Neighborhood Moment: Gone Fishin'

Photographer, Martinez native and Patch user Robert Perry was hanging around his Castro Street home Sunday when he heard a commotion in the creek behind his house and investigated. He found four Martinez Jr. High School students doing what boys have done in this city since it was a city - fishing in the creek.

"They actually had a fish on the line," Perry said. "They pulled the silver seven-incher from the depths (eight inches?). Being conservationists and practicing catch and release, by the time I was able to grab a camera, the fish was free and the line reset. While the adventure itself isn't unique (I and three friends made the same trip 46 years ago), it is remarkable that the watershed is once again healthy enough to sustain fish."

And it is enough to give parents heart that boys this age are still outside with fishing poles, exploring the wilds of Alhambra Creek on a sunny winter day, instead of inside glued to the X-Box.