We--Gary and Evelyn in the car with Mike (Evelyn's son and wife Tammy), Glen and I in our truck--left for Aransas Pass, Texas. Aransas Pass is on Mustang Island, across the bay from Corpus Christi.
There is a very small channel of water between the north end of Padre Island and Mustang Island.
We rented a three-bedroom condo for three nights. After settling in we drove one block to a RV park where Marcella (Evelyn and Glen's younger sister) and husband Jeff were parked in their Super-C motorhome.
Have I mentioned there was no Verizon cell or internet service. Sorry for the service black-out.
Jeff grilled fresh shrimp and scallops for supper. Oh-my-goodness, it was delicious. There was one downturn--a fresh batch of extra large mosquitoes.
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| Mike and Tammy Allee (Evelyn's son) |
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| Jeff and Marcella Schnakenberg (Evelyn and Glen's younger sister) |
We all returned to the condo for an evening of visiting and games.
Mike and Tammy recently returned from a six-months' work assignment in China. They were glad to have had the opportunity to be there but I don't think they are anxious to return.
Here's the condensed version of Saturday and Sunday:
Sadly we had to say "good-bye" to Mike and Tammy as they flew out of San Antonio Saturday afternoon, heading to Chicago IL. They landed on time but the winter storm prevented them from driving on to their daughter's home.
We tried to buy tickets for a local production of "The Basement Church Ladies", but it was a sell-out.
There is a fantastic boardwalk/birding trail in the city of Aransas Pass. The six of us--okay, I will speak for me---I had a great time observing all of the waterfowl along the boardwalk. I am not implying the other five didn't enjoy themselves; I think I have the most enjoyment in id'ing and watching the ducks, spoonbills, ibis', etc.
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| Roseate spoonbills, and white ibis. |
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| Moss-covered red-eared slider enjoying the sunshine. Even his legs are getting tanned. |
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| One of two resident alligators. |
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| All you snipe hunters: this is what you were looking for! |
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| Northern shoveler. |
We then enjoyed driving ten miles south on the sandy beach along the Gulf of Mexico. There are areas where RVs can park--no hook ups. There were people flying kites; some silly people were IN the water --56 degrees; people walking dogs, and people fishing. There were several access roads leading from the beach to the highway.
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| A charter sight-seeing pirate ship |
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| Enjoying the sights: Jeff, Evelyn, Marcella, Glen |
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| Atlantic bottlenose porpoises |
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| Brown Pelicans |
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| Go Fly a Kite! |
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| Down the Hatch |
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| The Gulf of Mexico |
We returned to the condo, had a short rest, then went to a local Mexican restaurant for Valentine's dinner. When we arrived there was a 15 minutes wait. By the time we were seated the wait was one hour. We made it just in time.
Sunday was a fun-filled day.
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| Marcella, Evelyn, and Glen on the car ferry. |
We drove 50 minutes north to the town of Rockport. But, FIRST, we rode the free car ferry from Aransas Pass to the mainland then drove to Rockport.
We had a light lunch at "Charlotte Plummers" Restaurant. Then...
we boarded "the Skimmer" a charter boat for a three-hour ride roundtrip to see Mainly Whooping Cranes. Of course there were other water birds to see.
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| Ready to board the Skimmer: Gary and Evelyn, Glen and Gayla, Jeff and Marcella |
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| Two Whooping Cranes |
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| An oyster fishing boat. The brown burlap sacks on the back each hold 100 pounds of oysters; each much be at least 3 inches long. |
In the 1940's the population of the Whooping Cranes declined to 15 birds. The numbers now reach approximately 500 birds (most in Texas, some in Louisiana and Florida). It is a success in that the Whoopers are not extinct, but 500 is still a worrisome number.
Sunday night we six, Gary and Evelyn, Jeff and Marcella, Glen and I, attended a performance by "Goldwing Express". They performed two sessions each yesterday and today there in Aransas Pass. They are one of our favorite performing groups. Great banjo and guitar playing and great vocals.
Today we all enjoyed breakfast prepared by Chefs' Gary and Evelyn at the condo; then it was on the way back to Zapata.
The great news: Jeff and Marcella are coming here in a week or less to stay several weeks.
We arrived back in time in Zapata to empty the back of the truck. It is unbelieveable how many bags we had packed for three days.
It's MONDAY, so it must be a Jam Session. There was singing and playing from 6:30 to 8:30 at Amigo Inn Motel and RV Park.
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