Happy Mardi Gras

Yesterday was Fat Tuesday, and Port Aransas celebrated with a Mardi Gras parade.

There were lots of people lined up along the route. We had gone for a walk earlier in the day, and some people had put out their chairs to save a spot hours before the parade started. I guess this parade is a big deal.

I think these guys were the kings and queens.

There were a couple of boats decorated as floats. This one was from the bar The Gaff where we watched the belt sander races last Saturday. If you click on the picture to enlarge it, you might see the dog sticking its head out of the hole in the side of the boat. Very cute!

I thought this guy was interesting. So did the reporter who was asking him his name. Where do you buy a duck you can wear?

These guys were the toilet seat brigade, clapping the seats in rhythm. I’ve never seen that before in a parade.

Most of the entrants were decorated golf carts. The parade lasted about an hour. Lots of beads and some candy were being tossed to the crowd. I ended up with a dozen necklaces without even trying. Even the dogs got into the spirit.

One group was handing out Moon Pies. I’ve heard of these, but have never eaten one. The package said to microwave for even more enjoyment. It was very sweet and just okay. Kevin doesn’t like marshmallow, so he wasn’t interested in sharing. I did eat the whole thing, but I don’t think it was worth the 300 calories.

The weather has been rather cool, damp and windy the last few days, so we haven’t been doing much. That has given me time to work on some sewing projects. Tomorrow is supposed to be nice again. We’re headed back to the seashore!

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Belt Sander Races

Yesterday afternoon we walked into Port Aransas to take a look around in their little museum. We discovered that Mustang Island got its name because of the wild mustang horses that used to roam the island after being brought on Spanish ships. We also learned that Teddy Roosevelt stayed on the island at one time and went on a fishing expedition.

We noticed this sign. Later on we saw the same sign in another location near a school. We’re thinking the law is no cell phone use in a school zone. We’ve never seen that anywhere else.

 

 

 

 

 

I browsed in a couple of small shops and found a cute pair of earrings. We wandered down one of the side streets to check out a glass shop. We couldn’t figure out why there were about 50 cars parked along the side of the road.

I was chatting with the lady in the glass shop about how she makes her jewelry, and she asked me if we were going to the belt sander races next door. We didn’t know anything about it, but found out that’s why all the cars were parked on this road.

We wandered to the backyard of the small bar called The Gaff, and there were a ton of people packed in back there. The sign in front said “Welcome to the birthplace of Texas belt sander races.”

 

We saw two long wooden tracks and a table with a bunch of decked out belt sanders. A little after 3 pm the announcer played the national anthem and the race was underway. There were about a dozen entrants and each heat was the best out of three races. Then there was a winners division and a losers division so they would race again. This could go on for a long time.

Notice all the people (I’m guessing there were at least 200 spectators). The guy in the blue shirt was from Team Viagra. He had quite a cheering section all wearing the same shirts.

They even had starting lights and line judges in case it was close.

We stayed and watched a few races and then headed home. What a hoot! Everyone seemed to be having a great time with plenty of beverages being consumed. This was definitely a draw for the Winter Texans as most people in the crowd could be described as senior citizens.

What a great marketing ploy. We walked past several other bars on our way home, and there were at most a handful of people in each one. Certainly not the hundreds attending the belt sander races.

As we were leaving, I spotted this bicycle in the parking lot. The red lights were blinking. I just have to say it, this was definitely a redneck event.

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Padre Island National Seashore

Yesterday we headed about 30 miles south to Padre Island National Seashore. Our first stop was the visitor center. As luck would have it, we arrived just in time to join Ranger Buzz in a guided beach walk.

Buzz was one of the most interesting National Park rangers we’ve ever heard. His talk was super informative without being boring. Before we knew it an hour had flown by and we had learned a lot about the park and the seashore. Padre Island NS is the longest undeveloped barrier island in the world.

The beach was lined with thousands of Portuguese Man of War jellyfish. We learned they can have tentacles as long as 150 feet. Even if they look dead, you can still get stung by picking one up on the beach so be careful.

We spent about an hour just wandering along the beach. It was a beautiful sunny day. There were several fishermen along the shore. We saw what looked like a large bird up ahead.

