dad.
Absolutely! Thanks for following along!
The Colorado River sadly has a very small watershed. The highland lakes suffer terribly.
I felt, traversing that area, that the river has an enormous watershed - it just doesn't get all that much rain. That escarpment is one of the coolest areas of Texas, and we loved the variety of wildlife we saw up there.
I'll take the mountains in Colorado over the dirt and wind turbines in West Texas.
The whole trip was awesome, dirt and all. The mountains were certainly a heck of a lot cooler! Thanks for following along!
San Bernard, Trinity?
The Trinity is definitely on my list for the next trip. I'll look into the San Bernard. Thanks for the suggestions!
You are wrong on the Brazos it starts in the 6666 ranch area close to Guthrie
I did see a marker in my search just south of that area that was labeled Source of the Brazos River, however, there was no immediate access to the area. I simply followed the water course further upstream along the Double Mountain Fork of the Brazos which led me to Lubbock, and that access was much easier and more along our planned route. I was glad to access the water there, and it gave us the chance to see all the prairie dogs as well. Thanks for following along!
Which national park are you speaking of that doesn't allow filming without a permit?
We were at Guadalupe mountains, but from what I read, all national parks require permits to film for monetary purposes. I did not know that before the trip, so didn’t want to use my footage from there and cause trouble with my channel.
Isn't the source of the Rio Grande also called "South Park"?
I haven't heard that. Where the road runs closest to the mountain summit where it starts is called Stony Pass, just east of Silverton, CO. Beautiful area - just wish the road had been open so we could have gone all the way to the top.
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors , Sorry you took it seriously. I was just making a bad joke. Not so jokingly, I have always suspected the original border of Texas (as specified by the Texicans) extended to central Wyoming because it is impossible to tell which direction the CO Parks will drain (either E, W, S, or not at all depending on pass blockages).
@@ernestsmith3581 Ha! I've had a lot of questions coming in about the places we've been, so it didn't register as a joke - I just want to get as accurate of information back to folks. Thanks so much for taking the time to comment, and for coming along on the journey!
I thought the Red River began in Red River New Mexico.
The Red River in New Mexico is its own stream and actually flows west from the mountains around Red River, NM and flows into the Rio Grande just north of Taos. And while it is in itself a beautiful river, it is a completely separate water system from the Red River that flows across the northern border of Texas. Thanks for stopping by!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors thank for the info. I’ve been a Texas History teacher for 24 years and love what you’ve done here.
Thanks.
@@danieldonegan6914 Excellent, I love Texas history! My kiddo will be in 7th grade next year, and I'm looking forward to her learning it. Thanks for taking the time to comment. We had fun making this one!
Shocked you said blanco and not Blanko
Ha! Yes, my years of Spanish classes win out over local pronunciation. Thanks for watching!
@@rpc9578 Absolutely! When we moved to San Marcos in 1980, it was free to get in, and we used to go to feed the ducks, walk around the park, say hi to "Ralph" the pig. Such good memories of that place!
Wow! Surely you had to “fly” to cover allll of those miles ‘ >> We shouldn’t worry about the “sources ” of the river, GOD has a plan after HE tills the ground and the mountains ⛰️ come down.
It’s sort of how 10 months are like 10 minutes to print out one of those Quantum Videos.
And always remember,
GOD has an Eye on YOU.
Thanks for watching! We definitely logged a lot of miles on this trip, but it was worth every one. I am glad we got to enjoy the mountains, while they still stand.
Who owns the land ??
Much of the land in Texas (93%) is privately owned, so access to many of these river sources is simply not possible. We got as far as we could for each river, knowing we couldn't get to most of the actual sources.
DID YOU TAKE GPS RECORDINGS ???
I have waypoints marked for all the places we stopped, along with some notes. Feel free to reach out at goodelifeoutdoors@gmail.com if you'd like me to share them. Thanks for following along!
Texas doesn’t have rivers…it has creeks, that you 0:01 Texans call rivers. 😂
Ha! You're not half wrong. Thanks for stopping by!
@@TheGoodeLifeOutdoors Well; I don't know about anyone else but you moved your camera too fast and left me trying to focus on items you panned over and then you moved on. I saw the horned toad; barely. I too stayed in San Marcos that river was crystal clear....even in deep water. I was amazed at seeing fish swimming around in water that was so clear and cold and deep. I went to several head waters of creeks in the area of Cleveland, Texas when I was much younger (I'm 75 now) but I don't think I would try to do that now. Everyone is afraid of the folks that are invading our land. They can be very troubling when you encounter them while you are out hikiing around They think the National Forest is theirs for the taking....probably will be too. Anyway, thanks for sharing your videos.
@@Edward-vn2wr I appreciate the feedback, as I am always hoping to improve my filming techniques. Thanks for following along!
@@Edward-vn2wr You can pause the video and push the slider to the left. Go back.
Sorry the the tributaries actually make the rivers
Yes, I agree! Even those that have a source with springs are still relying on run-in from surrounding tributaries. Thanks for stopping by!