Texas Monthly

Spearfishing, a niche sport and one of the most ancient forms of hunting, is for now the most effective, environmentally friendly way of removing armored catfish. Atlas Environmental’s semiannual polespear tournament, held every February and November in San Marcos, works with the city to remove invasive fish species from the Comal and San Marcos rivers. Participants compete over a two-week period to skewer invasive fish (tilapia have also arrived in the river, but they’re not nearly as numerous as armored catfish) with a polespear—a five-foot-long rod with three pronged and barbed tips. The tournament, which began in 2014, draws about sixty spearers. Participants are credited with removing about 3,500 pounds of armored catfish and 450 pounds or so of tilapia in that ten-year period. Texas Monthly's Joshua Alvarez practices and competes in the polespear tournament, and learns it's not as easy as it may look, here: https://txmnth.ly/4dvaMqC 📸: Bill Sallans

More than 96% of Texas land is private. Why? Read all about it: https://txmnth.ly/3XRNMxG

Abortion is illegal in Texas. Now extremists entering the Legislature want to make it a felony for patients, punishable by death. Nationally, these are the best of times and the worst of times for opponents of abortion rights. The Dobbs decision has provoked a tremendous backlash. Blue states have strengthened their laws protecting reproductive rights, while voters in traditionally red states, including Kansas and Ohio, have approved ballot initiatives protecting abortion access or struck down ones adding new restrictions. Democratic candidates have won election after election campaigning on the issue. Trump has been flummoxed by the fallout. Under pressure from the former president, the party’s national platform abandoned calls for a coast-to-coast ban, instead advocating for leaving abortion policies to individual states. The climate in Texas is quite different. For more than a decade, Republicans here have chipped away at reproductive rights. In 2013 then-Democratic senator Wendy Davis became an overnight star by filibustering legislation designed to shutter abortion clinics but lost her 2014 bid for governor by twenty percentage points to Greg Abbott after her opponents tagged her Abortion Barbie. In 2021 the Legislature passed the so-called bounty law, which empowers private citizens to collect a cash reward if they successfully sue someone who “aids or abets” an abortion. No meaningful electoral backlash has followed. Swipe to learn about the legal status of abortion in Texas, and visit our page for in-depth coverage on the future of legislators who oppose abortion rights in the state. https://txmnth.ly/3XSypVv 🎨: Chloe Cushman

“I thought of doing a book of just cows, but it seemed a little niche,” photographer Randal Ford said. “But then I thought, ‘Why not do fashion-inspired takes on farm animals?’ ” ✨🐄🐎🦆🐐✨ The result is "Farm Life: A Collection of Animal Portraits," a book of gorgeous images that will make you look at horses, chickens, and, yes, cows in new ways. A majority of the photographs were captured in Texas. Ford, who is based in Austin, often drove to the farms where the animals lived and set up mini studios inside their barns. He documented the process on his Instagram feed, which includes videos of him shooting his subjects while cows low in the background. “It’s fascinating to look in the eyes of other animals,” Ford said. “There’s something more there than what we at first see.” Read more about the process of making his new book, and how messy the process can be, here: https://txmnth.ly/3B9Z4V8 📸: Randal Ford ✍️: Joshua Alvarez

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Watch our new series, "Under the Cap," in collaboration with Coca-Cola Southwest Beverages. Produced by Texas Monthly Studio in partnership with Texas Country Reporter, this series highlights the remarkable stories of the folks who bring your favorite Coca-Cola products to you. From mariachi bands to firefighters to community leaders, Coca-Cola Southwest Beverages employees are making a difference every day. Watch the first ten episodes here: https://txmnth.ly/4goUGS7 Learn more about TM Studio: https://txmnth.ly/3HVdd8e

We’re back with another #EmployeeSpotlight! Meet Rachel Hudson, our talented Associate Designer who brings our visions to life at TM Studio. 🎨✨

After fifty remarkable years, Pat Sharpe, Texas Monthly’s award-winning restaurant critic, is retiring. Starting as an editorial assistant in 1974, Sharpe’s journey led her to shape the magazine’s Dining Guide and create the influential Pat’s Pick column. Her insightful reviews and engaging columns, have inspired readers to explore a culinary landscape that’s as wide-ranging as the state she loves. "Pat has covered the fine-dining scene in Texas for so long, and in such a discerning and engaging manner, that she has become a vital part of the scene herself. There is no replacing Pat Sharpe,” said Dan Goodgame, Texas Monthly's editor in chief. She will continue contributing to the Dining Guide and Pat’s Pick through the end of the year. Learn more: https://txmnth.ly/3MOFnEU 📸: Jeff Wilson

Dr. Tandy Freeman is a fixture at rodeo events across the country. A Dallas-based orthopedic surgeon, he is the medical director for the Professional Bull Riders organization as well as for Justin Sportsmedicine Team, a group that has served rodeos since 1980. At 66, Freeman has been working with rodeo athletes for more than three decades. In that time he has missed fewer than twenty PBR competitions, of the more than two hundred that take place each year. He is likely the longest-practicing doctor in a field like no other. Read more here: https://txmnth.ly/3Tgugbu 📸: Brian Finke ✍️: Lauren Larson

The crusted peaks of the Christmas Mountains have stood for about 42 million years, the Terlingua Ranch Lodge for about 50. You’ll find them both at the end of a winding sixteen-mile road that cuts through some of the 190,000 acres of the Terlingua Ranch, with its hundreds of cinder block houses, rustic adobes, shacks, sheds, tents, and trailers. This is where the desert rats live, escaping civilization. The lodge, which offers 32 guest rooms across eight cabins, boasts the only pool for miles around—a sparkling blue rectangle surrounded by ocotillo, yucca, boulders, and mountains. Stay there long enough and you’ll be lost beneath the stars blinking impossibly bright. Read more about the oasis here: https://txmnth.ly/3XrTFkR 📸: Chad Wadsworth