We have had many days of overcast and of fog this colder winter. Yet we got hardly any rain in the past month. It may be a harbinger of dry times which might mean poor crops and grass fires galore. However, the Sun shines more often of late.
The good weather has brought the Pelicans out in our bay. They have been dive bombing for fish pretty regularly this past week or so. So, the summer is coming and it is not long before fishermen add their dive bombing tackle for those same fish. In fact one sees boats or even an occasional wade fisherman along the shores competing with the pelicans even now.
With all those fish being taken one wonders if we will run out. The State of Texas doesn’t want that to happen. Calhoun County doesn’t either; we have almost as much water as land. So we and the state have a hatchery right here in our County. It provides thousands, if not millions of fingerlings to stock the bays up and down our Coastal Bend area.
It is the Perry R. Bass Fisheries over in the far Eastern edge of the County. You may be confused about it being in Calhoun County because it has a Palacios mailing address. However, it is in that part of Calhoun County that is South of Jackson and on the Eastern side of Carancua bay. We actually have several places over in that area with a Palacios mailing addresses.
That came about when Calhoun County was formed from Matagorda, Jackson, and Victoria counties back in 1846. I really don’t know why the county line is the way it is with that little jack leg East of the bay and South of Hwy.35. I guess neither 35 nor 3280 which is the current Eastern border were there, so they just drew a line.. In fact if you turn South on 3280 from 35 to go down to Perry R. Bass Fish place you travel through at least three counties on the way to the hatchery. :You ought to visit it, the hatchery is on the edge of the world or at least the edge of continental land.
There must be something about the water down there because on the Matagorda side of 3280 there is a Commercial Red Fish farm. Perry specializes in Red Drum, and Trout. They have started to grow Flounder. The plan is to keep our bays full of fish. Those who fish or serve the fishing industry thank them for keeping the bays stocked.
Don’t get too excited about getting a fish from the facility. Perry starts with spawn from spawning places like Lake Jackson then grow them to fingerling size. You can get about a million of those in a big bucket. Then they haul them all over, in trailer tanks, and stock the various bays. From there the fish have to grow on their own. Next the Fisherman and Pelicans do their best to take them home.
