Here at Dow Chemical in Freeport, I looked into one of the outflows to the Dow channel and smallish (4 feet or less) tarpon were tearing up the baitfish. I've seen reds stack up there pretty thick along with some pretty big gar and mangrove snapper, but never tarpon. I didn't even know that tarpon were this far north this early in the year. Too bad no fishing is allowed in the plant.

Dang that's really interesting. Is that outflow heated water?

Yes, it's heated. Where it flows into the Brazos river is a real hotspot for reds all year round, but I've never heard of folks catching tarpon. No one else I know that has worked here remembers seeing tarpon like this. My wife has a friend who's husband is a biologist with TPWD at the Lake Jackson Sea Center. I'll talk to him and see if this is all that unusual.

I think it is unusual...but great! Would seem to indicate that those fish stayed there through the winter. That would indeed be interesting.

I talked with Shane Bonnot, a biologist with TPWD at the Sea Center. He said it was unusual but not unheard of. He wants me to take him out there next week. They are going to tag a few for Tarpon Tomorrow so they can track them and see where they go. Now if I can convince my boss to let me go out and help them catch a few, that would be cool!

If they need any help, let me know, seriously. I'm a member of BTU and supporter of the Tarpon Tomorrow program.

Regardless, I'd sure love to hear what happens.

Thanks for this post and please post any additional info you get.

TPWD is at the outfall right now catching them on hook and line, I'm stuck working.

GRRRR!

Well, they hooked several but landed only one. It was just a little over 4 feet. They hauled that one back to the Sea Center.

Hopefully they can get some good data from those fish, I have never gotten to catch a tarpon and would love to get the chance one of these days.

Well, the folks at the Sea Center have decided to keep the tarpon in their Gulf display aquarium and maybe have some new genetics for a breeding program.

Yall come on out and see it if your down this way. The Sea Center is a really cool thing for the kids and anyone else interested in fishing or marine life. It's free too!

During the fishin fiesta in july there were always some tarpon brought out of the outlet. You can also catch mangrov snapper there too. I caught a limit there one summer on shrimp and lures.

I've run that stretch of water my whole life. My dad worked for Dow for 25 years before he retired. I used to go into the plant at a job I used to have to deliver contractor supplies. Man you should seen some of the fish at the canals inside the plant. It was rediculous. Schools of big reds just hanging around the pumps. What I would give for a couple days fishing inside the gates of the plant. That's unfished terroritory.

Oh, it's been fished, I promise you. The graveyard guys have been known to slip in a little fishing through the years. I'm sure though, that security is a little tighter now days.

Ture. Back in a time where you could get away with things like that I bet there were a few fisherman that got in there. Now days you can't get much though the gates. BASF is mush tighter than DOW is.

My dad used to work at the Oyster Creek plant for a while. He said they uses to tie throw lines off of some of the pipelines. They caught a 40+ pound cat off of one of them, and then couldn't tell anyone about it lol. I've heard stories from the old timers that are retired now. They used to tell me stories about the fish there.

That's what I am talking about, I spent 32 years out there, all of it shift work. Those guys in the Utility Department were notorius about getting ice chests full of shrimp off of the skimmer gates of course the red fish and trout were right there with them so, might as well throw out a line or two. Yep, the good old days at Dow Chemical, not sure if that still goes on or not. I would suspect Security has a camera in every nook and cranny now days.

Yea, no fishing now unless you one of the lucky few that get to help out TPWD catch brood stock.