After packing up from the RV Park in the morning at Port Aransas, we drove on to JP Luby Beach on Mustang Island, based on positive reviews we'd read about it. The best part was that we could drive onto the beach and park on it so that we were 20 meters in front of the ocean! It was so easy to get a permit as well--we went to a Stripes Convenience Store nearby to purchase it, which cost $12 for the entire year, and covered the Corpus Christi beaches on the Gulf. There are many stores to buy it from, and even be purchased on the beach if the people selling them are working when you get there.
We've never been to a beach that allows us to drive onto it in the US (Michael has been to one in Australia), so it was a novelty for us to simply drive in, and find a parking spot that was mere meters in front of the shore. We didn't have a tent or beach umbrella (and now actually would have been the perfect time for us to still have an awning, but it blew away in Minnesota), but we were resourceful, setting up our camping chairs and opening our two big rain umbrellas to sit under.
We spent the entire day swimming, and it was glorious! We took turns jumping in, occasionally taking Sheila to get her paws and belly wet (she never goes deep enough where she can't have her paws firmly on the sand). How wonderful to have a beach day, reading and relaxing, and when it got too hot, we could simply walk to the water in front of us!
While we always are very diligent about applying sunscreen, unfortunately at one point Michael was out swimming for way too long, because at the end of the day we noticed that he had become very sunburned! He was red on his face, back, and very, very red on his stomach. What likely happened is that he applied sunscreen, but it had washed off in the water, which meant he'd just gotten toasted in the sun. It will certainly make for a hotter and more uncomfortable night's sleep! We stayed parked at the same spot overnight, and at least we had a cool ocean breeze coming in.
One of the Best Starts to the Day
How's this for kicking off the morning? Waking up with the ocean breeze wafting in through the window. Stretching and walking to the door, opening it and... having the beach right at our doorstep!! We took Sheila for a quick walk and run along the shore (she absolutely loved it--smiling from ear to ear), came back and had breakfast, and after setting up our camping chairs and umbrellas again, went straight into the ocean for a swim. Ah, such is the life! In the morning, there were quite a few people on surfboards or bodyboards catching the small and constant waves.
Since Michael had gotten sunburned yesterday, he went swimming with a shirt on today. Quite a few people did have shirts or rash guards on, and we talked about how it would make sense for Michael to invest in a rash guard when we get to Nicaragua, as we'll be in the water more often once we're there. Lisette also has this amazing surf poncho changing robe towel--it's a big poncho with pockets and a hood, made out of towel material, so that you can change in/out of your swimsuit discreetly, or throw it on after getting out of the water so that the towel dries you while wearing it. She got it a couple of years ago when she noticed how awesome and convenient it was for her freediving teacher, and it's definitely another practical beach purchase!
At one point we both went into the ocean, as Sheila was content to be chilling by the RV, in the shade (occasionally under the RV too to stay cool). We were catching waves, and now Lisette knows why Michael got sunburned so much, because now it was her turn to become a bit pink in the face! Lisette is not going to take Michael's lead now on how long to spend in the water!
From lunchtime onwards, it became more and more busy, with more people starting to drive in and park alongside us. A lot of young families, and couples, happy to spend the day on the sand. Most people had beach umbrellas or canopies with deck chairs. For us, it was nice to be able to play music, and hop in and out of our RV to have lunch, grab a drink, etc. Very convenient, although the only downside was the amount of sand that we inevitably brought in with us--even with a small basin of water or our doormat outside, we still dragged a lot of sand particles in!
Back to Port Aransas
In the evening we decided to spend time at another beach, so we headed back towards Port Aransas to go to the first beach we were at, Port Aransas Beach, not far from the RV Park we checked into on our first night. Similar to JP Luby Beach, cars were allowed to park and camp on the sound, although there was a barrier preventing any vehicles from parking as close, which meant we were closer to traffic behind us. There were a lot more traffic, and people were playing loud (and admittedly, not always good--often we could just hear the bass) music as they roared past, US flags waving on their golf carts. So it was definitely more hectic and less serene. While there was a nice breeze in the evening, in hindsight we should have stayed nearer to the other beach, since it was so much nicer.
Too Hot for the Beach
The next morning we woke up to stifling heat already-by 8am it was already 28 degrees Celsius (82.4 Fahrenheit), with no breeze and no shade! It was nice to wake up in the morning and head straight to the sand, walking Sheila along the shore, but it was already a sign that today's beach day wouldn't be as nice as the day before--there was a lot of seaweed and rubbish that had washed up on the shore, and it was just HOT.
We both had to get some work done, which included getting on some conference calls. Yes, we are those people that have taken work calls from the beach, it's a true thing! With the unrelenting heat, once we'd finished our calls after lunch, we simply headed out, not wanting to get even more sunburned!
Heading to Brazoria
Leaving Corpus Christi, we initially thought that we'd check out another beach further along, but it turns out that to get to some of the beaches, we'd need to get on a ferry (which may not have been possible anyway with our RV). We took this as our sign to leave Corpus Christi, continuing on our road trip with a stop at Brazoria, where we stayed at Brazoria Lakes RV Resort for the night.
Ahead of us arriving the manager called us to confirm when we'd arrive and if they needed to have our welcome pack ready for us at the front window after hours (and one more time as we got there just minutes before closing). The park was really lovely, with a big gate to drive into, a generous cement slab that could fit an RV and even a car next to it, and freshly mowed lawns in between each RV spot. All of the RV spots were around the perimeter of the lake, which had two fountains in the middle, providing a peaceful sound around the park. While there were many RVs parked around, it was quiet and relaxed. Plus there was a pool (yay!), a 24-hour laundry, and other amenities including treadmills, a pool table and a lounge area.
Our plan was to get set up and head to the pool after dinner. Unfortunately, after we'd gotten set up and eaten, we realized that there was no power, despite being plugged in. Michael tried to troubleshoot it, but after checking out other vacant spots, we had to call the manager after hours to fix it. When that proved fruitless, we had to move to another spot, and by the time we'd gotten everything up and running it was well towards 9pm. The positive from this was that the manager recognized the inconvenience, and gave us a free nights' stay. The only issue was the power fluctuated and overheated our inverter.
We still went for a swim with an hour to spare before the pool closed, soon joined by an older couple who we ended up chatting to until closing time: Ralph and Pam from Texas. Ralph was 72 years old but in great shape, having spent most of his life surfing. They'd lived in Hawai'i on the Big Island for 20 years, and had decided to return to Texas, and were now traveling around the US--heading to New Mexico and Colorado next. Apparently they'd been planning to travel to Australia about a decade or so ago, and still hoped to go there one day, to surf around the Gold Coast and spend 2-3 weeks there. Hopefully they'll make it soon, perhaps for Ralph's 75th birthday!
Route Map
