"Don't Mess With Texas" was the mantra during the Bush years. Texas Governor Rick Perry's recent job-stealing trip to Connecticut elicited a sarcastic comment from one Connecticut Yankee at dinner recently: "The three things I like about Texas are: first it is far away from here, second most Texans live there not here and third--ugh--I forgot--oops."
Texas was very much on our minds the other night because we were entertaining real, live Texans, although to be fair they live in Austin that blue dot in a sea of red on the political map. They told us their city was referred to as the "Peoples Republic of Austin" in some Texas circles. Also in the interests of full disclosure, although one was a Texas native from Brownsville, the other was a transplanted Yankee born and bred in Greenwich.
Texans like to brag about their state, even if they are liberal Democrats, a distinct minority in Texas outside of Austin. They brag about how bad the politics are in Texas in reverse braggadocio, but also indulge in explaining to us benighted notheasterners how great Texas is in the more familiar boasts. We "Greenwich-ites" (there is no good word for people from Greenwich) are very comfortable with this sort of "one-up-manship" and can brag on our town pretty well for better or worse.
Well, the conversation was lively and interesting until the subject became fish, or rather, the fish ladder next to Greenwich Adult Day Care at the Mianus River Dam.
One of the diners was a knowledgeable local fisherman who volunteers at the fish ladder monitoring the fish as they swim up and down the ladder. One of the Texans is a college professor who teaches biology and studies various fauna, including fish and cockroaches. I suppose it is better that the conversation switched to fish rather than "La Cucaracha" because the next thing I know we were paying a nocturnal visit to the fish ladder (which is different from nocturnal visits to the river in the good old days that involved swinging from a rope swing, skinny dipping or both). This expedition was fully-clothed.
The fish ladder really is a wonder that allows alewives to swim up to the fresh water portion of the Mianus River to spawn and provides passage back to Long Island Sound. The fish are counted and videoed as they traverse the fish escalator. I must admit I had a Splash Mountain type flume ride in mind when I asked where the down ladder was located and was patiently told the fish ride the same stream up and down with baffles to create pools to allow them to rest from the current. According to one source the fish counter counted 48,000 alewives using the ladder. As amazing was the explanation that eels don't use the ladder but instead travel up the dam on a net known as an "eel pass" that the eels use to slither up and down the dam.
During the season you may watch the alewives swim by on the fish ladder cam on the Town's website.
I bet they don't have that in Texas!
