Corpusfishing.com

[floorguru]

I’ve been a lurker for a while (as soon as I stumbled on this website) and greatly enjoy reading the posts and keeping up to date on the Bluff. Every so often, an old timer comes on and speaks of the old days. That always brings a tear and takes me back to some of the best times of my life.

No, I’m not a Bluff resident, but the family has owned a house there since the 50’s (still do) and for 20 years or so, we spent our entire summers, every summer in the Bluff. Everyone else we knew went off on exotic trips for summer. When we were given the choice, the Bluff is where we wanted to be. I remember much of it like it was yesterday. Do you remember…........

…the floating drawbridges over the Humble channel and the Intercoastal waterway. Waiting in the long lines to get to the Island because some tourist boater didn’t want to lower his ship-to-shore antenna. And looking back over your shoulder as you got to the “Red Dot” bait stand and seeing the pilings for the old wooden causeway leading back to the Bluff.

…all the folks named “Red”. “Red” Tyler, who owned what is now Bluff Marina at the end of Laguna Shores Rd. “Red” Coburn, who many times had to do emergency repairs to our slightly used, snow white Mercury 700 outboard so we could make it back out for the evening’s trout run.. Coburn’s place was just a few hundred yards from what became the “Lagunatic Lounge”. I always loved that name.

… getting burgers for a buck at the grill ($1.05 if you wanted cheese) and playing pinball all evening at Allen’s channel, which became Jerry’s Place, which is now what I believe is called the “Porch”. I spent many hours there on that pinball machine for my $.25.

…dodging hundreds of trot lines as we rounded Pita Island and ran along the King Ranch coastline to the Pure Oil Channel at what was then Marker 45. And ducking quickly to avoid the hooks on the ones we didn’t see. Anchoring along the shore to wade for Reds....always under the watchful eye of some ranch foreman in an International Scout or jeep on a far away high spot studying us with binoculars.

… pushing up shrimp on the point off Whitley’s channel and selling them to “Red” Tyler for a penny each to get some spending money.

… black drum runs where every fish was a 40-45 pounder and there were dozens of them. And everyone in the neighborhood knew they were running!

…limits on Specks were 10” or 12” (I’m a little fuzzy on this one) and we would fill up three or four 48qt Igloo made “Pearl” and “Lone Star” ice chests with them. Literally took hours to clean and filet them all.

…the closest grocery store, a little wood frame house on Laguna Shores Rd (about a mile north of the current Circle K). The whole store must have been about 20’x20’. If she didn’t have what you needed, the next closest place was the Bluff Safeway on PID. Imagine life BEFORE H.E.B.

…. The big painting/print of the naked lady on the wall of the A&H that said “Stick em up”. This always embarrassed the heck out of my Mom when we went in to buy fishing supplies.

… actually being able to take the boat out to the surf through what was then the Packery Fish Pass immediately after Hurricane Carla and being one of the first on the scene digging up the Spanish ship that was uncovered in the sand after the storm.

…going to check on the house after Hurricane Celia (by boat). Tying the boat to the front porch (the house was ok…...elevated 5”), we fished off the front porch for a few hours.

…driving to BHP and the road ended. Well, it sort of ended there. Anything south of that was always covered by sand. People said there was on old hermit that lived down near Yarborough Pass. He was a legend. Many knew of him, I never met anyone who had seen him or met him though. Long before the National Seashore Pagoda or Bird Island Basin was even a thought.

…trips to the Land Cut and getting the heck beat out of us in a 1962 16” Glasstron Starflight crossing Baffin Bay in the wind. It was worth it for the fishing though. Built a homemade generator (heavier that all get out) and ran some car headlights on a tripod. Within a few hours after dark, the shrimp would be poppin and the Specks came soon thereafter. Fishing till we couldn’t stand up any more and then crashing in a pup-tent. Waking up in the morning with coyote tracks all around the tent.

… and some of the best sleeping in the world. Every morning we would make a run for a few hours, come back and catch a nap during the heat of the day, and then hit it again for an evening run. The open windows and the steady drone of the Navy training planes from Waldron Field circling over the house was positively hypnotic. Still don’t have AC at the house, but sadly, the planes don’t fly there much anymore.

We don’t get down to the Bluff nearly as much as I would like. Three or four times a year. Please forgive my flashbacks. I just wanted to let you guys and gals know how much the Bluff has meant me and our family and let you know that our heart is with you even when we can’t be.

Take care and good fishing!

[Capt Mike Singleterry]

We must know each other......I still miss everything you have described.
There are still a couple of us "golden oldies" still here and still fish the same water.....Welcome to the board.....

I sure IMS "Stan" will chime in soon...

Mike

[cephus]

Well, I ain't a "Bluffer", old time or otherwise, but was raised fishing Baffin from Riviera Beach/Loyala Beach back in the same area. My first boat trips were made in a 15 foot skiff put together by my Dad and powered by a 25 HP (I think) Wizard outboard. Never made it to the ICC but did make it out to a place now called East Kleberg Point. I well remember the "High Lines" we dodged that had strips of red flagging tape on the hooks for bait. As well as I remember most were in the Alazon Bay area and on past Starvation Point.
I also remember going on over-night trips to 3 slew's in Alazon and hearing outboards running all night in and out of Alazon with no lights. Needles to say, we usually came home with lots of fish. I could go on, but I will say those were some of the best times of my life!
_________________
Off Shore Port Mansfield

[Bluffer]

Those were the days. Went to school in the Bluff with Reds son Randy Tyler.

Recall the floating swing bridge on the ICW also. Do you remember "Hyde in" BBQ joint on Laguna shores just behind where Wind N Wave is now?

