These fishing spots on the South Texas coast will be temporarily closed due to freezing weather

The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department will temporarily close some saltwater fishing spots along the coast — including some on Padre Island and near Rockport, Fulton and Aransas Pass — due to freezing weather.

The 21 fishing sites will close at midnight on Monday and stay closed until 11:59 p.m., TPWD said in a news release on Saturday.

During that time, fishing will be off-limits in these areas in an effort to protect the wildlife and resources.

TPWD officials said hard freezes can cause surviving fish to congregate in deeper areas, making them “sluggish and prone to capture.”

“The high mortality that a freeze can cause may deplete fish stocks for years,” Robin Riechers, the director of TPWD’s Coastal Fisheries Division, said in a news release. “Protection of the surviving fish during the few days when they are especially vulnerable to capture would likely shorten the time period for overall recovery of coastal species, especially spotted sea trout.”

These are the coastal areas that will be closed on Monday and Tuesday:

Aransas County

• Aransas Pass - City by the Sea - “All waters and canals of the City by the Sea subdivision west of the GIWW and a line beginning at a point on the entryway seawall (27° 57.08″ N; 97° 06.05″ W) extending across the entrance to a point (27° 57.04″ N; 97° 06.06″ W).”
• Fulton - The Raquetball - “All waters and channels of the Racquetball Club development Club west of line beginning at a point on the entryway seawall (28° 05.94″ N; 97° 01.73″ W) extending across the entrance to a point (28° 05.96″ N; 97° 01.73″ W).”
• Fulton - Kon Tiki - “All waters and canals of the Kon Tiki development west of a line beginning at a point on the entryway seawall adjacent to the end of the fishing pier (28° 06.04″ N; 97° 01.49″ W) extending across the entrance to a point (28° 05.99″ N; 97° 01.49″ W).”
• Rockport - Bahia Bay - “All waters and canals of the Bahia Bay subdivision west of the GIWW and a line beginning at a point on the entryway seawall (27° 57.63″ N; 97° 05.66″ W) extending across the entrance to a point (27° 58.65″ N; 97° 05.66″ W).”
• Rockport - Cove Harbor - “Entire harbor west of the GIWW and a line beginning at a point on the entryway seawall (27° 59.37″ N; 97° 04.38″ W) extending across the entrance to a point (27° 59.42″ N; 97° 04.35″ W).”
• Rockport - La Buena Vida - “All waters and canals of the La Buena Vida subdivision west of the GIWW and a line beginning at a point on the entryway seawall (27° 57.31″ N; 97° 05.89″ W) extending across the entrance to a point (27° 58.36″ N; 97° 05.89″ W).”
• Rockport - Little Bay - “All waters of Little Bay and connected waters west of Nine Mile Point on Key Allegro (28° 01.98″ N; 97° 01.52″ W), including Blevins Channel south of the entryway seawall (28° 03.05″ N; 97° 01.87″ W), Leggett Channel west of the entryway seawall (28° 01.80″ N; 97° 01.84″ W) and all canals within the Key Allegro and Harbor Oaks subdivisions.”
• Rockport - Palm Harbor - “All waters and canals of the Palm Harbor subdivision west of the GIWW and a line beginning at a point on the entryway seawall (27° 58.05″ N; 97° 05.36″ W) extending across the entrance to a point (27° 58.03″ N; 97° 05.36″ W).”
• Rockport - Rockport Harbor - “Entire harbor north of the entryway seawall and a line beginning on the entryway seawall (28° 01.19″ N; 97° 02.89″ W) extending across the entrance to a point (28° 01.19″ N; 97° 03.00″ W).”
• Lamar - Sea Gun Marina - “Entire harbor north of the entryway seawall and a line beginning Harbor at a point on the entryway seawall (28° 08.06″ N; 97° 00.40″ W) extending across the entrance to a point (28° 08.11″ N; 97° 00.42″ W).”

Calhoun County

• Port O’Connor - Army Hole - “The enclosed waters between the Matagorda Island State Park docks and Pringle Lake.”

Cameron County

• Brownsville - Brazos Santiago Pass South Jetty - “Gulf of Mexico from and including the Brazos Santiago Pass South Jetty along the beach for one half statute mile and out from shore for 1,000 yards.”
• Port Isabel - Point Isabel - “Area from shore out to a line from the high point of the Queen Isabella Memorial Causeway on the northwest and the end of the old causeway on the southeast including the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway bounded by the Queen Isabella Memorial Causeway on the north and the Port Isabel Swing Bridge on the south. Does not include the adjacent canal in Port Isabel.”

Galveston County

• Dickinson, Texas City - Moses Lake - “From Moses Lake to the Tide gate, to include the navigational channel up to the northern shoreline of Dollar Bay (area corresponds to 29° 26.00″ N to 29° 27.00″ N). Dollar Bay and Moses Bayou are not included.”
• Galveston - Offats Bayou - “All of Offats Bayou east of Marker 22.”

Matagorda County

• Matagorda - Matagorda - “Entire harbor from the entrance to the Gulf ICWW.Harbor”
• Palacios - Shrimp Basin - “Entire shrimp basin from the entrance to Matagorda Bay, including all turning basins.”

Nueces County

• Corpus Christi - Padre Island - “The area is bounded on the north by Packery Channel, on the subdivision west by the ICWW and on the south by a line drawn due east from the intersection of the New Humble Channel and the ICWW to the mainland (along 27° 35.25″ N).”

Orange County

• Bridge City - Entergy Outfall - “Entire canal – from the mouth of the canal at the Neches River Canal to the power plant.”

San Patricio County

• Aransas Pass - Conn Brown - “Entire harbor north and west of the GIWW and a line beginning from the Harbor at a point on the entryway seawall (27° 53.96″ N; 97° 08.09″ W) extending across the entrance to a point (27° 53.82″ N; 97° 08.13″ W).”

Willacy County

• Port Mansfield - Port Mansfield - “Entire harbor from the corners of the bulkheads on either side of Harbor to the harbor mouth.”

Stay Informed

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