Adapted from Fly Fishing the Texas Coast by Chuck Scates & Phil H. Shook

Jones Lakes

The Jones Lakes, a series of seven tidal lakes located off the Intracoastal Waterway near the San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge, offer upper coast flyfishers a secluded, backcountry fly-fishing experience. The area can be accessed by johnboat or kayak from a public boat launch on the Intracoastal Waterway near the point where the San Bernard River meets the Gulf. The lakes hold swarms of finger mullet and other forage fish. Narrow channels, shell reefs, sandbars, and log jams of driftwood and tree limbs provide prime cover for gamefish and restrict boat traffic.

Intracoastal Waterway/San Bernard River

The shorelines of the Intracoastal Waterway and the mouth of the San Bernard River also offer flyfishers a variety of fish-holding features.

To get to the boat-launch access point to the Jones Lakes on the Intracoastal Waterway, take Texas 332 west of Lake Jackson. Continue on 332 across the Brazos River bridge to Texas 36. Proceed south on Texas 36 past Brazoria to Farm Road 2611. Bear left on 2611 and proceed to the San Bernard National Refuge. The road eventually runs into a public launch ramp on the Intracoastal Waterway. Flyfishers can launch a johnboat or kayak and proceed eastward on the Intracoastal Waterway. Cross the San Bernard River mouth and travel about 1.5 miles to the opening of Jones Lake No. 1, the largest of the lakes. Look for trout slicks around the points and the lake entrance. Jones Lake No. 1 is connected with the other six by a series of narrow bayous.