The bite is still on in the mitigation site. My friends Bev and Joe Fischer(stayed in 222) extended their stay by one day and caught four drum and two reds last evening. Friends Richard and Daisy Lee(stayed in 603) also extended their stay by one day and picked up all the reds and drum they could use. One red was 29.5 inches and another 26.5 inches. Other guests had similar success.
Scott has been catching all these trout before he comes on duty in the morning. I went to see for myself this morning before sunrise. Scott was already there standing on the HEB beach close to the new pier. First I noticed Scott was indeed using a Super Spook Junior. I could tell from his gear he was pretty serious about fishing. I don't know that I have ever seen a rod with ten eyelets. He had about three feet of mono tied meticulously to his braided line. He flipped the lure sidearm about fifty yards into the wind and proceeded to twist his wrist to make the lure dance its way back. Sure enough trout would hit it at the surface. I threw my trout killers about twenty yards max and the retrieve was uneventful. I saw the writing on the wall and hooked my lure into the rod handle and made an excuse to go fish somewhere else. Talk about being really outclassed. If Scott(702) holds his owner's fishing tournament in November, I have a plan. First Scott C. has to be on my team. One of Scott's tournament rules is that you must fish from a boat. I think I'll back my trailer up to the HEB property and let Scott C. cast from the boat. I'll save on gas and our boat will have the winning catch.
A big project the last few days has been smoke detectors and fire extinguishers. Fire extinguishers had not been checked in three years. In the past we had the fire department come by every year and certify them. Scott came by last week to change the batteries and inspect the extinguishers. Then on Monday it was decided that every condo had to have a smoke detector in every bedroom and every hallway. Close to 150 detectors were needed. Justin traveled to nearby cities to buy sufficient quantities. I planned to install my own, but Justin said the detectors would be an HOA expense so I let Scott install three more in my place.
My Monday Google stats were up again. 103 different computers logged on to the blog. 32 different cities in Texas sent logins. I am amazed there is that much interest in Kontiki. I still think that is from the real estate activity. Someone said they wanted to know how to contact me after reading the blog. I have updated my profile to include my email address.
Rob came by today to give me the final bill for my remodel. We had not really discussed prices at all since I fully trust Rob and know the quality of his work. Actually, the bill was less than I expected and would encourage anyone who has not done any remodeling to try to let Rob spruce up their place before he goes back to California. He is finishing up two condos now and that may be all that are to be done. There are only a handfull left to do. After Rob leaves any remodel that needs to be done will cost twice as much and I seriously doubt the quality of the work will be anywhere near what he does.

Fishing in the mitigation site remains red hot. Here Joyce and Pete Velasquez(710) show their catch of a 24" red and 15" drum. This was there first weekend to enjoy their new condo. Saturday evening Butch(206) and son Ross, caught and released 33 reds and drum while fishing from the crossbridge.
Scott Culberson(our employee) brought his tackle and fished before he started work on Saturday. He caught ten trout in no time with his topwater super spook junior.

Last Tuesday morning I saw a Texas Parks and Wildlife truck pull up into the area near the new pier. Two young ladies got out with binoculars and began taking notes. They are part of a project to identify the types and concentrations of vegatation on the Texas coast. That is a huge undertaking. They said they will finish the project in a year. They surveyed the HEB area and identified a whole bunch of plants that I never knew existed.
A crew was working on Saturday to repair the damage to the outside wall of Sears. I went by today and it looks like new again. The store is still closed. I don't know how it looks inside.
I heard last week that Coastal Rental Management will be dissolving itself into two separate companies. They manage two condos at Kontiki.
There has been an advertisement appearing in the four largest metro area newspapers of Texas. The ad reads "Rockport Texas, Jewel of Texas Gulf. Investor liquidating 48 bayfront & harbor condos up to $100k off recent comps." The ad refers readers to the Kontiki website or to call 916 215-5688. The open house today was held in unit 306. I understand they are writing backup contracts, because most of the units are under contract, at least those in Phase I. The Watson family from Missouri approached me about buying a condo as I was getting ready to go out in my boat on Saturday. I asked them to call the numbers of the agents posted on the windows. When I got back from fishing, about four hours later, they met me at the ramp and said they had tried, but could not reach anyone who could show them a condo. I showed them my place and told them most were similar. I hope they came to today's open house. They seemed very interested in becoming an owner.
Betty Brackle(103) called me from Nebraska this afternoon. She is doing well enough except for her knees. She may not be down this fall as she gets the knees worked on soon.

The decision was made to plant grass in the area between the end of the 300 building and wall of the channel. The pier was extended to match the new elevation. This is intended to stop the erosion of the beach sand into the channel. Scott is keeping it watered and with recent rains, the grass stands a good chance of taking root.
There seem to be a lot of early ducks around this year. I saw a flight of 17 attempt to come down in the mitigation site, but changed their mind when they saw me. Later, I saw a group of 6 circle and do the same thing.

