Houston Tx - boarding scene?
 

I'm not a frequent poster on WW, but figured I would ask for the opinion of the community on this one...I may have a job opportunity in Houston. Coming from the northeast, I like the thought of year round wakeboarding (or at least 10-11 months).

How is the wakeboarding scene around Houston? I wouldn't know a soul in the area, and its tough to drive the boat and ride at the same time, so I'd need to meet some new folks to ride. How are the local lakes in the region? Do they even have water due to the lack of rain the past couple years?

I live on the river up here, we have about 12 miles of smooth water 6-7 months out of the year. It would be great to find a similar setup down there. I was checking out Lake Conroe, Lake Livingston and Lake Houston. Does anyone have experience with those lakes?

Would be working from home 50% of the time, so traffic isn't of a huge concern to me. Thanks to all in advance!

All of the lakes are a joke. Rivers are the way to go if you are into boat. Check out GCWA. You can find a ride there easily.

Also, If you are interested in Cable, WN is on the south side of Houston and SMG is supposed to have a place on the north side some time in the next year.

My sister lives over there (Tomball) so I've been doing similar research for my visit in June. I've only talked to one local but from what he says, the place to go is the Trinity River that feeds into lake Livingston.

My sister was going to get a house on Lake Conroe and I inquired about it. I guess it's BIG and more for bigger pleasureboats and the like. I guess it gets blown out pretty quick and many of the big boats make for lots of wakes to deal with. At least that was the opinion of the local I was talking to.

I do know that they have the Gulf Coast Wake Association (GCWA) as mentioned above and I've seen some good pics from get togethers they've had. I mean with Houston as the 4th largest city in the USA, I'm sure there's going to be a decent community there.

I know housing down there is super cheap compared to where I live in the PNW. My sister got a house that would cost $300 to $350k here for like $200k down there.

Hell, I'd say that if you have a boat and a swimming pool, you'd be all set!

People always bash Lake Conroe…they say it suks because of all the traffic and bulkheads that reflect the waves and that can be true. However, I disagree that it suks and isn't worth exploring, I grew up on Conroe and lived on the water there until recently.

Durning the week it can be butter for miles and if you know where to go on the far northside of the lake you can find butter even on the weekends, however you need to know the cleared paths thru the stump jungle to get there, so I advise you get somebody to show you around before you trek out there.

The Trinity river is where most H-town boarders go, it's 60 miles north of Houston outside of Riverside off hwy. 19. The GCWA has several round ups and get togethers up there, I recommend checking them out.

I prefer white rock creek which is a few miles further past the Trinity river outside of the town of Trinity, off hwy. 94 towards Groveton, it is always butterlicious.

Thanks guys...sounds like the Trinity river it is. Hard to tell on Google maps, but is the Trinity accessible by boat from Lake Livingston?

There are 3 main river areas to board at in the Houston area. The Upper San Jacinto River AKA USJ, Upper San Jac is the river that feeds lake Houston just north of the lake. This is a popular spot due to its close proximity to the city, they have a sand beach witha volley ball net and once summer hits GCWA members can be found there every weekend boarding and at the sand beach, they also host a annual freeze ride here. Down side to the USJ is that it is one of the shallower rivers and has a tricky channel when going to it from the main lake. I have never been on the USJ but if you check out the GCWA FB page you can easily find someone who will show you around.

Next River is the Lower San Jacinto River AKA LSJ, Lower San Jac, this is just below lake Houston passed the dam and winds all the way to the gulf. Another popular spot for boarders that has several sand beaches including banana bend (mini mexico) and one that is part of a 4 wheeler offroad park. This is a fun place to hang out and the LSJ is generally deeper than the USJ from what I understand. Down sides to the LSJ are that it runs salty when there has not been any recent rain and there are large offshore boats that haul ass up and down it sometimes. If you don't mind corrosion or bullsharks then this is the place to go. I have been here and it can be a lot of fun but can get crowded on weekends.

The Trinity River AKA The T. This is by far the farthest one from town but it trumphs the other T in overall ridable lenght and depth and being so far, its not usually very crowded. Like previously stated the main place for river access is the public boat launch off of Hwy 19 in Riverside or you can pay 5 bucks and launch at Bethy Creek Resort about 5 miles from the public launch. Once on the river it is 25-40 ft deep and you is ridable for over 25 miles, just stay in the middle 3rd and keep and eye out for drift wood especially after a big rain in Dallas.

My inlaws have a place in White Rock Creek on Livingston so on weekdays we typically hang around there but it too can also get crowded on the weekend but can be a good time with everyone tieing up and cooking on Goat Island. Most weekends we meet up with friends and just stick to the T. Once you get plugged into the local scene you will get to know almost everyone on the water.

Other lake that was not mentioned is Lake Somerville, if you end up on the West side of Houston this is a little over an hour away and typically not very crowded and has many places to camp out at.. I have only been there a handful of times and never really saw a lot of traffic any of those times.

GCWA has a website with a forum, as well as a facebook page. As mentioned they host two events every year up on the T at Bethy Creek Resort, Spring Round Up which is the coming up the first weekend in May and Fall Bash which is typically at the end of September. These are great events to meet a lot of new people and they are always a blast. If you make it down and see an all blue Moomba LSV on the T or at White Rock Creek don't hesitate to say hello.

If you are up for a little travel (2-4 hr depending), lousiana has endless butter. May sound like a lot of driving but I would rather drive 5 hours for good water than 10 minutes for a crowded, blown out public lake. Just something to keep in minds if you can't find anything sweet in the Houston area.

Trinity, The dirty T, The T........ Best place to ride in H-town area.. 22 miles of non stop butta.. One pull up then one pull back.. perfect conditions.. True, Lake Conroe is capped when the wind kicks up or the weekends but great party lake with all the restaurants, bars, party island, and Scottys Ridge cove.. Unless of course if you know where to ride.. This is a pic out my front door... USJ if fun but too shallow for the heavy boats... 5-8 feet deep gets you bottom push with 4 k of ballast.. LSJ is a good run but is brackish and full salt when the LH dam is not flowing.. My favorite besides the T is the SBR (san bernard river) bit of a drive but always butta.. The water warms up quick here.. yesterday it was 60...

Access to the T is the boat ramp on rte 19 or the Bethy Creek Resort..

http://i127.photobucket.com/albums/p...ps3953ff73.jpg

Ahhh yes i forgot the SBR, probably a good spot if you are around sugar land but it also runs brackish. And they all are home to alligators but they are friendly alligators


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If you are not afraid of brackish water. We ride the Lower San Jac, San Bernard River, The Creek, all summer long. Ive been on these areas since a kid and you will always have a place to ride. My preference is the Bernard. I grew up there so it is home to me. Lower SJ is a nice area and we normally hit it early. 9-10 am to get our runs in and surf in. Then we hit the beach to chill andmingle with everyone. Then a late evening set. Lots of great places around us. David, we like our aligators......