The U.S. Army/Flickr Creative Commons
A bunch of y’all may have recognized by now that I absolutely love the Texas Gulf Coast. I don’t care whether it’s Galveston, Padre Island, Matagorda, Port Aransas, etc etc etc as long as I can dip my toes in the water and enjoy some fresh out of the water seafood. In past blogs we’ve talked about different places to go swim, where to fish, the beaches with the best campgrounds, and all those type of things, but it dawned on me that in none of those blogs have I talked about Port O’Connor.
Port O’Connor is on the southwest “corner” of Matagorda Bay and is an old fishing town. Matter of fact it is such an old school town, they don’t even have mail delivery to your house, you have to pick it up at the Post Office! Back when it was first founded it was called Alligator Head, and it has been long known as a fishing village, as well as for it’s production of figs. Some of y’all may remember that Matagorda Island used to have an Air Force Base on it, and the resulting military traffic is kind of what helped put Port O’Connor on the map. After the base closure, the town struggled for awhile but the fishing and tourism was enough to keep the place afloat.
Port O’Connor is also home to an old-school, cast iron lighthouse similar to the one on Bolivar Peninsula near the ferry landing. It has been there in 1873, and is still working. So, with beaches, seafood, a few awesome “watering holes”, and readily available boat rides over to Matagorda Island, Port O’Connor will continue to survive. Heck, it’s been destroyed by hurricanes four times, so I reckon it’s here to stay! It’s a beautiful spot to visit now that summer’s winding down. And remember, before you hit the road, hit us up at the website for all your parts and accessories!