Before heading to Corpus Christi, we went to see the whooping cranes. There were still there. They are so fascinating I could watch them for hours. They wear a mask, and their plumes are extra fluffy.
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| Turkey Vulture looking back at the Brown Pelican |
We move on and reached Padre Island National Seashore. This is part of a series of islands that make a long strand of land in front of the mainland. The waters in between the barrier and the land are very calm like a lake.
Padre Island National Seashore is a national park, one of ten in the US that protect the shores.
It is 75 miles of undeveloped beach, the longest in the nation, and it is beautiful.
Bill read on the website that you can drive on the beach. So we drove for miles. We couldn't believe that we were allowed to do that. Driving on the beach is quiet and relaxing. We later found out that on this beach between April and August, the Kemp’s ridley sea turtle lays her eggs. There is a conservation association that patrols the beach in this period, they collect the eggs which are hatched on the protected sandy area and then the baby turtles are released. Hopefully they do a good job and everyone is careful driving on the beach during those months...
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| Great Blue Heron |
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| 70 miles of undeveloped beach in Padre Island |
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| Leaf Cutter Ants |
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| Deer |
We passed through Mustang Island, which is very much developed. In fact there are several beach house developments and a couple of brown giant hotels. There are shops that cater to vacationers and beach goers. There are carnival rides and fish restaurants.
When we reached Port Aransas, we lined up with other cars to get on the ferry to continue on 361 to the mainland, and Aransas Pass.
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