When looking back at the Texas trip it is hard to find one single event that was my favorite part. There were so many great opportunities and experiences that I got to have while in Texas. If I do have to pick one location though it would be Matagorda Island.
Matagorda Island was an environment I had never experienced before, being off the coast and on an island. It was amazing to see the wildlife that inhabited the island. From the moment we got there, there was life. Stepping out of the airboat I caught a small crab and at the campsite, there was a small mouse taking cover in a musk thistle. I also asked one of my classmates why the ground was so reflective, and their response was to look closer. After checking one of the reflective spots, they were glints off spider eyes. The next day we saw many different types of birds and reptiles. A group of us made our way to the beach and on the way we saw a giant rattlesnake.
Before we even got to the beach we could hear the roar of the waves. Once we got there it was amazing seeing the power of the waves crashing against the shore. There were also thousands of shells scattered up and down the beach. It was lots of fun trying to find different types of shells. We also found coconuts and heard another rattlesnake but didn’t see where it was. Before we made our way back to camp we swam in the ocean. It’s nothing like swimming in Lake Ashtabula. The waves crashing against you, or the feeling of standing in the sand while the tide goes back out and the sand erodes under your feet. It was an experience I will never forget.
That night after we got back to camp and ate, Steve was showing us his owl calls. They were so good just from his voice, they sounded just like an owl. So much so that he made the barn owl mad. After we heard it screech, we played it’s call on a speaker and it flew over to us at camp. After that majority of us set out on a herping adventure. Derek brought with him black lights to locate scorpions. On our way, we saw plenty of Gulf Coast toads but also a couple of snakes. Once we got to the landing strip we searched for a scorpion and finally found one. It was amazing how much they glowed under the UV light. When we were on our way back to camp we ran into the same cotton mouth again.
Another great experience was fishing in the ocean. It was a new experience going wade fishing. At first, I wasn’t too sure about going into the water, especially after learning that I had to do the stingray shuffle to move around. Which is just shuffling to move rather than stepping to avoid stepping on a stingray. It was an awesome time walking the flats and catching redfish and spotted sea trout. I was very lucky off my first cast I caught a 19 inch sea trout. My favorite story is when Miles and I got dropped off about a mile away from camp so we could fish the flats back. Along the way, I hooked a redfish, and I almost had it reeled in. I told Miles to get it but when he went to net it, it shot towards me and went directly behind my calves. The lure hooked into my leg for a split second then thankfully got lodged in my sock. Miles was quick to help take it off and I tried to measure it, but lost grip and it got away.
After that, we got back to camp just in time to go with Pickle and everyone else to the beach and go seine in the ocean. It wasn’t too successful, but it was super cool to sample in the ocean. We then made our way to Matagorda Island lighthouse. It was so cool to hear all about the history of the lighthouse and Civil War trenches nearby. The best experience though was climbing to the top and looking out across the island. Right next to the lighthouse in the boardwalk area we were able to see an alligator swimming in the marsh. That night a smaller group of us seined the flats right next to camp and we caught more fish of all different types.
Trying to sum up this trip in a small blog post is very hard. I didn’t even get to detail all the events at Mason Mountain WPA, Llano River State Park or even just the driving down and back. Overall, I learned so much about Texas wildlife, fisheries, management, prescribed burns, birds, reptiles, and more! This trip will stay with me for a lifetime and I am so thankful for this opportunity.