Matagorda Beach Feb 7

Hi everybody, On Friday the weather was nice and sunny but very windy. Ray and Marge and Ron and myself took a trip to Matagorda beach so the Bills could see how great it was. While going through the marshy area we came across a flock of roseate spoonbills. Both Ron and Ray had to get some pictures of them while they feasted on some plant life on bottom of creek.

This is just a sample of really great shells we have collected from the beach here-some from Friday and some from last week when we came here. It was so windy down by the water's edge that Marge and I were having a hard time standing up straight. So from there we all came back to Palacios and had lunch at the Palacios Mexican Restaurant. It is one of the best ones in town.From there we travelled down to Port Lavaca just to see what its all about and they have a very interesting town Rv site right on the beach.It was full of course but looked clean and lots of playground equipment for small children and a very long boardwalk out to the birding santuary area.

A pelican scanning for lunch near our park fishing pier.

Our temp today is 60 degrees with a cloudless blue sky and very gusty winds(wouldn't be Texas without the winds) Well take care all Ron and Dee

frosty in Palacios Feb 4

Hi everybody-boy has it been frosty in Palacios (pro Pa-lashes) the last few days.On Tues night we had wind gusts over 50 mph all night long and the temp was down to 23deg.
On Wed we had statewide rolling blackouts with the electricity off for approx. 1 hr and back on for 30 mins. It was all to conserve hydro . Again it was down to 23 deg overnight and high winds. The blackouts put out the internet and had to be reset by the company today.
Our friends from Parkview -Ray and Marge, arrived yesterday morning and will be here for a month. They made it just in time as the freezing rain started overnight and accumulated to 1/4 ".It has all gone now and the sun has been out since 3:00, so it has brightened up only to have a hard freeze again tonight.By tomorrow it should be all long gone for a few days.
We have been watching the weather station and this is nothing compared to the massive storm and blizzard conditions all up the eastern half of USA and Can. It appears we are the lucky ones -thats for sure.Hope all our family , friends and followers have made it safely through the last few days. Thinking of you all Dee and Ron

Camp Hulen Jan 31

Hi everybody.Are ya'll getting ready for the massive storm and cooold weather on the way? Here is a sunny picture of the Lighthouse on the former Camp Hulen property here in town. It is called Beachside now and is in private hands--the whole 6000 acres. We googled it before we biked over to it.It is on the bay nearby and 1600 acres has paved streets , water hydrants and sewer hookups, lighting all ready for a housing developement that never came to be yet. We biked on the paved roads for miles and miles and it was great.There are canals at the back of some of the lots for your boat tieups and a few marshy areas for wildlife. Its amazing but no one lives here--what a shame! This is a quaint house in town that has a lighthouse attached to it and a small widow's peak. We should inquire to see if its an original lighthouse or not. Its quite a ways back from the shore of town.There's a huge Baptist Enampment facility here with all the buildings painted a different pastel color. Very colorful from the water's edge.

This building is Hotel Blessing on Hwy 35 a bit north of us in the town of Blessing.It is over 100 years old and still has rooms to rent.A party of 20 or so from the park went there last week for lunch. It was all home made cooking set up like a smorgasboard and family dining. Fried chicken ,mashed potatoes, sliders and chicken ,german sausage ,peppered steak,etc , dessert and rolls and your drink incl.Salads and veggies and all you can eat. $8.50 ea.It was so busy-there were people waiting to sit down or she would have given a tour of the building.

Sheephead caught today by one of the guys from the park . It was 74 deg. here but lots of clouds.There's a super fish fry potluck at the park this Sun so that should be interesting for sure.Hope everyone has a great evening and stay warm Ron and Dee

Matagorda Jan 26

Hi everybody, Today we took a drive to Matagorda which is about an hours drive east of us. On the way we did a side trip to Collegeport and found this great looking estate home. The town is very small and on the other side of our bay but has a great view of the water.