This obituary appeared in this weekend's Rockport Pilot. Maxey and Frances Mayo were original owners at Kontiki. They owned unit 102 and Maxey was particularly active with the homeowners' council. After selling their place, they later purchased unit 705. They owned that unit they sold to the present owner.

Ruth Mayo VanLandingham, 44, passed away April 24, 2009. She was born in Fort Worth on Oct. 8, 1964.

She was preceded in death by one brother, Robert Thomas Mayo.

She is survived by her parents, Maxey and Frances Mayo; one daughter, Jennifer VanLandingham; one brother, James Maxey Mayo; and one sister, Elizabeth Moss Mayo Ramsey.

A memorial service will be held Oct. 10 at 10 a.m. at First United Methodist Church.

I could have gotten a better perspective of this red if I had had someone to take a picture of me with this catch. The yard stick next to the fish is all that I could do. If there is any doubt about the length, count the 2x6s. It snapped up a small perch on the end of my small Diawa reel. I pulled up a chair by the bulkhead and held on for the better part of an hour before the battle was over. I very seldom use a leader, but this time I did. This is the biggest fish I have ever landed.

This is part of the catch that Gus'(203) family make last evening. The total was five reds and seven drum.

This a copy of the picture that appeared in the Rockport Pilot that shows the truck that plowed into the local Sears store. The store is still closed.

Justin sent this email out this afternoon. I was disappointed to hear that they will no longer manage the rental pool. I understand that rentals were way up over last year and guests always had good things to say about their experiences with the rental operation. I certainly wish them well.


I wanted everyone to be aware of a few changes that will be happening at Kontiki Beach Management. As of 9-30-2009 Rachel and I will no longer be involved in the rentals at Kontiki. It has been a pleasure working with every owner and we hope you were satisified with the service you received from us while we were at Kontiki Beach Management. I will continue to perform the property management for the HOA and if you have any questions or suggestions for me please let me know. If you need to reach me my phone numbers are (361) 230-3837 mobile or (888)404-6359 fax. Please feel free to call or email me anytime.

Thank you.

Justin Schmidt
Shoreline Enterprises Inc.

Today's heavy rains seemed to help the fishing. This 24 inch red and 20.5 inch flounder were both caught in the mitigation site today. The drum have really been plentiful in the mitigation site. Gus(203) came in with his family last evening. His nephew caught six really good size black drum this evening while fishing from the road. I caught my two on live mullet. The flounder that got away from me last week was larger than this one, but I'll take it.
Sears was to bring out my new frig today and they almost didn't make it. Sears will be closed for three days. Last evening the mosquito fogging truck crashed through the wall of Sears from the Valero side. The fumigator was still running and the store got saturated. Early indication was that the driver had a seizure.
John got the lights working on the 200 building and on the pier yesterday.
Rob was back from vacation today and began the remodel on 305.
Yesterday evening Justin and I were talking in front of the maintenance shed when the sewer cleanout began to bubble up the sewerage. There was only one unit occupied in 600 building and one in the 500 building, but there was a large amount of water on the parking area by the time the plumber arrived. This evening I noticed the maintenance shed door was still up at 10 pm. I went ahead and closed and locked it. I hope it was not open for a reason.

Jake Fehler and Madelyne Mann show their catch of black drum from yesterday evening. They caught these on dead shrimp while fishing off the crossbridge. They also caught a number of undersized reds and a few mangrove snappers.
Jake's father is the brother of Deb Canuteson(210). They had to get back to A&M today for classes tomorrow.

Jim(210) sent this picture of an 8-point buck that walked up as he was grilling some hamburgers at home in Clifton. I think this buck belongs in the freezer. Deb took the picture in full view of the buck. Jim and Deb had two nephews here this weekend. They caught two keeper reds off the crossbridge last evening.
The mosquitoes were as bad as I have seen here this weekend. I'm told that repellent sprays had all been sold off the shelves at Walmart, HEB, and ACE hardware before Sunday.
The open house went off as usual today. There is not much left to sell. Fifteen of the originally listed condos have been sold or are under contract.
We are still having electrical problems. The Phase I pier lights don't come on and the 200 building lights have not worked in some time.

Rob and his crew have finished the remodel on our condo. They do a really great job. The new stainless french door frig is due in next week. We also replaced light fixtures, electrical switches, base boards, two doors, and put in a handrail on the stairs. I really like the handrail and recommend it highly. Some condos already have a handrail. As far as I know Rob has two more condos to remodel.

