See nature via kayak

Visitors to the popular Lighthouse Lakes kayak area northwest of Port Aransas are likely to see some sights they didn’t expect this spring – construction equipment.

The area, known as a site where enthusiasts can get almost literally shoulder to shoulder with birds and fish, is due for an expansion and some new facilities. Work is expected to begin in March with a grant from the Texas General Land Office and contributions in labor and equipment from the Nueces County Parks Department.

When it’s finished, the project will add road access, picnic tables, hiking trails and areas where indigenous vegetation can be preserved. Such things as salt cedar – trees that aren’t indigenous but which crowd out native vegetation – will be removed.

Lighthouse Lakes and other paddling trails around the island have opened up waters that only kayakers can access.

The Lighthouse Lakes Paddling Trails was the first Texas Paddling Trails established by the Texas Parks and Wildlife Departthat ment (TPWD). They wind across shallow waters and flats northwest of Port Aransas. There are four trails along the South Bay side of Lydia Ann Channel.

These trails are accessible from TPWD’s Lighthouse Lake Trails Park along State Hwy. 361. Cutters Loop Trail is 5 miles long; the Electric Lake Loop is 1.25 miles in length; Redfish Loop is the longest at 6.8 miles, and the South Bay Loop is 6.7 miles.

Waterproof wade fishing maps and satellite photo maps to any of the trails, including GPS coordinates (on the photo maps), are available at the South Jetty newspaper office, at 141 W. Cotter Ave.

The trails have markers placed by TPWD to guide kayakers as they paddle them.

The Lighthouse Lakes Trails are a series of intertwining trails point the way for navigating the black mangrove estuary behind the Lydia Ann Lighthouse. It is an ideal place for great experiences in kayaking, fishing and wildlife or bird watching.

The Mustang Island Paddle Trail winds along the bay side of Mustang Island between Mustang Island State Park, past Shamrock Island and ends near the edge of the Port Aransas city limit. This trail reveals some of the best wildlife habitat in the Coastal Bend and provides a roadmap for excellent saltwater fishing.

There are also two trails along the Corpus Christi Bay side of Mustang Island that extend from Port Aransas to a point just short of Mustang Island State Park to the south.

Any of the trails offer rewarding shallow water fishing and spectacular birding.

The TPWD estimates that 80 percent of the kayakers in the Port Aransas area are fishing enthusiasts, except for spikes during bird migrations. During those times, birders also flock to the shallow water wetlands to catch a glimpse of the many birds that fly to Mustang Island.