The 2023 Buffalo Bayou Partnership Regatta
March 11, 2023
by Tom Douglas
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Put-in
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Allen’s Landing Park in Downtown Houston
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Take-out
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Allen’s Landing Park in Downtown Houston
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Fees or Permits
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$55 entrance fee for registered participants, none for safety boats
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Gauge
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Buffalo Bayou at Houston, TX 08074000, 2.16 ft, <1500 cfs,
Buffalo Bayou at Piney Point, TX 08073700, 27.26 ft, 44 cfs
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Temperature
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72°-86°
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Sky
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Cloudy, then clearing
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Moon Phase
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Waning gibbous
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Sunrise/Sunset
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6:37 AM/6:27 PM
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Precipitation
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None
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Shuttle
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None
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Craft
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Canoes and Kayaks: solo, tandem, and open classes
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HCC Club Miles
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8.8 mile course x 5 = 44 miles
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HCC Members
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Paddling Safety Boats: Bruce Bodson, Tom Douglas, Harmon Everett, Brent Hwang, Gary Masters
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Road Miles
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From your home to downtown Houston
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Guide Book
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Canoeing and Kayaking Houston Waterways by Natalie H. Wiest,
Buffalo Bayou: An Echo of Houston's Wilderness Beginnings by Louis F. Aulbach
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Photos
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Bruce Bodson, Tom Douglas
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Food
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Provided by Buffalo Bayou Partnership after the race
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On March 11, Houston celebrated its most historic waterway with the 51st Buffalo Bayou Partnership Regatta. If you have followed the regatta in recent years, you will be familiar with the old 14-mile course that began at San Felipe Street in west Houston and proceeded downstream to Allen’s Landing Park, downtown. Due to uncertainty around the availability of the San Felipe launch site this year, the 2023 regatta was set up with an 8.8-mile closed loop course that began and ended at Allen’s Landing Park, between the bridges for Main Street and Fannin Street.
2023 Buffalo Bayou Regatta Course
Along the bayou, which is wider and slower-flowing at this more downstream location, regatta paddlers saw historic bridges, parks, remnants of old docks and wharves from the early days of Houston, industrial facilities that line both shores in places, and the specially-designed Bayou-Vac boat that is used to clean trash and debris from the bayou. The return leg of the course also offered striking views of the Houston skyline.
Bayou-Vac Boat
View of Downtown
Boarding and exiting canoes and kayaks was made easier thanks to a low-to-the-water floating dock that had been arranged by the Buffalo Bayou Partnership, the organization that organizes the regatta. Once boats were launched, paddlers waited near the Main Street Bridge, a short distance upstream from the starting line. Skies were still cloudy at this point, but they soon cleared, giving way to a beautiful day.
Dock and Paddlers
Getting Lined Up
Paddlers were started in four different waves, depending on the type of craft and number of paddlers per boat. The assortment of people and their equipment was very diverse, with some 323 paddlers in 216 boats, distributed across 19 different categories. So, it was no surprise that the official race times varied widely, from just over one hour to just shy of four hours. An entire listing of the results can be viewed online.
At the Starting Gun
Half Way There!
But the regatta was not all about competition. Paddlers in the large non-competitive class were free to go at their own pace, make stops, and paddle less than the full length of the course if they wanted. Experienced paddlers in safety boats started along with each group, and motorized rafts were also available to help if needed.
Following the paddling event, participants ascended the grassy slope at Allen’s Landing Park and rounded out the day’s experience at the Buffalo Bayou Partnership’s building with food, drinks, and music. If you didn’t participate this year, you might want to consider taking part in the 2024 regatta.
For more about the 2023 Buffalo Bayou Regatta and photos of many of the paddlers during the race, be sure to check out the story by Bruce Bodson that appeared in the April issue of the HCC Waterline.
Photos by Tom Douglas. Map of the racecourse by the Buffalo Bayou Partnership.
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The author, Tom Douglas
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