Sure enough, there was a large Great Blue Heron standing right next to the water near one of the fishermen. I couldn’t believe it. I’ve seen lots of them in ponds and marshy areas, but never right on the beach. We got within a few feet of him before he walked away. He did not appear to be afraid of us at all.

One of the volunteers at the visitor center told us there are several Blue Herons that hang out along the beach looking for handouts from the fishermen. Smart birds!

This flock of Snow Geese was just off the side of the road.

We drove further south until the paved road came to an end. You can drive for another 30 miles or so along the beach, but it is recommended for four wheel drive only. We parked on the beach and walked for another hour along the Gulf of Mexico. Beautiful!!

These birds lined up on the pilings made me think of the gull in the movie Finding Nemo. Mine, mine, mine :)

Lots of birds were hanging out along the beach. We saw them eating the jellyfish. They grab one, shake it until the tentacles come off and eat the bubble part at the top.

There was quite a bit of garbage along the beach. Ranger Buzz had told us that these beaches gets a lot of garbage due to some converging currents in this area. He said much a lot of it comes from the fishing industry and boats out in the gulf. This broken Styrofoam cooler was from Louisiana. As hard as they try, they cannot keep up with cleanup. In fact, the visitor center gives away free garbage bags for visitors to fill with garbage as they comb the beach.

Our $10 admission is good for 7 days. We’re probably going to go back this week to join the afternoon birding tour.

On Thursday we rode our bikes to the 1,200 acre Port Aransas Nature Preserve. There is a mile long boardwalk and path through the marsh.

I liked this funny looking bird. I think it’s a Long Billed Curlew.

We rode our bikes along a very nice concrete path that led from the nature preserve to another park with a community pool and a skateboarding park. I’m so impressed with this small town of Port Aransas. They have several wonderful parks for their residents and visitors.

Along the path I saw this beautiful guy perched on a pole. I tried to figure out what kind of bird it was, but couldn’t find it. I’m thinking some type of hawk. He sure was pretty.

This birding stuff is becoming addictive. I’m discovering that I’m drawn to large or unusual looking birds. I don’t think I’ll ever be a die hard birder, but there are so many birds in Texas, that it’s kind of hard not to get caught up in it. As we drove the 30 miles from the seashore back to Port Aransas, I saw countless egrets and other birds in the little ponds along the side of the road. Amazing!

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Dolphins, Oh Yeah!!

Yesterday was an awesome day!!

We went back to the shuttle stop and when I saw the bus coming, I was up and waving my arms. The lady driver stopped for us, and we rode the entire loop for 25 cents. The shuttle is a nice way to get around if you don’t want to drive.

The day was warm and sunny, but when the shuttle got to the beach it was foggy right along the shore. It was kind of eerie looking.

Our driver was very nice and pointed out points of interest along the route. She told us that dolphin are frequently seen in the shipping channel. We got off the bus at the park we went to the day before and climbed the observation tower to see if we could see any dolphin. No luck.

We walked back home and picked up our bikes. Its about a 15 minute bike ride to Gulf of Mexico beaches. The fog had burned off, and it was a beautiful day.

We parked our bikes and walked over to the jetty between the Gulf and the shipping channel. There were lots of people fishing along the very long wall. We walked all the way to the end. I don’t know how far out it goes, but here’s a look back to shore. It’s a very long wall made of huge granite boulders built by the Army Corp of Engineers.

As we neared the end of the jetty, I spotted a dolphin in the channel! Then I saw a few more!! We ended up seeing a couple of different groups of them with 3 or 4 dolphin in each group. I was snapping away with my camera hoping I’d get at least one decent picture.

It was so cool to see the dolphin, but the fun wasn’t over yet. Kevin spotted a sea turtle swimming near the side of the wall. I wasn’t able to get a picture, but we enjoyed watching it. It would stick its head out for a breath and then float along just under the surface. Eventually, it dove deeper and we lost sight of it.

We saw lots of Brown Pelicans. This guy was sitting on a rock and let me get up very close for a picture.

A large group of pelicans went flying overhead.

I snapped several shots of pelicans flying hoping to get a good one. I think this one turned out very nice.

Out near the end of the jetty I spotted this boat engine lodged in between some rocks. It would take some very powerful waves to toss it up on these rocks.

