South Padre Island is a 34 mile long and narrow sandy island sandwiched between the Gulf of Mexico and the Laguna Madre bay. South Padre Island used to be connected to Padre Island to the north until a man-made channel was dug, forever separating the two. The channel provided boat access to the Gulf for the fishing community of Port Mansfield on the Texas coast.
Much of the southern portion of South Padre is developed as a tourist destination. Lots of beaches attract the sun seekers, the fishermen love the onshore and offshore fishing, the birders love the 350 recorded species on the island, and then there's the bars, restaurants, hotels, condos and associated businesses. Oh, and a ton of people!
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| Port Isabel lighthouse. Just across the channel from South Padre. |
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| The bridge to South Padre Island |
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| We stopped at the Visitor Center. South Padre has lots of sand castles around town. These are a sample..... |
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| Lots of public beaches. Miles of white sand to accommodate the massive crowds that descend on South Padre Island. |
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| Lots of beautiful accommodations with amazing views. |
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| A great spot to fly kites. These are huge. |
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| This kite was very cool. It rotated in the wind. |
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| This one had to be fifty feet long. |
The north end of the beach is much different. Wild sandy beaches accessible by most vehicles. In fact if you're game you can drive thirty miles down the beach all the way to the channel. Just watch the tides and don't get stuck!
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| Huge sand dunes constantly shifting. There is a story/legend that says there is a fortune in Spanish gold hidden somewhere in the sand dunes further north. Apparently the treasure was buried and left, but when the owner returned hurricanes, waves and wind had shifted the lay of the land. They never did find the treasure. Lots of folks are still looking for it. |
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| The end of the road. |
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| If you are so inclined you can drive the length of the Island on the beach. |
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| So we cheated. Parked on the road and walked over the dunes to the beach. |
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| Or you could rent a horse to do the walking. Bonus, they don't get stuck in the sand! |
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| Tons of shells on the beach. |
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| Surf fishing. Some guys had good luck. |
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| That road needs constant maintenance. |
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| Lots of options to wash the sand out of your mouth! |
.......and that was Our View From Here!
Love the sand castles!!!! Amazing some of the kites you can buy isn't it? I'm surprised they don't use a plow for the sand instead of the loader. Might make the work easier. Thanks for the tour, I enjoyed it.
ReplyDeleteInteresting to watch them clear sand from the roads just like they do with snow up north. We have always wanted to get down that way but have yet to make it.
ReplyDeleteWE haven't been there since 2012 but sure hoping to get here again! Great pictures! So pretty!
ReplyDeleteIt was a long time ago that we wee there, thanks for bringing back the memories.
ReplyDeleteWow those kites are huge. They must have great wind on the beach to keep them aloft.
ReplyDeleteThose sandcastles are amazing! I love how they use snow plows to plough the sand, we saw that on Dauphin Island in Alabama and thought it looked cool.
ReplyDeleteThose Sand Castles were amazing.
ReplyDeleteGood thing not testing your luck on the beach, it could be costly.
Be Safe and Enjoy looking for your treasure.
It's about time.
Really enjoyed your pictures of the area. We spent our first Christmas on the road on Mustang Island and did ride over to Padre Island. We really enjoyed the area and hope to get back there again. Thank you for sharing.
ReplyDeleteHoly sand castles! Hope to see them in person next year. Thanks for the great preview of South Padre Island. Looks really nice there, the beaches look amazing.
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