I included this picture to show how the soffit panel is different from other condo remodels. The part facing the den area is not furred down and the only air register is located above the range. It required some tricky cuts, but the crew was up to the task. Interestingly, the light fixture over the dining table consists of small metal sailboats. The sails do what they are supposed to do in the real world and catch the air from the large air register and it causes the fixture to slowly sway. It's not a problem, but the interaction with the air and sails is interesting.
What comes to mind now, is insurance. All of the 200 and 400 condos have been remodeled. Our insurance agent tells me that in the event of a loss, the units will be rebuilt as they were originally, laminate counter tops and linoleum floors in the kitchens and baths. Even the two bedroom units that are now two bedrooms with a loft, would be rebuilt as two bedrooms. I find this hard to believe and a little scary. At our house in San Antonio we added a bedroom and the insurance coverage was increased to cover it. Why can we not increase the coverage on the condos to reflect the current configuration? I would think any insurance agency would welcome the increased premium. I understand we insure by building, not individual units. With two buildings with all units remodeled it would seem that, at the very least, these two buildings could have increased coverage.
This week's blog stats had some surprises. I can usually tell from the traffic site reports who is reading the blog, sometimes not. Someone in San Angelo, Texas has accessed the site 19 times in the last two weeks. I have no idea who that is. Someone in Spicewood, Texas, wherever that is, read nearly every post I have ever made. That would almost have to be a prospective buyer who found the site with a google search.

Here is the photo of the 25 inch red that I could not post last week.
I'm hearing that the annual owner's meeting may be held the first weekend of November. That means the opening weekend of the Texas deer season would be a conflict. The last few meetings have been the second weekend of November although that is not what is called for in the declaration.
The recent heavy rains have had an impact of the beach sand. The sand is pouring over the bulkhead and into the recently dredged channel. The sand is washing in between the start of the Phase I pier and the picnic area. Justin is weighing options on how to stop this erosion. At one time there was a berm channeling the water and sand back into the bay.

Finally, a fresh fish dinner! I've seen so many mullet in the mitigation site tis last two weeks. I set two rods out the last two days. Yesterday I got broke off twice and lost the biggest flounder I've even had on the end of my line. The flounder was huge, but the drag does not work on that old pole and I just could not control him. Today, however, I landed a 25 inch red right at dark. I'll post a picture when I get my picture software issues resolved next week. Two weeks ago, David Gonzales, a guest in 120, lost a big red in the same area. I've seen the cork he was using as recently as yesterday. It was within reach of the crossbridge, but just as I touched it the red took off. I could probably have just snatched it, but I'm sure the line would have snapped. The high tides associated with the vernal equinox have begun to arrive. I think this is driving all the bait and reds into the mitigation site.
The channel that was just dredged is starting to show signs of filling back in. On Sunday, I probed the depths while we were going out in Scott's boat. Some of the areas that were 6 feet deep are now 4 feet deep. The 'L' that was assessed for was never built. That 'L' may be the only way to protect the channel.
Fall schedules are being set for operations. Scott, grounds maintenance, is now working only 32 hours a week. The pool maintenance has been cut to once a week. CMT no longer does our lawn work. A new crew has been hired.
Real estate activity remains brisk. Almost daily condos are being inspected prior to closings. Several have shown signs of termites and exterminators have been busy.
Karra is in California this weekend. She attending a high school reunion. Classmates website tells me she graduated in 1979 from Red Bluff Union High, so it must be for a 30th.
The rainfall has really been nice the last two days. Yesterday morning the power went off three times during thunderstorms. To see the rainfall totals at the Aransas Airport go to http://forecast.weather.gov/MapClick.php?CityName=Rockport&state=TX&site=CRP&textField1=28.0407&textField2=-97.0515&e=0. About halfway down the right side, there is a link for "3 day history". Click on that and the rainfall totals will be posted.

Summer's last hurrah was a fun time at Kontiki. The weather was great with only one small shower. Last week was so quiet with only one unit rented. Of course, today I see only two units rented so we are back to being a ghost town.
An open house was held both Sunday and Monday. It seemed to be a good turnout for both. I believe all the bayside units are sold or under contract to buy. Several in the 400 building are spoken for. Only 503 and 601 remain on the harbor side. Those two units are not remodeled and have not drawn as much interest.
We did have some sewer problems on Saturday with the increased crowds. A plumber had to come out twice in one day to unclog the lines.
Fishing prospects seem to be picking up. Saturday evening Scott(702) caught the first keeper trout from the pier, that I know of. Friday, he and Alan(108) went out around Half Moon Reef and caught one keeper trout on Gulp. Saturday, Alan and Scott took their families to Carlos Bay. They used both of their big boats. No fish were brought back. Yesterday morning at daylight, Scott and I went to the pipe and several other spots and caught several trout, but no keepers. The guests in 307 brought back 21 keepers over the two day period. One flounder was 22 inches. Their trout were all very good size. The water is getting cooler and that should help the bay fishing.
We have had an inordinate number of raccoons around. There has been an invasion of crickets under the lights at night. The raccoons come out in the predawn hours and try to catch the crickets. It is funny to watch. The crickets are so fast and the raccoons spin and twist in their efforts to catch them. Judging from the number of crickets I see, the raccoons are not having a lot of success.
Rob completed the remodel on two condos last week, has two more in progress, and two more in line.