Mar 5, 20232 min read

Brazos River Access Detail: The Chappell Hill 290 Bridge

Nearly 5 miles east of Chappell Hill the 290 highway spans the Brazos River.

The 290 Brazos Bridge is colossal. This is the center access trail to the water on the west bank.

I was able to drive the van down the unimproved access path access vissible beneath the eastbound highway on the west bank. All bets are off after a rain.

Access to the river is on both banks. There are asphalt paved loops/easements under the bridges on both banks. Unimproved accesses are grafted to these paved roads.

These are class 3 accesses. There are no public bathrooms, picnic tables or grills. As in all class 3 river accesses a best practice is to scout these areas before a trip. Sometimes pre scouting is not feasible, but all class 3 accesses are subject to the effects of the weather, erosion, becoming overgrown, illegal dumping and so forth. For explanation of river accesses ratings please read the articles Classification of Water Accesses and Scouting River Bridges & Accesses.

The east access offers an impressive river view but the path to the water is marred by the giant granite blocks used to stabilize the bank. Satellite imagery does not convey the vastness or ruggedness of these accesses. Scouting these sites proved invaluable.

One of my daughter thought this was a place to propose.

I would use the east bank only in an emergency. Under the best conditions footing is hazardous.

I prefer the west bank. There is an area to stage vehicles, canoes and gear.

The west access with an off road, improved staging area. In view is the unimproved road to the river.

Visible from the satellite image above are the two dirt vehicular paths from the easement to the water. Scout these trails and drive them at your own risk. These unimproved trails are long and turning around might not be an option. The center path especially was strewn with bumper valances, pieces of tail light assemblies, fender wells and various components of tow straps.

These banks are high and steep.

Adding to the typical class 3 hazards of steep, earth banks (that will deteriorate in rain), granite blocks, rip rap and rebar, is poison ivy. Its interesting that many of the roughest obstacles are man-made. None of these are deal breakers. Awareness of these things is important to any river trip.

The next upstream access is 35+ river miles, the Navasota 105 Bridge. The next access is 14 miles down river, the Hempstead 159 Bridge. These are both class 3 accesses. Between these bridges lie the remains of an abandoned bridge and its ancillary. This is a substantial and formidable obstacle.