The Neches is a mighty river in southeastern Texas, but it begins with four little headwater streams on the prairie in Van Zandt County, just south of Colfax, Texas. I visited the area on Sunday July 7, 2024, and made some drone video following two of these streams that you can see in the picture below. The family that owns this land say there are two more streams that flow into the river just beyond where these streams converge.

Two Headwater Streams of the Neches River in Van Zandt County

At this point, the little streams are flowing to the northeast, but they turn east very quickly and flow into Rhine Lake, and from there the river flows basically southeast to Port Neches, beyond which the Neches and the Sabine rivers flow together into Sabine Lake. It’s 416 mikes from the little streams you see here to Sabine Lake.