Port Aransas, Texas: From Minnesota to Texas and Back Again

I’m happy to report that since my last post, almost all of the snow (18″) that was dumped on us here in Minnesota on April 15th has melted away.

Mother Nature gave us what seemed to be an epic ending to our winter weather as spring has finally arrived. The scilla in the garden have bloomed and the daffodils are close behind. Relief! The same feeling we had after we decided to drive south during the cold and snowy winter of 2014. The winter we drove from Minnesota to Texas and back again.

We left our house on the morning of February 27th, 2014 when the air was frigid enough to freeze exposed skin in 10 minutes or less…

…and arrived at our destination – I.B. Magee Beach Park in Port Aransas, Texas within 36 hours.

I.B. Magee Beach Park is located on the northern tip of Mustang Island in Port Aransas. The park consists of 167 acres, and offers 75 modern camping sites that include electric and water, plenty of primitive camping space just feet from the warm Gulf of Mexico waters, extremely clean bathhouses (if you know me, you know I can’t do dirty public bathrooms – I’d rather find a wooded area), fishing, birding, shelling, swimming, and is pet-friendly.

We pulled into the park at 10:30 pm – the park was dark and quiet, but we could hear the lapping of the waves on the sand. We couldn’t see a thing on that moonless night; however, I opened the windows and asked the kids “What do you smell?”

My 5-year old son replied “Fish!” and my three-year old daughter asked “What is that smell?” as she wrinkled up her nose.

“That, my dears, is the smell of the ocean.” I replied as my husband and I started to laugh. I guess maybe it’s an acquired smell.

As we pulled up to the park office, friendly staff members were awaiting us in the lobby. We were quickly checked in, given a park map, and guided to our campsite.

We tried to be quick and quiet with our set-up as campers surrounded us. Luckily, my parents were our neighbors to the East as they were spending the winter in Texas volunteering at the Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge. So, they took the kids while my husband and I set-up the pop-up camper. Within an hour we were all settled and ready for bed – excited to explore the island in the morning.

When we awoke the next morning, we found that my parents had gone into town and bought a variety of bakery treats to greet us with. Eating outside in the sunshine with green grass beneath our feet was a gift. Bakery goods were a regular treat that our family shared up at the family cabin on summer weekends for decades, so my parents thought they’d bring that special tradition to us on the first morning of our trip.

Immediately after the kids finished their doughnuts, they made a bee-line for the ocean – through the campsites, over the bunkers, and out to the sand they ran. They couldn’t wait to see this large body of water we had discussed before our trip – the thing that incensed the air with the smell of fish. Ha!

The Beach

I.B. Magee beach was expansive, offering a lot of play room for our family. Picnic tables lined the backside of the beach, and a fishing pier could be seen on the north side of the park. The sand was soft and clean with very little seaweed littering the ground, and the ocean waters were warmer than expected in the middle of winter.

Our first morning on the beach was quite cool and windy, but it didn’t stop my daughter from making sand angels (which turned out to be much different than the snow angels she was used to making at home) in the soft sand that was warmed by the sun, and turning our dog, Brook, into a sand pup.

My son was most excited to try out his new metal detector on the wide beaches. He found fish hooks, tent stakes, old cans, and a few treasures – coins that had been eroded by years of salty water and sand washing over them

The next few days were warmer, so the kids braved the ocean waters, and even gave it a little taste. As you can imagine, we got a laugh out of seeing more wrinkled noses as they figured out just how salty ocean water is.

The beaches at I.B. Magee were relatively empty at the end of February. There were a few walkers here and there, a couple of surf fishermen and women in the evenings, but for the most part, we had miles of open beaches to ourselves. This was perfect for treasure hunting, dog walking, shelling, sand castle building, and exploring the wildlife on the beach. Oh, and for my three-year old daughter to pretend that she was hunting the seagulls. At least, I think she was pretending. Port Aransas offers much more than stunning beaches, and we didn’t wait long to continue our explorations.

Aransas Pass Ship Channel

Two days into our stay we took a walk to the north end of Mustang Island where the Aransas Pass Ship Channel runs. The walk to the channel was full of wildflowers…

…fishermen sitting in lounge chairs with their poles in hand, and kids flying kites.

Our favorite observations were the brown pelicans flying by…

…the massive shrimp boats of different shapes and colors moving at a snail’s pace through the channel…

…and the playful dolphins swimming alongside the boats hoping for a shrimpy treat.

I bet you’re wondering if we were lucky enough to eat some fresh Gulf shrimp. We sure were!

Into Town

Downtown Port Aransas is what you would expect to see in a small island town. Businesses and small homes of bright island colors paint the town happy. Funny signs greet on-lookers, and small shops invite leisurely walkers with open doors. The parks were beautiful – dotted with palm trees, and the people were friendly wherever we turned.

We had come into town for a reason – the shrimp. The locals recommended that we buy our fresh shrimp from a place named Oceans of Seafood – a shop that embraced the bright island decor of the town. Turquoise and bright orange paint decorated the outside, and quirky hand-painted figures, fish nets, and colorful lights added to the fun atmosphere.

My son, who is a self-proclaimed lover of “anything antique” and an avid fisherman (he can fish for hours without stopping), was more than excited to see the sign that read “OLD FISHING LURES AND NAUTICAL SHOP” as we climbed the stairs to go inside. He must have spent an hour combing the store before we were all too hungry to delay any longer.

Large handfuls of fresh Gulf shrimp were scooped into a clean bag for us, and off we went to prepare the fresh feast. The sweet Gulf shrimp were a delicacy that we will never forget. We cooked them over an open flame with a little bit of salted butter and fresh garlic – perfect!

We closed out our stay on Mustang Island with a field trip to The University of Texas at Austin Marine Science Institute that is located on the side of the island opposite of I.B. Magee.

The University of Texas at Austin Marine Science Institute

Inside the front doors of the Marine Science Institute visitors are greeted by dozens of fish tanks filled with local sea life. We viewed puffer fish, starfish, and other interesting creatures for about ten minutes before several students arrived to feed the fish. We were all very interested and excited to watch the the sea life feed. Some fish attacked their food, while others slowly crawled over their lunch, devouring it with mouths we could not see from above.

We also had a wonderful walk through the Wetlands Education Center – a 3.5 acre wetland that is situated between the science center and the Aransas Ship Channel. The wetland is a pond surrounded by marsh that is planted with sea grasses and appropriate vegetation which is nourished by the channel waters. My family and I strolled the surrounding boardwalk and observed migratory waterfowl and resident marsh birds which gave us an understanding and appreciation for the role that each facet of the wetland plays in supporting and maintaining the productivity of the coastal zone. We read that if these wetlands are preserved, grasses and shallow waters dissipate storm surges and prevent erosion – acting as a natural buffer between land and sea.

Our stay in Port Aransas, Texas was nothing but enjoyable. We seriously considered adding a few days onto our stay at I.B. Magee, but decided it best that we move onto our next leg of our journey.

Thanks so much for coming along on our trip to Port Aransas. Join me next week as we explore the Rio Grande Valley!

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