chocolate bayou

[hammer time]

can anyone give me directions on how to get there?
I have never fished there and would like to try it
any suggestions?
Thanks
HT

[whicks]

SORRY FOR THIS BUT HERE ARE THE DIRECTIONS...

TAKE BELTWAY 8 SOUTH (SAM HOUSTON TOLLWAY SOUTH) AND GO AROUND TILL YOUR HEADING EAST TOWARD PEARLAND. WHEN YOU GET TO HIGHWAY 288 TAKE 288 SOUTHBOUND. GO SOUTH ABOUT 22 MILES AND
TAKE A LEFT AT COUNTY ROAD 48. TAKE YOUR SECOND LEFT ON COUNTY ROAD 45. GO TILL ROAD ENDS AND TAKE A RIGHT ON COUNTY ROAD 46 WHEN YOU GET TO HIGHWAY 35 TAKE A LEFT. TAKE A RIGHT ON SPUR 28 (JUST DOWN THE ROAD), YOU WILL GO THROUGH DANBURY (AWESOME TOWN), GO TILL YOU HAVE TO TAKE A RIGHT OR LEFT, TAKE A LEFT. TAKE YOUR FIRST RIGHT (IN DANBURY) ON COUNTY ROAD 208, STAY LEFT AND GO ALL THE WAY (ABOUT 8 MILES) TO FM 2004 AND TAKE A LEFT ON 2004 (GO ABOUT 5 MILES) AND EXIT UNDER CHOCOLATE BAYOU BRIDGE. TO THE LEFT WILL BE CHOCOLATE BAYOU AND TO THE RIGHT WILL BE CHOCOLATE BAY.

...THIS IS A BACKROAD WAY THROUGH THE COUNTRYSIDE. TOTAL DISTANCE IS ABOUT 65 MILES FROM I-10 AND BELTWAY 8 SOUTH.

[M T Stringer]

Hammer, I work here at one of the plants...check your PM

Cutting through Danbury/Liverpool may be shorter on the map but I can get you there quicker...

[larry long shadows]

M T ... Will you Pm me also .....would like to know your way also..Thanks

[Deuce]

me 3 please!

[SoulSeeker]

How do you get there from 45 southbound.

Thanks.

[Jerry-rigged]

Wow, that is a lot of turns...

How about this-

From I10/Katy - Take Bwy 8 to 288 south to Angleton, exit 523, go right on 523, about 10? miles to a stoplight in the middle of no-where, that is 2004. Go right on 2004 about 10(?) miles to the HUGE bridge, the boat ramp road is on the left before the bridge.

From Hwy45 Where are you coming from? Easiest is to head south to the 1764 exit. Exit to the feeder, go just past the dog track, and pick up 2004 to the right. go 10-15 miles to the BIG bridge, boat ramp road is across the bridge, on the right. (dog track).

Depending on where you are coming from on 45, though, there are faster / shorter ways...

[M T Stringer]

Wow...overwhelming response...I will list a few ways to get there since you guys seem spread out. I don't claim to cut 30 minutes off your time, but I drive out there a lot and some of the back roads end up slowing you down in my opinion due to lower speed limits/stop signs/turns etc.

One thing I want to point out is to please be careful on FM 2004. A local Sheriff Deputy, Jason Olaf, was killed directing traffic during a turnaround because of an impatient jerkoff that was passing when he shouldn't have been. Jason didn't stand a chance...Between 5 and 7 both AM and PM is "rush hour" due to shift change. You might notice that the stretch of Highway around there is named after him in memorial.

This is the actual launch/ramp on the FM 2004 bridge
http://maps.google.com/?ll=29.211806,-9 ... 9&t=h&z=19
Zoom out to see the roads, sorry I didn't label anything, I don't have Google Earth on this PC

I live very close to 45/FM 518 and I like to go through Alvin (approx 30 min)
FM 528 (west) to 35 South
Turn Left on FM 2403 (you will see a Texaco/Yellowjacket store)
FM 2403 dead ends into FM 2917 about 5 miles, turn Left again
Stay on 2917 past both plants (Lyondell and Ascend) road dead ends into FM 2004
Turn Right on FM 2004 (Quick Stop/Texaco on corner)
Bridge is up ahead about 2 miles past Ineos, go over bridge turn right on dirt road after bridge.

From Katy/West Houston
Get to 288 South
Exit FM 523 and turn Left (East/South).
Stay on FM 523 through Hwy35 and continue till you get to FM2004 (about 20-25 minutes)
Turn Left on FM 2004 stay on it until you get to bridge.
Might be a bit longer mileage wise, but more of a straigh shot and quicker due to bigger roads/fewer stops.
BEFORE you get to bridge, turn left onto dirt road.

From North/East Houston
I-45 South
Exit FM 2004 at the Dog Track
A bit tricky but when you exit, go through the intersection/light then veer to the right.
Follow FM2004 through Hwy 6/Hitchcock, past FM 646 for a good 15 minutes.
You will see the plants in the distance.
Go over the bridge and turn Right on dirt road past bridge.

I could go this last way to work, but there are more places to stop and get food etc through Alvin and it takes about the same amount of time for me. Not too sure on bait as I am an arti guy only, but I think there is frozen bait at a few of the stores nearby (WeeMart, Quick Stop) I don't think they sell live bait at the launch anymore.

Good luck and I hope that helped.

[SoulSeeker]

How is the boat traffic there?

Do a lot of people hit this spot?

Are there any lights under that bridge?

[Cruisin_Cuda]

How is the boat traffic there?

Do a lot of people hit this spot?

Are there any lights under that bridge?

There is usually pretty heavy boat traffic on the weekends and always some @-hole in 60k bay boat at the ramp saying stuff like " uhh ohh another speed bump " so that shows you the general attitude towards kayakers. I don't think there are lights there on the bridge but then again I never looked and usually headed out toward choc bay. everytime I've been it's mainly pbs that use it but there are some good spots off the main channel that most boats can't or won't go into because they're racing out to the bay. Fish the bends and any oysters you find. Not much live bait to be bought around there though except for lutes and everytime I went they sold out of live shrimp shortly after they got it, if they got any at all.

[elw351]

boat traffic has become fairly heavy, particularly on weekends and holidays. get there early and and fish before the crowds. usually gets pretty full later in the morning, or fish during the week. went out wednesday week before last and hardly anybody there. late afternoon can also be a good time. we hit it sometimes after work with no prob. a lot of places boat traffic can't get kayak or real shallow craft only. be careful crossing the channel is the only problem. common sense must prevail.

[Jerry-rigged]

There is a good amount of boat traffic - there are three boat ramps on the bayou, plus a marina and a canal community. So yes, lots of PB's. The good news, most of them are head out to West bay, SLP, or elsewhere. Most don't stop at the first or second cove that you will be paddling to.

also worth noting - Keep an eye out for Barge traffic. The plants up the Bayou have active barge docks, and the Tugs and barges come thru there pretty often. If you have not been around working barges, they move faster than you think, and push HUGE wakes that will come across the bay and surprise you.