Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Anderson County, TX Ponds affected by drought

I realize this Texas' summer has affected many people in many different ways. We've been very blessed at my home's pond.

The ponds below are at my mother's place approximately 20 miles from me in northern Anderson County. The photos below are very sad to me. Many, many memorably times in my youth of playing at these ponds. I never thought I'd see them like this.

My dad and I fished this pond most weekends during the summer. We had it stocked with Florida LMB, HBG, and CNBG.







This next pond has 3 surface acres during normal summers. Largest LMB caught was 8 pounds, just a few years ago. I would be surprised it could support anything near that size today. The other pond above it fed plenty of fish, so we never stocked this one. Naturally it turned into a fantastic bluegill and LMB pond.





My three year old is pointing at a channel that extends the pond back to a creek, now dry.



This is normally in 2-3 feet of water, fed by a creek directly behind it.



We were very fortunate to have these ponds for great recreation and to support wildlife for many years. I'm confident that when the rain comes, things will turn around. My hope is that my kids will get to enjoy them the same way I did during my formative years.

Hate to see that Clayton, but thanks for sharing.
I drove down to College Station this weekend and
was kind of taken-aback by how dry everything
looked once I got out in the country.

Hopefully we'll see some rain soon.

My main pond has about 4 to 5 ft of water left in it and has lost about 7 ft. My forage pond is history. A pond on a place that I just sold is also gone. The forecast is also grim.

I've been studying Texas geography, terrain, soils, water, aquifers, weather patterns and biology for 40+ years. My first year in the pond management business was 1980. That summer, from our base near Wichita Falls, was brutal. 90 days of 100+ temps, 30 of those days above 105, three of them 115-117. The lows were in the 90's for those days. But, we started that heat wave year with good spring rains and ended it with big rains from a tropical storm.
Not this year.
We started the year with a drought, then added a heat wave on top of that. Fires are raging out of control, more than 1,000 homes and buildings have been destroyed this summer in wildfires. There is no rain in sight.
Lately, I've given several pond management speeches. The topic? What happens to ponds during a drought.
In my entire adult life, in this business, I've never seen the things we're seeing now. I've seen pink water, all aquatic life dead, teeming with bacteria. 90,000 acre Lake Texoma is closed due to blue-green algae. Big percentages of ponds are dry...not just low, but dry. We've had more calls about fish kills this year than I can remember we've had in 30+ years. Trees are dying in the forests. As you drive along Texas highways, 5-10% of the trees have brown leaves. Lots and lots of things are going on, all over the state. Wildlife biologists are reporting 95% fawn mortality this year. Emaciated animals are looking for water whereever they can find it. Lake O.C. Fisher, outside of San Angelo, is totally dry. Lake Meredith, in the Texas panhandle, is 90% low.
The drought continues, even with a respite from the horridly hot temperatures. We'll be back close to 100 again in a few days.
It's been a weird year.

I went out to check my place on Sunday. As I drove up the east west stretch of the dirt road going to the farm it was like a fall day with the north winds blowing leaves across the road. The post oaks appeared to be hanging on but the pecans were shedding leaves. Beautiful trees 3 to 4 feet in diameter. They are the neighbors and I sure hope they make it.

I was going out to check on the tanks. Not concerned about the fish anymore, just hoping the water holds out for the livestock. I've got ten mares out there because the grass on my sisters place in Hico is gone. I figure there is at least another months worth. If there is no relief on the radar in the next week or two I'm going to have to see about getting that water meter installed.
I headed back through Dawson that evening. When I got to the south end of town the road was blocked. It looked like they were just putting the finishing touches of fighting a grass fire.

I went back down yesterday with the bobcat in tow. I decided to try to do a little work on one of the tanks while it was so low. I took the road though Dawson to get a better look at what I drove through the day before. The fire was out along the road but I could see smoke coming from about a half mile up the creek from where it was the evening before. I don't know if Tom still checks in here or not. I never met him and just know him from his posts on here. Someone might want to give him a shout and make sure hes making it through all right.

I am not sure what to make of it??? Eric's post shows way to much rain, Texas can get any rain??? Our planet is trying to tell us someting I think?? We need to maybe listen and figure it out! I think this winter is not going to be fun!! It could be a bad one if it's anything like we been having.

Good luck to my next door Texans and may God Bless you with rain soon.

The timing of my post and Eric's was purely coincidental. Isn't it funny how that works? Just 200 miles west of me, my father-in-law got 5 inches of rain a few weeks back. His tanks all look decent. But yet either direction from him, it is back to drought-ville.

I feel so bad for you in Texas with the drought, heat, crop and cattle destruction. Here in Indiana I’ve notice changes. We seem to get heavy rains in the spring then dry conditions through the farm growing season. The crops are still doing OK but it is worrisome. We are setting more 90 degree records and Indianapolis I believe got less then one inch of rain for the month of August. Four days ago we had 100 degree heat then yesterday morning it was in the 40's. I follow the glacier ice melting, Artic melting, Greenland ice melting and the new findings on the Antarctic melting and it's troubling.

Very, very sad to watch happen.

We have never lost fish in the 14 years we have had our pond. I have even seen it lower than it is now. I belief because our pond is fed by the water table that is why we have not lost fish even when we have only 12 to 18 inches max depth and 100 deg days. However we may not be so lucky this year. We have a spring below our pond that is exposed in the creek I have never seen it dry before but it is bone dry this year meaning the water table is also dry or much futher down than ever before.

Bob, the weathermen keep comparing to 1980 which had a wet spring. My father said they plowed the ground then it didn't rain. The wheat was sowed in dirt clods. If any of you do gardening, you know clods aren't ideally to plant in. He also said the wheat didn't come up until February.

The old timers compared it to 1954. Which is not good news because they said it was a drought so bad it took three years to break.

We are praying for rain daily but these cooler temperatures are change for however long they last. Everyone has ponds at levels that have never been that low. Its been nearly three years since we have a decent amount of runoff too.

I got 5inches of rain last week from Irene and in the past 48hrs 8. Hershey PA is completly underwater. They are calling for another 2-3inches tommorow. The susquehanna river is suppose to flood out 60% of Harrisburg by friday. This is by far the most rain we have got since Agnus came through in 1976.

Cody I think it would take that much to impress our ponds. I'm getting a lot of calls from pond owners who want to dig wells. I hate to deflate their bubble but.....