I was appalled by the amount of garbage down between all of the rocks. Where does it all come from? How is all of this garbage getting into the water? Disgusting!!

Back at the beach we were surprised to see campers right on the sand. There is a campground, but it’s behind the dunes. These campers were parked right on the beach.  I asked a lady about it, and she told me its $12 a night to camp on the beach. Although I think it would be very cool to do, we wouldn’t feel comfortable putting our 5th wheel on the sand like that.

There were lots of gulls along the beach, and quite a few of these cute little Sanderlings.

One White Egret was hanging out near the shore in a little cove.

We picked up our bikes and headed back home. After dinner we watched Bourne Legacy, which we had picked up from Redbox using a free code they texted me. It was pretty good.

Thus ended an amazing day!

As I’m writing this blog, its raining and thundering outside. Texas is in a drought, and they really need this rain. We’re staying home today. I’m going to work on a sewing project I’m doing for Cathryn. Hopefully, she will like how it turns out.

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Exploring Port Aransas

Our original plan for yesterday was to ride the shuttle around Port Aransas to get a feel for where everything is located. There is a stop next to our RV park, and the shuttle comes once an hour. We sat down on the bench and waited. The shuttle came and went right past us. The driver never even looked at us. What’s up with that??

So, we started walking. We found the visitor center and were informed that you have to stand up and wave down the shuttle drivers. Lots of people just use the benches to rest so the drivers don’t stop if someone is just sitting there. Today we’ll try again and you can bet I’ll be waving my arms like mad. The shuttle is 25 cents each time you get on. Not a bad deal if you can catch a ride.

We ended up walking around town for almost three hours. There is a very nice park along the ship channel on one side of the island. This is also where you can catch the ferry to the mainland. We saw a motorhome and small camper, as well as several large trucks and many cars on the ferry. The people at the visitor center told us that heavy vehicles are sometimes not allowed on the ferry if the tide is low. When we leave here, we’ll probably just go back the way we came over the bridge in Corpus Christi.

This picture was taken from the observation tower in the park. Two of the ferries are crossing in the back. There is a nice fishing pier.

Lots of people were fishing from the wall. There were many pipes for them to put their poles into. It didn’t look like they were having much luck though.

There’s a very nice marina as part of the park.

These pelicans were enjoying the day as well.

We passed a restaurant with this very cool sand sculpture outside. They had a sign explaining that they had started this sculpture in October. As a section is finished, they spray it with a mixture of water and Elmer’s glue. The sign also said that “kids, kreeps, klimate and kyotes have an adverse affect on the sculpture”. Funny!

Many cities have some type of statues representing their town. I think it may have originally started with cows in Chicago. Port Aransas has boats made out of concrete and then decorated. I believe there used to be a boat building company here called Farley Boat Company. The same restaurant had this boat with a sand sculpture inside of it.

Of course, there are plenty of souvenir shops along the main drag. This is certainly a big shark. The shop in the background was called The Lighthouser.

 Pretty much everything in town is within walking or biking distance from us. We’re really liking the feel of this town. Its very laid back and has the feel of a tropical island. Not at all what we were expecting in Texas. I can’t wait to explore the beach!

Who knows, maybe we’ll stay put and purchase this RV on pontoons :)

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Green Parakeets Return

Our last week in Mission was pretty low key. We went bike riding at Bentsen Rio Grande Valley State Park a few times. At one point, four Green Jays flew across the road just in front of us. Very cool!

We also visited with a friend and took a tour of the Bentsen Palm Village Development down the road. It’s a really nice place, but we’re not anywhere near ready to settle down in one spot.

The Green Parakeets would sometimes come to our RV park, but our last week they were back in full force. They usually flew over in the morning and again in the afternoon. They seem to love the many Hackberry trees in the park. In this first picture you can see them eating the berries.

One of the trees was over our truck. About one hundred birds descended on that tree. As they devoured the berries, it sounded like it was raining as the shells hit the ground and our truck. The berries have a sticky residue, so a truck wash was in order later in the day.

Our last afternoon we decided to take a swim and enjoy the hot tub one more time. The parakeets were flying overhead and landed in a tree next to the pool. What a great send off.

