South Padre Island, Texas is at the southern tip of the state. Our changes in latitudes brought us to 26 degrees north, which is about the same as West Palm Beach, Florida where my brother Jeff lives. We are further south of San Diego, CA which has a latitude of 32.7. Its that time of year when many are busy shopping and multicolored holiday lights are everywhere. We found a Christmas Tree made from recycled beach sandals.
Progreso, Texas
The locals claim it is the easiest Mexico-USA border crossing, and it was. There is a parking lot on the USA side that costs $2. After a few minutes walk on the international bridge over the Rio Grande River we were in Mexico.
It costs 50 cents to enter Mexico and 25 cents to go back to the USA. No one was at the Mexican Customs. It was the first time we entered another country without having our passports checked.
Less than a block into Mexico there were an insane number of dentists and pharmacies. Nuevo Progreso is known for its inexpensive dental care and pharmacies. We met numerous RVers who had cleanings, crowns, root canals, and implants done for less than a third of the cost in the US. They believed the quality of the work was as good as their USA or Canadian dentist. The pharmacies were not well stocked. Some items were very inexpensive to more expensive compared to the States. After a simple passport check with nothing to declare we were back in the USA!
Natures Resort Campground
We stopped here on our way to South Padre Island, Texas. Unfortunately, a cold front brought rain, then snow. The locals said its very rare to snow this far south. It was Jake’s first encounter with snow. He ate a bunch of it, then wanted nothing to do with snow. Our good friend Teresa suggested he had an ice cream headache, thinking she was right! We had 50 amp service, 50 psi water pressure, good internet, sewer, and a huge dog park.
They had 2 pools and a spa, which no one was using because of the cold weather and snow. There were a lot of people wintering from Quebec. The owner, Bill, is from Colorado and enjoys making funky welded sculptures out of scrap metal. In Fort Collins, Colorado he has over 80 of them on display. There were almost as many at the RV park.
Their library was huge with 4 walls of shelves that included; DVDs, fiction, science fiction, travel books, romance, and non fiction.
KOA South Padre Island, Texas
We enjoyed this campground. Our site was a pull in facing south overlooking the ocean. It was fun to watch small boats to big container ships sail by. There was a small wetland with numerous birds in front of the RV. Farther out we watched porpoises. Each evening displayed a wonderful sunset.
They had a very good gym with numerous machines and free weights. There was a lap pool and spa. We had 50 amp service, water pressure was 50 psi, sewer, cable, ok internet, and good satellite reception. The downside was there was no privacy between sites, which didn’t matter because our neighbors were fun.
We had the RV washed, including the roof, and waxed for only $155. The Jeep was washed, waxed, and the inside detailed for only $35. They were meticulous and spent over 5 hours on both vehicles. Normally it would cost over twice that amount.
There is also a marina and restaurant that are a part of the property.
South Padre Island, Texas
The island is known for it’s sandcastles. Businesses pay to have them built. There is a map to find them all.
South Padre Island Birding and Nature Center
The Nature Centers trail consists of over 3300 linear feet of boardwalk over the coastal wetland to view birds. South Padre Island Birding and Nature Center also has a well done museum that helps with identification of all the animals in the area. We really enjoyed it. Even though most of these birds we saw daily around the island, it was very well done and the density of photo friendly birds made it enjoyable.
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Roseate Spoonbill
Snowy Egret
Tricolor Heron
White Ibis
Black Necked Stilt
Brown Pelican
American Wigeon, Common Gallinule, Mallard Duck, White Pelican.
American Alligator. This one was 6 feet long and was sunning himself. Hence, the elevated boardwalk.
Beaches
The beach at South Padre Island, Texas was stunning. It was easy to walk and there were a lot of shells.
We were able to drive on the beach for over 30 miles. The only people there were primarily fishermen. Some college kids tried to get on the beach with a small compact car and got stuck. Luckily, one of the fishermen had a tow rope. It was a great opportunity for Jake to be off leash and run along the beach. There are rattlesnakes on the island, so we kept him out of their habitat.
There was a lot of trash washed up from the recent storm. The county will wave your beach access fee for picking up trash. We picked up a garbage bag full just to help out. Some, use the trash to make unique beach art.
Sea Turtle, Inc
Sea Turtle is a turtle rescue founded in 1977. Their mission is to rescue and rehabilitate injured sea turtles for release back into the wild, educate the public, and assist with conservation efforts for all marine turtle species.
Edinburg, Texas Sandpipers Resort
We really enjoyed South Padre Island, but its time to start heading north-west towards Big Bend National Park. We stayed in Edinburg for a week and a half. Since there isn’t much in Big Bend, we wanted to provision before heading there. There is a Costco and all the creature comforts in nearby McAllen, TX. The best part of the resort were all the winter Texans. They were a very social group. Every day there was a happy hour at a different RV site and up to 90 people would show up. Every few days a potluck, sometimes with live music. We were invited to a very casual but festive Christmas party when it was 86 degrees outside.
The Sandpipers RV Resort had a large heated pool (90 degrees) and a huge spa (102 degrees). We were in the pool 2-3 times a day. There were wild chickens here that Jake enjoyed watching. An armadillo wandered into the park and Jake wanted to chase it so badly but they can carry leprosy, rabies, tapeworms, and salmonella… so not a good idea. Jake’s favorite thing were a couple at the far end of the RV park. They would give him a huge rawhide bone whenever they saw him.