This is the bridge coming back into the town of Matagorda after you have left the beach area of Matagorda Bay.The intercoastal waterway runs under it which is why it is so high-to accomodate the taller boats.

Just some of the many birds and waterfowl in the marshy area leading to beach .It is on both sides of the road .Last year we saw a few roseate spoonbills here but no luck this year. There is quite a bit more wetlands than last year also because of all the rain in the last couple of months.It looks a bit like a maze of small creeks running eveywhere through here.

This is part of the pier leading out into the Gulf of Mexico. The tide was on its way out and we found many interesting shells at the waters edge. I said I really didn't need anymore as we still have some at home from last year but you really can't help picking up the good ones. Also found some driftwood for my sister that i know she will like.
Our good friend Ed and his wife Lynn were wondering what Mexican train was(its definately not what you thought Ed !).Its a game of dominoes that has a wee train with it. When you cannot play after picking a tile you have to put your train up and your opponent then gets to play on your tiles if hes able to .Sometimes he can get rid of a lot of tiles that way while your still drawing for the right numbered tile.So thats what we do on rainy days although Ron likes your idea much better.Well bye for now happy shoveling Dee and Ron

marina Jan 25

Well hi everybody. It turned out to be a beautiful day- sunny and breezy and 62 deg. You would never know it just poured yesterday from the time we woke up until we went to bed. There would be a few breaks in the downpour and then start up again.We played Mexican train with me the big winner !The weather just kind of blew off to the east this morning.Ron took this pic of this shrimp trawler this afternoon on a walk next door. It is up for repairs at the marina beside us. There is also one being sandblasted this week to be readied for fishing soon. This is just some of the sail boats that are anchored in the park's marina.As you can see it was a gorgeous day with blue skies.That's our park in the background. Hope y'all have a great night and stay warm. bye for now Dee and Ron

Palacios Jan 23

Hi everybody, here we are at Palacios on a walking tour. This is the Hill Building which was purchased in 1986 for a museum and is one of the few surviving historic buildings in Palacios. It is now the City by the Sea Museum and is just awesome.The front face is the original way it was built as a mercantile store but with some renovations when bought as museum.

This is the pavilion that was built and has music and dancing every evening in the summer except for Sundays.It extends 800 feet out into the bay.Even in winter it was put to good use for roller skating parties and club dances when first built.! Of course someone is always fishing from its docks which are wheelchair friendly.

On our bike ride today we came across this dolphin swimming along the shore. There is a mile and a half boardwalk that extends all along the bay and is great for walking or biking.I'm sure its very busy all summer long on a warm evening.

Some common golden-eyed ducks .I think Ron and I are really going to enjoy this town as theirs lots to see and do here.Temp today was 63deg until the rain blew in but we had a great day anyway. Well bye for now , see ya later alligator - Dee and Ron

Goose Island St Park Jan 20

Hi everybody, well here we are at Goose Is. St Park and its really something different. This pier is at the end of the island and extends 1600 feet out into the aransas bay. People of course are fishing it using shrimp for bait. All along the beach area are motor homes etc. parked right on the water's edge. We are up in the woodsy area surrounded by live oaks with the birds constantly singing.We would recommend this park to anyone camping and its one of the #1 parks in Texas. Yesterday we spent the afternoon at the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge and spotted this alligator sunning itself. It was one of 4 that we saw .Ron spotted a ruby-headed kinglet, small like a wren but with red head.

These were 3 whooping cranes we came across this morning driving along the coast just out of the park. They are quite rare and are the attraction down here in the marshy area.There are only 573 in captivity. They are five feet in height ,the tallest bird in North America and have a wing span of seven feet.Can fly 35-45 mph.

This is The Big Tree in Lamar, just outside the park.It is over 1,000 yrs old and 35 feet in circumference.It is 44feet high with a crown spread of 89 feetIts branches have to be braced up to prevent damage. we are moving on tomorrow to Palacios and will have internet there hopefully. will be there for a month. Take care all -

campsite in Park ,bye Ron and Dee