Southern Gulf Coast in Texas

I’ve been in my new location for a little over a week and every day is different here. I’m kind of a weather junkie, and living in an Airstream means being aware of what nature has in store for you. Now I am a weather obsessive!

Today and apparently for the rest of the week I am experiencing a deep and persistent marine layer of fog. Couldn’t see 50 feet out this morning. This afternoon is better, but not by much. Previous days included beautiful blue sunny skies, rain, cold, warm, and partly cloudy. What I am sure of is that there will be no snow. I like that part.

Being on a bay means I sit on the mainland and am separated from the Gulf of Mexico proper by barrier islands. This part of the coast is filled with islands, the most famous being Padre Island, which is maybe 30 to 45 miles away from me. Sitting in a marine space means lots of sea smells – which I love having spent my high school years across the street from an inlet to the Atlantic ocean where the fishing fleet came in. It also means lots of birds and I am looking forward to visiting the Aransas Wildlife Refuge about an hour north of me where migratory birds are centered. There also are plenty of fish and fishermen/women, and I even saw a dolphin! I caught a picture of its fin (picture 2 in the gallery below) while trying to capture a bird!

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There’s a channel marker just offshore and that means a busy boat lane right in front of the park property. Speed boats, fish boats with trolling motors, shrimp boats, and tug boats – many times a day, sometimes coming back empty and sometimes pushing something to the port or out to sea. A cargo container barge came in this morning and a sand barge went out yesterday. It can be loud, but it’s part of the rhythm of the place and I like to go with the flow.

It’s a packed park and there is no “camping” here. This is a place where people set up living for a few months or for the duration. It’s a very different experience from my traditional federal and state parks. I have no view out my back window – I face the laundry building, and my neighbor’s trailer is so close I can touch it from my patio. Gotta keep maximizing the revenue per square foot I suppose. All in all, it is a quiet place (except for the boats), I love the sea air, it’s warm, and I am comfortable. Can’t ask for much more than that on a daily basis. More later, on all the surrounding areas as I venture out.