THE BEACH Dad and Mr. Wicks were fishing friends as far back as I can remember. Dad was the District Electrician for Gulf States Utilities in Sour Lake and Mr. Wicks was a plumbing and concrete contractor. They both had a love for salt water fishing and Wicks had an old beach house at Gilchrist Texas. When they both could get away, they were packed and ready to head to the Gulf of Mexico! Mr. Wicks owned quite a lot of property that surrounded his cabin which he had laid claim to after a major hurricane destroyed the entire area. The original owners lived in their multi-story hotel and they considered it strong enough that there was no hurricane that could take it down so when the big blow came, they stayed to ride out the storm! When the storm was over, their hotel was gone and the people were never found! No heirs were located and Wicks marked the property off, measured the borders and filed a claim with Galveston County. The claim was legally posted and after the prescribed waiting period, the claim was validated. Dad had the use of Wicks’ cabin and our family enjoyed many trips to the beach for swimming and fishing. We learned surf fishing and my introduction to fishing was at about eight years of age. After learning to fish, we were always ready for a trip to Gilchrist! Several years later, Dad bought lots from his friend and we built a cabin, utilizing two old school busses. One bus had an engine and the other one had a steering wheel but the engine was missing so the two were hitched together for a tow to the beach. Sand and shell was mixed with cement to pour a slab between the blocked-up busses and with a roof overhead, we were on the way to our own beach facility! The wide slab between was a living and dining area and one bus served as master bedroom and kitchen. The opposite bus contained beds inside and bunk beds were mounted along the dining side. A small bath and shower was added to the back of the facility. Using two four foot by eight foot concrete drainage culverts standing on end, we hand-dug sand from inside, allowing them to settle down to the clay bottom. A pump and a lid and we had water! Well water so close to the beach was not fit to drink but okay for bathing and washing. Drinking water was brought in five gallon jugs from home. Dad eventually bought a boat and we learned to fish in East Bay, catching loads of sand trout and croakers! We still have many fond memories of wonderful times at the old beach house and when Joyce and I married, we spent our honeymoon among the familiar surroundings. Walking barefooted along the beach and watching surf and shore birds was our favorite pastime. Glen Radley
Posted on: Sun, 29 Sep 2013 20:46:07 +0000