We enjoyed our month in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. Overall, the weather was okay. We had some cold, damp days at the beginning of the month and some hot, humid days later on. Many days had at least some cloud cover. We’re glad we visited, but probably won’t come back.

Sunday we left and headed to our next month long adventure in Port Aransas, Texas. In Corpus Christi, we saw a huge oil refinery called Flint Hill Refinery. I did a little research and found out that the company has refineries in Alaska, Minnesota and Texas. Combined, they can process 800,000 barrels of crude oil per day. Wow!

Port Aransas is on Mustang Island. We crossed over a long causeway as we approached from the South. There is a free ferry service to get to the island from the North. It runs 24/7 and can handle rigs up to 55’ long. We’ll be checking it out while we’re here.

This area has an island tropical feel to it. There are lots of sand dunes and little shops that remind me of Key West, Florida. I’m excited to begin exploring.

We’re staying at Marina Beach RV Resort. Our site is a 50 amp FHU with a level concrete pad. Sites in the park are pretty tight, but overall it looks like a decent, well maintained place. There is a laundry room and a small clubhouse plus a good sized pool and small backyard style hot tub. The pool is open, but the water is cold.

I was excited to see there is a Dairy Queen within walking distance! Maybe that’s not such a good thing as I still am trying to lose a few pounds before Korey’s wedding :)

Speaking of the wedding, the date is August 10, 2013. They have booked the church, hall, caterer, and photographer so they can now focus on some of the other details.

Korey has moved into his apartment in Omaha and started a new job. He is so happy to finally be living in the same city as Cathryn.

They had engagement pictures taken before Christmas. So far, they’ve only shared one with us. I’m looking forward to seeing more. They also have set up a wedding website. Only six months to the big day!

 

 

 

 

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Palo Alto NHS and New Chairs

The recliners that came with our 5th wheel were not the greatest quality. After sitting in them for a few years, the cushions had begun to sink. Kevin’s was actually leaning to one side. We are limited to the type of recliners we can buy because they have to be no more than 32 inches wide from side to side so they can be turned sideways and pushed against the rear when the slides come in for traveling.

I had priced some La-Z-Boy chairs last summer in Wisconsin. I found a model that is small enough, but I didn’t like the prices. While looking through one of the Winter Texan newspapers here in Texas, I came across an ad for La-Z-Boy chairs at nearby Whalen Furniture for $299 each. That’s a deal.

 

Last week we stopped in and took a look. We ordered two chairs, but had to pay $124 per chair extra for the swivel option. Although the sales tax is higher in Texas than in Wisconsin, the total bill was still about $75 less than I had found last summer. And the sales lady was nice enough to work it out so we didn’t have to pay delivery charges. They also took our old chairs away to donate to a thrift shop.

 

On Saturday we rode our bikes to Bentsen Rio Grande Valley State Park again. We rode around the loop inside the park twice which made for a total of about 12 total miles of riding. We didn’t see too many birds on our bikes, but I did get another great shot of a Green Jay. Aren’t they just beautiful!!

 

On Sunday we headed towards Brownsville to visit the Palo Alto National Historic Site and Resaca de la Palma State Park. We went to the park first and walked the 3 mile road inside the park. There are about 11 miles of trails throughout this park and a nice visitor’s center. It was a very windy day, and we saw almost no birds. We did see a Screech Owl in a box behind the visitor center. He must have been sleeping because his eyes are closed in every picture I took. What a cutie!

 

Our second stop was the Palo Alto National Historic Site which is the location of the first major battle of the US-Mexican War in 1846. There is a visitor center with some displays and an informative movie. A one mile path takes you out into the battlefield area where there are interpretive signs and replicated cannons on display. Its just a big field.

The entire battle was fought using cannons. Basically, the US had better cannons and won the battle.

I enjoy learning about history at these historic sites, however this one was not all that interesting. I guess battles don’t appeal to me too much.

On our way to Brownsville we drove on a stretch of road that had the border fence right next to it. Some houses had the fence at the back of their yards. I stark reminder of the immigration issues our country faces.

The weather the last few days has been quite warm and humid. Both Monday and Tuesday were near 90 degrees with 70 degree dew points. The cold front that has spawned severe weather in other parts of the country has brought a welcome relief to temperatures here. The rest of the week is predicted to be in the mid 70s. Much better!

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!