Rollover Pass Closing?!?! What do you think?
(NOTE: This is a preview of my Thursday Port Arthur News/Orange Leader column. Since this is such an important topic in the flounder world, I thought it proper to discuss here.-Chester)
Rollover Pass.
The mere mention conjures images of anglers lined shoulder to shoulder catching flounder during the fall run.
It is families enjoying the great outdoors and generations of Texans passing down a rich angling tradition. That might all end soon if Texas Land Commissioner Jerry Patterson gets his way.
He wants the legislature to come up with the funding to close the pass to stave off erosion on the Bolivar peninsula and the silting in of the Intracoastal Canal and East Galveston Bay.
This has sparked a firestorm of controversy among anglers on the Upper Coast who cut their teeth fishing the super popular pass on the Bolivar Peninsula and also those concerned about its impacts to the Galveston Bay ecosystem.
In the coming weeks we will examine alternatives to closing the pass and exactly what might happen if the pass in indeed closed. However, now I would like to focus on what I consider to be the most important element in all of this: access.
Rollover Pass provides some of the finest access to quality fishing on the Texas Gulf Coast and it is all about bank fishing.
For generations anglers ranging from the well-heeled to those who can barely afford the gas to get there have fished side by side at this hot spot and enjoyed the angling opportunities it provides. It is a place that cuts across socio-economic lines and brings people together for a cheap, safe and wholesome good time.
Those well-heeled anglers can afford to go fish somewhere else, but what about the thousands who rely on Rollover for their best shot at quality fishing from the bank?
Bank fishing spot after bank fishing spot is becoming off limits to anglers and it reflects in studies done by the American Sportfishing Association who found in their exhaustive studies access was the number one problem for anglers across America.
Losing Rollover Pass would deal a huge blow to tens of thousands of families in the region not only because they lose this landmark, but because of what it symbolizes.
If Rollover Pass ceases to exist, so does a rich tradition that so many of us grew up with. And while the headlines speak of layoffs, cut backs and stock market crashes on a daily basis, losing Rollover would be a true sign of the times.
While it may not be tied to the sub prime mortgage crisis or the shrinking value of the U.S. dollar, it is another prime example of the average American on the short end of the stick.
It is ironic that just as our government rushes to fix a financial crisis that was years in the making and happened under their supposedly watchful eye, something similar is happening on the Bolivar Peninsula.
So, what do you think of the possible Rollover Pass closure? Discuss is open.
Where to begin, I grew up with my dad taking me fishing and camping at rollover pass with my brother. I cut my teeth bank fishing and wade fishing for the first time. I caught my first everything there from hard heads to croaker to flounder to sand trout to specks to reds to shark, yes shark! My son who will be 20 this year also cut his teeth at rollover pass. Up until the last hurricane we still fished there. Needless to say I want rollover pass to stay. The Pass generates tourism, promotes small business, creates employment and tax revenue which results in a healthy cash flow for both the county and community. Although I'm too young to remember I was told prior to the cut being dug that where the cut came into Galveston bay the bay was stagnant because water flow from the Gulf stalled after so far into the bay. The fresh water flow from the cut breathed new life into the bay and its eco system. This in turn created a healthier environment for both plant and marine life which in turn gave rollover pass its popularity with the public. In my opinion closing the cut is not only going to cause a severe eco disaster to Galveston Bay destroying plant and marine life but will also devastate a community financially who is already recovering from a disaster and suffering from economic hard times. I'm no genius but the quickest way to create a ghost town is to remove its source of income. Maybe those that want the pass closed have hidden agendas (personal greed) that include that real estate and its development. Needless to say they must not be anglers.
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Closing the pass would be like closing the book on my childhood and I know many others feel the same way.
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This is another "knee jerk" reaction by our government where they appear to address a problem without looking at the many other long term effects caused by their solution. I look at the beach between Florida Beach and Holly Beach (on HWY 82) where the rock piles have been constructed. This has not only stopped erosion, just look at the fill behind them during low tide, but has also created a great fish habitat. What do we get on this side of the border? Sand filled SOCKS! which failed miserably on Sea Rim Beach, and now there are more going in on the peninsula. My point is, there are much better ways of controlling erosion than closing Rollover, and I believe that were they to place rock berms in the outflow area to slow the velocity of tidal currents the sediment would settle out prior to reaching the ICW.
