# New camp in surfside tx



## sea hunt 202

Ok so the old "John Wayne" canal " in surfside is close to finish with a 100 rv spot complete with boat ramp and bait shop. Does anyone know when they will open or if they are partially open. That spot is great for crabbing, I like blue crabs. Never caught a keeper fish there, but anxious to camp there to do some crabbing.


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## lazycreek

so how did the canal get its reference to John Wayne ? Sorry I don't know if/when they open.


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## Haute Pursuit

lazycreek said:


> so how did the canal get its reference to John Wayne ? Sorry I don't know if/when they open.


John Wayne built it back in the Galveston tarpon heydey and would fly in and stay to fish... at least that is what I have always been told. :cheers:


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## Gilbert

Haute Pursuit said:


> John Wayne built it back in the Galveston tarpon heydey and would fly in and stay to fish... at least that is what I have always been told. :cheers:


x2


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## txbbqman

Where is this?


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## BretE

Right at the east entrance of Churchill cut.....


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## txbbqman

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## JamesAggie

Can anyone send a link to googlemaps?

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## coachlaw

What I was told was that he rented the place and paid to have the canal dredged so a seaplane could land there. There was an article in the Facts about it not so long ago. I was really glad they kept the bones of the old place and made it new again. 



Y'all gonna have drive up gas pumps like Sy's did? That was so nice. Come in, have a beer and burger, gas and ice up for another day on the water.


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## O&G-HAND

JamesAggie said:


> Can anyone send a link to googlemaps?
> 
> Sent from my SM-G892A using Tapatalk


GOOGLE is my friend


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## sea hunt 202

These are some of the same stories I have been told as to why it was called that, I can just hear him say "ok pilgrim lets get some bait"


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## M9

The camp before used to be called "YellowCabins.com" or something like that and was a cool place that provided quick access to Churchill and the marshes around there. After the storm, the place was devastated and the house where the owner lived was destroyed when storm open a cut from the gulf right into the canal. There appeared to be a lot of activity there for a while, building, moving of the cabins etc, but the last few times i drove down there, it appeared to be completely deserted. Perhaps they ran out of $$$. Great area to catch flounder.


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## Cozumel Annie

Brown and Root built it for the purpose of a seaplane landing strip.


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## Bullitt4439

100 rv spots, boat launch, bait? oh dear god please let a hurricane come and wipe it out soon. Just what the cold pass area needs, 1000 more people fishing it.


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## BayouBonsaiMan

Bullitt4439 said:


> 100 rv spots, boat launch, bait? oh dear god please let a hurricane come and wipe it out soon. Just what the cold pass area needs, 1000 more people fishing it.


I just wonder how many beginning salt water fisherman , boaters like me started there and moved on to other areas. Seems to me the more people get a chance to experience the beauty of our coast , the more people will try to preserve. My daughter and I experienced the best redfish school blowup I've seen in 35 years of boating a few hundred yards from that cut a couple weeks ago. Btw I really enjoy your posts of your successes there Mr Bulliet!


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## sea hunt 202

What happened in the build was that the owners decided it was better to get forgiveness than permission. So they put up the little silt fence and began scooping the canal out and someone caught them, sited them for destruction of a wetland, dredging w/o permit and dispensing spoiles bla bla bla. Moved the what we call bird houses and painted them, started with a bulk head. And then the effort was halted, and that is about where we lost track of the progress.


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## hk

Bullitt4439 said:


> 100 rv spots, boat launch, bait? oh dear god please let a hurricane come and wipe it out soon. Just what the cold pass area needs, 1000 more people fishing it.


Agreed .It will soon become a cluster f*** .

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## Ethan Hunt

semi related, anyone know you can still launch off Fathom and China Chopper behind Brite Lite bait camp?



29.076011, -95.131008


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## GarryRS

Go have a burger at Louie's Bait Camp in Bayou Vista. I'm sure the owner can tell you when this place is going to open.


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## sea hunt 202

This is so cool everybody has a story and seems to be better than the real deal. Oh dang we might just go there to fish


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## 032490

Ethan Hunt said:


> semi related, anyone know you can still launch off Fathom and China Chopper behind Brite Lite bait camp?
> 
> 29.076011, -95.131008


That's a private boat ramp for TI residents. 
Ken


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## tealnexttime1

should knock the koa out a little, seeing how u can't even get out of the lagoon most days. at least there you can get out and ur boat wont be in mud in the morning. hope it does sell food, booze and bait. that'll be great! just drive in on your boat , sounds good to me. it's already a cluster f*** most days there anyways. i see it being a year out at least though. they got a long ways to go. he sunk some serious cash in on that place for sure.


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## BayouBonsaiMan

tealnexttime1 said:


> should knock the koa out a little, seeing how u can't even get out of the lagoon most days. at least there you can get out and ur boat wont be in mud in the morning. hope it does sell food, booze and bait. that'll be great! just drive in on your boat , sounds good to me. it's already a cluster f*** most days there anyways. i see it being a year out at least though. they got a long ways to go. he sunk some serious cash in on that place for sure.[/QUOT
> Be nice to get a burger out there ! Really liked going to Sy's before Ike


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## troutomatic1488

Cozumel Annie said:


> Brown and Root built it for the purpose of a seaplane landing strip.


Brown and Root built it to barge supplies out to the SLP bridge when they built it. There is an airstrip just east of the canal. John Wayne was in tight with upper management of Brown & Root at one point he rented that property.


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## BayouBonsaiMan

TROUTOMATIC said:


> Brown and Root built it to barge supplies out to the SLP bridge when they built it. There is an airstrip just east of the canal. John Wayne was in tight with upper management of Brown & Root at one point he rented that property.


Thanks for clearing this up, any idea when they built the bridge?


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## Jerrym

We used to own the Moody's house on Mud Island, parents bought it in 1948. I watched that canal being dug, we always thought it was for a landing strip that the owner used for an aerobatic plane that we saw him fly all the time. We used to water ski up and down it, since it was protected. Also a great place to drag a shrimp net, a lot of small shrimp. Never heard the John Wayne story. The Tarpon pretty much went South after the bridge was built and in the late 60's.


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## Jerrym

Interesting, the marker for Moody's Island is where our house was.


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## sea hunt 202

Good to know


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## sea hunt 202

*cold pass camp and bait ect.*

Current photo of cold pass/ float plane strip. Undersized reds all after noon but still a nice day on the water.


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## Ethan Hunt

ok so what ya catch? Unless this is not a fishing report?


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## sea hunt 202

Caught two small red fish, one 13''black drum, one small sheepshead.


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## sea hunt 202

tide was up wind was about 16 mph only two boaters had keepers, the video is so everyone can keep up with the new camp being built because there is a lot of interest.


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