Also back then the Bluff had no city services, had to pay a private contractor or haul your own trash. I remember not even getting city sewage lines out here till the mid 70s.
_________________
-STAY THIRSTY MY FRIENDS!-

[bk005]

Wow thats just awesome to hear those neat stories.


I wish I had stories like that, but you old farts caught all the fish.






hehehe Just Keeding.




I love these stories. My Grandpa fished Baffin from Rivera in the 30's and told me many cool stories about high lines, crazy run ins with the game wardens durring night time escepades.

Im fairly young but I got to spend my childhood camping and fishing with him in Cullens bay down south. We had a key thru the an Exxon gate and could get there by truck. He use to run it in his homeade scooters, but that time had passed, and he was into bank fishing by then. I spent most of my summers down there with him. He was a tough old Marine, so we would go on Death Wades as i would call them. Wade 300 yards just to chunck a finger mullet on a Penn #9 and set it in a sand spike.

He would tell me about the Port Mansfield Inn when it was the only thing there, and renting a motor from some old lady there to put on his boat, and then later homeade lean steer scooter. Told me about drinking coffe at bennies shack with the old man there. Now is just a name of an Island on the hot spot map.

Anytime I hear the pump of a Coleman lantern I think back on night trips, watching him pull up some dry seaweed for a pillow, to take a nap between reds. I remember complaining one night about the conditions, and he said It sure beat the hell out of the shoreline on Iwo Jima, and there werent any Japs shooting at us. Needless to say I shutup. and asked to hear more war stories, or tales of catching Jew Fish off the Jetties with a roast, rope, and tractor innertube.

Hope I remeber this stuff so I can pass on to my kids.

[chuck]

good post

[floorguru]

Is Wind and Wave in the old A&H building? I very seldom hit that end of Laguna Shores. Usually cut off on Waldron and take it down to Yorktown, then over to the house. I'll have to check them out next time I'm down.

I do however remember the old JP's office across PID at the beginning of the causeway (under the old water tower). Game warden nailed me years ago while I was duckhunting off the Humble channel for shooting a couple of Readheads. That was back when there was a point system for ducks and that season Readheads were off limits. I think I was the only hunter in the upper Laguna Madre who didn't know that all the ducks within a 20 mile radius were Redheads. Had two down before I had the chance to see what they were. They were watching from their skiffs and knew they had me. Judge could have hit me for $200 per duck. He went easy on me. Fined me $40 and gave the ducks to the Game Wardens for dinner. If I remember correctly, the Game Wardens had a couple really nice houses at the end of Whitley's channel at the time. Don't know if the houses are still there.

[kweber]

how bout stayin' in the rock cottages in Port A (about the only place down there) and trollin' hooties for Spanish in the jetty channel.
we were on an exotic adventure when we veered off 281 onto hwy9 at Three Rivers
an the causeway out of AP and the old 9 car ferries was a real big deal to a kid from a dirt farm with only well water.
Ford station wagon with the back widow down.
no kid seats
metal ice chests
Nehi orange sodas
Pearl or Lone Star in card board cases
silver Zebcos with the steel rods.
all our moms wore pedal pusher slacks.
with big hair.
dang,my eye just got sumtin' in it.
_________________
the creepy uncle that scares the kids....

[Fishin Rod]

And don't forget the Pick a Rib

[kweber]

all us kids would be fighting/playing in the back of the wagon, the men would be up front.
moms in the middle seat telling them(men) not to drink too much beer and then after about 10-20 hot miles, asking for them to pass the cold beer bottle back to them
_________________
the creepy uncle that scares the kids....

[Bluffer]

[Big Ed]

Thanks Floorguru,
Enjoyed the thoughts of old times. I started going to Corpus (from San Antonio) in about 1962 because I had a huge crush on a tall statuesque brunette who named Winnie Bess Benkendorfer (Honest) who went to Miller High. Started fishing down there in about '66 or '67. Before that I thought fishing meant setting out trot lines in the Rio Grande out towards the Big Bend Country where both my mom and dad were raised. Then I moved to Corpus and lived there until about '72 or '73 and really got into fishing. I remember the Bluff Saveway well. I helped Bill Pensyl build a cabin directally accross the laguna from Bird Island Basin and we would go down there several times a year for 3 to 5 days. There would be about 10 or 12 of us and we would call ahead and have the butcher fix up 2" porterhouse steaks for all of us. Great meat department at that old store. Bill's dad (everyone called him Uncle Bill) owned the Fina in The Bluff. Gruffest old bast##d I ever met, but had a heart of gold. Half the Swabbies from the NAS owed Uncle Bill money because he'd help them all out when things got tight. His Fina station was the original self service station. If a man would pull up to the pump he'd scream out "fill it up yourself you lazy #######" while he sat there drinkin Jax beer that he had stocked the Coke machine with. Lordy, I could go on for hours, but I had better get back to work. Thanks again.
_________________
Big Ed
San Antonio

"A word to the wise ain't necessary. It's the stupid ones who need advice.", Bill Cosby

[cephus]

Does anyone remember the homemade trailers located near Bob Hall in the mid 60's that you could rent to pull down the beach. They had slatted floors for the sand to drop out and several bunks with lift out doors to let the breeze come in if needed. I used them several times for an overnight outing with my 3 sons and wife. Had a blast. By the way, that part of the beach didn't have the reputation then that it does now.
_________________
Off Shore Port Mansfield

[Bluffer]

Ever go to Eds Sporting goods, (way before the freeway went in) had all them tall bamboo poles out front.
_________________
-STAY THIRSTY MY FRIENDS!-

[Big Ed]

Yeah Bluffer,
Ed's was always our last stop on the way to the island. Snacks and a few groceries, frozen bait and terminal tackle and ice. I bought many a sand spider and hook there.
_________________
Big Ed
San Antonio

"A word to the wise ain't necessary. It's the stupid ones who need advice.", Bill Cosby