Andy Dear | Monday, 30 October 2023
“A pier is a disappointed bridge; you stare at it for long enough and you can dream it to the other side of the Channel.”
― Julian Barnes
About 50 miles up Highway 35 from Rockport is my new jumping-off point, Port Lavaca. Port Lavaca is a fairly sizable little community, that has not been swallowed up by the influx of people to the Texas Gulf Coast like Rockport and Galveston have. Although we do fish the area around Port Lavaca quite a bit, the pier featured in this week's Front Page is about 13 miles to the southeast of Port Lavaca and is located in the ghost town of Indianola.
I should clarify, that it's not REALLY a pier, but rather a sort of pier/dock/floating marina. The Indianola Fishing Marina has been around for who knows how many decades. Originally owned by Ed Bell, it has been the proverbial gateway to Powderhorn Lake since its inception. I can tell you that men who are old enough to be my great-grandfather have been fishing around Ed Bell's old Marina before it was as polished and gentile as it is today.
The IFM as it is known to locals sits right on top of the edge of Powderhorn Bayou, which is a deep channel that connects Powderhorn Lake to Matagorda Bay. While Port O Connor just a few miles to the north gets most of the notoriety and glamour, the IFM offers the bank-bound angler a very real opportunity to tangle with a giant. Huge black drum and bull redfish have become so common at the IFM, that their social media pages are updated several times daily with the most recent catch. And while Black Drum and Redfish are the norm, there is the occasional Blacktip Shark or Jack Crevalle caught off this hybrid pier as well. And, I know off at least two Tarpon that have been hooked within eysight of the IFM.
The IFM has become a favorite spot for my family to visit, as it offers Jack and me the opportunity to catch a few species in size categories that may not otherwise be accessible by sight fishing with a fly, and it gives my wife a comfortable place to enjoy some of their stellar menu items while getting out of the weather and working remotely.
Several years ago I wrote a few Front Pages about Jackson's quest to catch an oversized Black Drum, and this was the spot we chose to hedge our bets on. Ironically, it only took two visits before he landed a respectable 38" "big ugly" on a live crab drifted along the edge of the channel. And, the great thing about the IFM is that for the saltwater fly angler who has access to a kayak or small skiff, you can be in prime sight fishing water in literally less than 2 minutes. It is simply a wonderful resource in what would otherwise be a pretty off-the-beaten-path location with no public access to what has become my new home water.
If for whatever reason you happen to find yourself along the Central Texas Gulf Coast, and want to to visit an uber-nostalgic piece of fishing history, you owe it to yourself to visit the IFM. And if you're asking my recommendation...the crab cake burger is pretty darn special.
Hope you all are having a great week,
Andy