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I agree guys.
There are lots of alternatives that could and should be discussed and hopefully we can pester our officials enough to open the dialogue. I highly recccomend everyone talking to their state represenatives if you have concerns about the Rollover closure.
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They have managed to take away parts of San Luis Pass and now they are taking the Rollover Pass away????
What next???? We pay for Hunting and Fishing Licenses and we don't get to use them. They get our money and we get nothing in return???? Or better yet tax us for the use of public boat ramps. I still think someone needs to hunt down more of those poachers. But then again there isn't enough money for the extra man hours.
I should just go and live in Russia or China where Socialism has been going on for years.
The worst thing that God did for this planet was to create man.
I guess I will have to settle for fishing in my toilet and hope the Game warden doesn't catch to me doing it in the privacy of my own home.
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It amazes me to hear that this debate is even taking place. It would be interesting to know how much it would cost to actually close rollover pass. Is that money well spent? Maybe that money could go to bolster the local economy? Maybe that money could go to a relief fund for the many people that cross rollover pass to get to, well, what used to be their homes. Big businesses have helped ruin our economy and it sure sounds like they want to ruin our bays. I will definitely be making a call to my state representatives office.
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I think the way to formulate this argument is to liken it to what has been going on with the economy.
Government is supposed to have been watching over this.
They find a problem.
Want to take quick, extreme action with no thought.
The public gets screwed.
Definitely contact your reps about this one.
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Man, all I can say to the closing of Rollover is what a shame. I grew up fishing there, as many of us have, and I have even been able to take my daughters there. My oldest caught her first saltwater fish at the pass. I have seen it change over the years and not always for the better, but change is inevitable. One thing I can say is that it has done a world of good for the ecosystem. Now to chime in on what Chester mentions as being one of the most important aspects of the closing...access. I live in Beaumont, and Ike dealt a serious blow to the bank fisherman over here. Walter Humphrey pier, gone! South Revetment rd, gone! North revetment Road, seriously damaged! All piers along the roads, gone! Sadly, there is no time line on when and if the repairs will be made. New expasnions by Exxon Mobil will soon impact bank fisherman along the Neches river. I can go on and on with other areas in the state that have nothing to do with a catastrophic hurricane. Sadly noone seems to care. Bank access is the only way some people can ever fish. I even sometimes like to fish from the bank, because it offers more opportunities for me to enlighten my youngest daughter to the wonders of the outdoors. I also know that everyone reading this has at least one fond memory in their past involving a bank trip. Whatever the reason a politician gives to close Rollover it has nothing to do with anything other than money. The bottom line is it costs money to keep up Rollover, and they can think of better things to spend our tax dollars on than picking up trash. For instance raises for themselves, or tax cuts for industry to supposedly create more jobs which doesn't really happen. We can all think of things. Like CHester said this is nothing more than a way for the haves to stick it to the have nots, who in truth make line the pockets of the haves!
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This should really help the flounder fishery, lets close one of their migration points. Maintaining healthy bays cost money, especially when we allow them to be polluted on a daily basis. The ICW's impact on hydrology has closed numerous natural passes and they leave them closed, but if a pass threatens the ICW they're ready to close it. Who's interest gets priority in Texas?
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The ICW's impact on hydrology has closed numerous natural passes and they leave them closed, but if a pass threatens the ICW they're ready to close it.
That's a great point. The ICW has completely changed the natural order of our bay systems, yet when something gets in its way they want to take immediate action.
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The mosquitos, flies, sand in the sandwiches, hot days, johnie on the spot, specks under the lights, reds + drum in the Pass, Flounder on the bayside flats and some fantastic sunrises + sunsets. Loved every bit of it. Even when the fish were'nt biting. If they did a little maintnance now and then it would go a long way. Take away the fishing holes and you take away the money they generate. No matter where I buy them I still have to have my supplies. Some community is going to bennifit. The State will get their taxes too. If I sit at home they get nothing. It's about time TPWD gave us our fair share. What ever happened to the Keith Lake Cut project? The little man always takes it in the A$$.
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This should really help the flounder fishery...
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