We left the Rio Grande Valley and headed southeast, through Harlingen, where the Gibson family spent our last Christmas all together, as Rick died weeks later. So many memories flooded back then....Chantel also took her first steps here...31 years ago!
We loaded up with food and headed to South Padre Island, at the "tropical tip of Texas". S P I is a barrier island between the Gulf of Mexico (east) and the Laguna Madre on the west. SPI, the town, has a pop of 2800 residents, and they are outnumbered by 1000 to 1, when the tourists arrive. This is a very popular place for college students during spring break, coming soon!
The town and island have sure changed since 1981, with many large, tacky souvenir/beach markets. But the beach remains the same, hard packed white sand, deep, driveable and endless. There are some condos and hotels along the beach, lots of vacancies at the moment, great destination.
We relaxed here, biked around the town and especially enjoyed some time at the SPI Birding and Nature Center. The building is only 2 yrs old and has a documentary video about the wildlife in the area, a 5 story viewing platform and lengthy boardwalks out into the lagoon area.
www.spibirding.com
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| a large turtle being rehabed |
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| a baby turtle |
an itchy snowy egret !
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| a type of heron? Someone will correct me... |
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| South Padre Island from the birding centre |
We also enjoyed the Sea Turtle Centre, where they rescue injured turtles, rehabilitate them, educate about them and organize volunteers at hatching time (this is on my bucket list!).
Read about the founder, Ila Fox Loetscher, who in her first career was a contemporary and correspondent of Amelia Earhart, as the first licensed woman pilot in Iowa and Illinois.
www.seaturtleinc.org
an itchy snowy egret !
These are some of the same critters as Sanibel. The slate-blue bird is a Little Blue Heron, which we saw there. The egret is actually a Great Egret with its all-yellow bill and dark feet. I mis-identified it as a snowy in one of my pics and Peter corrected me. The snowy has a dark bill, yellow lores, and bright yellow feet.
ReplyDeleteSea turtles are a big deal on Sanibel too. There are no street lights on the island, partly so that baby turtles won't be lured by them and head in the wrong direction after hatching. Sanibel has a large raccoon population, which is a big problem for the turtles as they eat the eggs and the hatchlings.
Sanibel has sign size restrictions and generally makes an effort to remain less tacky than most of Florida. It's refreshing!
I've never been in Texas, but Peter did his PhD research somewhere on the coast, I don't remember where.
A.