South Concho River
LOCATION, ACCESSIBILITY, AND LANDSCAPE
Approximate Paddling Trail Length: 18,068 ft. (3.42 miles)
South Concho River Christoval, Texas Paddling Trail Map (.kmz)
The South Concho River flows through the Oak Tree covered landscaped near Christoval , Texas. Not a big river by any means, the South Concho is rather small and eventually feeds into the Concho River. While there may be many different locations to put in at the South Concho, my favorite spot is on Main Street in Christoval. At this location you can find some decent parking spots and you will be able to access the water rather easily.
As I usually recommend, try going upstream until you reach a small overflow dam and then turn around so you can come back to this same location to take out. The river doesn’t flow very fast, but there are some shallow areas along with small rapids that will require portaging when going upstream, and potentially when coming back downstream depending on flow conditions (and if you are in a kayak or SUP). I will note that the beginning section of this location can get quite crowded with college kids on the weekends, so I recommend going early and or during the weekdays to avoid some of these hooligans.
You can expect beautiful trees and more often than not some snakes and other wildlife such as deer, racoons, and sometimes wild turkey. I’ve always seen a couple of snakes in addition to some sort of animal, so the South Concho has a nice landscape in my opinion.
type of water, quality, and features
As I previously mentioned, the South Concho flows quite clear…not as clear as the South Llano River near Telegraph, or the Devils River, but it is clean and clear. Lots of trees surround the South Concho, so expect to paddle over submerged timber. In my opinion, I think the South Concho River is beautiful. It has a great balance of relatively clear water, big trees, rock bottom, and vegetation to provide a great environment.
Some of the rivers I fish are pretty exposed to the sunlight. The nice aspect about the South Concho River is you can get a little relief from the sun with the large trees that surround the bank of the river. You can really push yourself as much as you want too, because the first section of this paddling trail is deep and flat water, but the further you go upstream the more rapids and pools you will encounter.
fishing tactics and tips
While I do enjoy fishing greatly, the South Concho River hasn’t proven itself to me as a great fishing location…but moreso just a good spot to get out on the water and enjoy the great outdoors. I have caught some bass and panfish here, but most have been small and I really had to work to get them to bite. Nonetheless, I could have very easily been having off days the times I have gone.
I have had best success with a Fluke (somewhat transparent in color). Cast the fluke on a medium to medium-light spinning setup and throw in and around timber / vegetation. Slow and steady is the key here…don’t swim the fluke, but make it look like an injured baitfish. I like to twitch the fluke to get it to swim back and forth. Other lures that have worked great for me here are Worden’s Rooster Tails. If you are having tough luck, tie on a Rooster Tail and you will have a good chance of landing something.
Things to watch out for
As with any river, being careful is always a good thing. There isn’t anything too extraordinary to watch out for in my opinion. The main thing I keep in mind is the first part of this paddling trail does get quite crowded with people, particular college students from San Angelo. While they typically are harmless, they can be a bit obnoxious and I always paddle a little extra fast through these areas…especially when they are floating right in the middle of the river.
As I’ve mentioned, there are some shallow areas the further upstream you go, so make sure you have good shoes for the water and take your time…you will get to your destination much faster without a twisted ankle.
