Facilities and Activities:
| Day-Use | Fishing | yes | | | Hunting | yes | | | Hiking Trail, miles | yes |
National Park Location Maps:
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National Park Photo Gallery:
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National Park Event Calendar:
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Nearby Parks:
Galveston Island State Park
San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge
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| National Park Overview: |
 | The thunder of 40,000 snow geese taking flight, the salty breeze off the Texas Gulf, or the sight of a 12-foot alligator loafing on a muddy bank make a trip to Texas Mid-Coast National Wildlife Refuge Complex a sensory banquet in any season. <P>Three national wildlife refuges -Brazoria, San Bernard and Big Boggy - form a vital complex of coastal wetlands harboring more than 300 bird species. They serve as an end point of the Central Flyway for waterfowl in winter, and an entry point for neotropical migratory songbirds tired from a 600-mile Gulf crossing from Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula. <P>Near greater Houston, the refuge complex offers haven for both wildlife and people. For wildlife, the expanse of salt and freshwater marshes, sloughs, ponds, coastal prairies, and bottomland forest represent feasting and lodging for all or part of the year. For people, these vestiges of wild Texas offer exceptional wildlife watching. <P>Freshwater sloughs wind through salt marshes. Rare, native bluestem prairie graces the uplands. The greater the number of habitats, the richer the ecology. Brazoria NWR is no exception. It has a key location on the Texas Gulf which helps Freeport draw one of the highest Audubon Christmas bird counts in the nation - more than 200 species. <P> |
| Nature of the Area: |
| Look for alligators year-round on Big Slough and in refuge ponds. In dry seasons, their trails thorough the mud and excavated gator holes are easy to spot. Roseate spoonbills capture the pink glow of sunrise in their wings in flight. Those same rosy feathers proved a near death sentence when demand for feather hats decimated spoonbills, great egrets and other fine-feathered fowl until plume hunting ended before World War I. |
| Reviews By Park Visitors: |
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| Trails: |
| Touring Brazoria:
The gravel Big Slough Auto Route runs 7.5 miles through the Big Slough Recreation Area, the heart of Brazoria NWR, wrapping around Olney and Teal ponds, and accessing Big Slough and Rogers Pond. The 3-mile entrance road from County Rd. 227 (which passes through private lands) also can provide wildlife viewing. County Road 227 cuts through some of the refuge?s best bluestem prairie terrain. The gravel auto-tour is also open to biking.
Brazoria provides several footpaths in different settings, leading to a wide variety of habitat experiences, All manner of pathways are available, from a boardwalk to an abandoned railroad right-of-way to woodland and bayou trails. None of the walks is especially long, and all are on relatively flat terrain. Wandering off-trail here is not advised, however, because alligators and poisonous snakes reside in the taller grasses.
Boats are permitted on Nicks, Salt, and Lost lakes by way of the Intracoastal Waterway or Bastrop Bayou. Boats are not allowed to be launched from the Salt Lake Fishing Area parking lot. There are two boat ramps: one on the west bank of Bastrop Bayou, just off County Rd. 227 and the other off County Rd. 257 on the refuge?s southwestern boundary. |
| Fishing and Hunting: |
| Hunting & Fishing at Brazoria:
Waterfowl hunting for ducks, geese, and coots is permitted on Christmas Point Hunting Area (southeast of the Intracoastal Waterway on 4,000 acres) reached by boat access only and on Middle Bayou (1500 acres), reached by both walk-in and boat access. The regular waterfowl season runs from late Oct. through mid-Jan. For details please view the links listed below or contact the complex office at 979/849-6062. No fees are charged and no special use permits are required for hunting these areas.
Fishing is allowed year-round. The refuge has a handicapped fishing area at Bastrop Bayou. To reach the designated area, cross over the bridge and circle under it. Bank fishing for redfish, spotted seatrout, black drum, sheepshead, and flounder is allowed at the Clay Banks, which are accessible via a gravel road running south from the Bastrop fishing pier, and at the Salt Lake area. Boat fishing is permitted on Salt, Nicks, and Lost lakes by way of the Intracoastal Waterway or Bastrop Bayou. Boats are not allowed to be launched at the Salt Lake Fishing Area parking lot. |
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| | Note to Park related businesses:
List your vacation cabin, weekend getaway, log cabin rental, romantic cottage, vacation home, resort, hotel, motel, bed and breakfast, country inn, campground, RV park, horseback riding stable, canoe livery, river rafting, outfitting, sporting goods store, guide service, RV rental or any other park related activity, park related attraction or park related service on Google or StateParks.com. (more).... |
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| Related Links: |
| Migrants at Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge - ... | Search | Post | Reply | Next | Previous | Up ] Migrants at Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge From: Don Fry Category: Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge Date: 02 Nov 2002 Time: 14:42:32 -0500 ... | | Increasing activity @ Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge - ... | Search | Post | Reply | Next | Previous | Up ] Increasing activity @ Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge From: Don Fry Category: Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge Date: 27 Oct 2002 Time: 10:40:59 ... | | Houston Hiking Trails - Welcome to the TexasOutside guide to hiking trails in Houston, Texas. ... the downtown skyline while you are hiking. Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge Visitors to Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge can ... | | Bird Checklists of the United States - ... 7/94) Big Thicket National Preserve -- Beaumont, TX (Revised 1996) Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge Complex -- Angleton, TX Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge -- Angleton, TX San Bernard National ... | | Bird Checklists of the United States - ... place to view most kinds of rails. The Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge is in the Freeport Christmas Bird Count circle ... of species sighted. The Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge Complex has ... | | Brazoria Refuge - Southwest Region 2 Refuges | National Wildlife Refuge System | USFWS National Site Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge A Rich Meeting Place A freshwater slough winds through salt marshes. Rare ... | | ... Crest Weir on Fishes and Commercially-Important Crustaceans in the Brazoria National W - ... and Commercially-Important Crustaceans in the Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge, Texas SUZANNE J. DILWORTH, ELIZABETH H ... constructed on the Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge (BNWR), Texas ... | | Handbook of Texas Online: SAN BERNARD NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE - ... observation. Those interested in visiting or arranging tours are encouraged to contact the Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge office in Angleton. Rachel Jenkins top of page | about | search | help ... | | Invasive Species: Texas - This section of Invasivespecies.gov provides information geographically in the United States and ... Chinese tallow tree in Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge near Houston, Texas Funding for Fire ... |
| Directions: |
| From the intersection of Highway 288 and FM 523 in Angleton, take FM 523 to Highway 2004 intersection. Continue on 523 for 5.5 miles to County Road 227. Turn left on CR227 and proceed 1.7 miles to the refuge entrance. The refuge office is in Demi-john which is three miles east of the refuge entrance. <P> |
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