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Writer's pictureJaela Deming

December 17-18, 2023: Fun in the Sun at Port Isabel & South Padre Island

DID YOU KNOW? South Padre Island is one of six hyper-saline bays in the entire world, meaning the salt content in the water is higher than what is typically found in any other salt-water bodies. This leads to better buoyancy for those who venture out into the chilly water. SPI is also known to be a treasure hunter's paradise, as the island was a favorite spot for pirates and privateers as early as the 1500s up until the 1800s. Millions of dollars worth of silver and gold has been shipwrecked and sunk on/near this island. The most famous pirate to visit South Padre Island is Jean Lafitte, who utilized the island as a hideout and place to bury treasure. Ironically, Jean Lafitte helped end the War of 1812 when he double-crossed the British army, giving the Americans critical information and then fighting alongside them at the Battle of New Orleans with his men. For his assistance, he and his men were pardoned of piracy. But legend has it that there is still treasure to be found, leading gold-hunters to comb the beaches of this lovely island, and, just in case myths prove right, legal provisions have already been made to require any treasure found to be turned over to the state of Texas.


A quick selfie outside Port Isabel Lighthouse...Texas' smallest state park

Pirates' Pier, a popular Port Isabel fishing pier straight across from South Padre Island

A tow-boat we watched haul a boat that had obviously been underwater for quite a while. We also were delighted to see dolphins playing in this bay.

We were thrilled when the weather turned out warm enough to spend a day playing on the beach and in the water. It felt really crazy to be playing outside barefoot and in swimsuits in 80-degree weather a week before Christmas while friends back home were texting me about how cold they were with temperatures below zero. I might have sent a few joking 'bummer for you' texts back with beach pictures, LOL.


Levi loved getting to use his beach toys for the first time



BTW...all the white bumps along the beach are shells - they were overabundant!

Collecting shells to take home for crafts



Still trying to get Lucy comfortable in water, while Nellie spent as much time in it as possible

Leashes make for convenient tug-of-war toys (Lucy's being the annoying little sister, LOL)

Lucy has turned out to be a big digger - often digging a hole and laying in it

Attempting badminton, but it was too windy

When it turned out to be too windy for badminton, we came up with our own version of Newcomb in the water. Moving the net down into the waves, we would run out into the deeper waves and squeeze the foam ball while it was submerged...turning it into a total water bomb. This would then be launched and the game would start. The unfortunate individual receiving the first serve of a freshly loaded ball would be sprayed with a rainfall of sandy water. The game would then proceed as usual, until someone decided to reload the ball at which point play paused for a moment. It was an absolute blast and by the end, everyone was soaked and coated with a layer of grit. I was grateful for my bandana and sunglasses that protected my hair and eyes from the flying sand. It's amazing how much fun can be had with water, sand, a net and ball, and a group of young adults who want to soak each other, LOL.


Our game of Newcomb (Or should we call it SPIcomb since we invented our own version of it on South Padre Island?)

Dominic was excited to finally be at a location where he could fly his drone without restrictions. He took some amazing aerial photos of our time at the beach!


3, 2, 1, Launch!

Good ol' Kram-A-Lot Inn looks a little small from this height

Yes, all those little specks is our family :)

Fun in the sun and water


Look at those beautiful waves

The beach was pretty empty, which we were grateful for

Our time on South Padre Island was a lot of fun and worth all the cleanup that had to happen after we tracked sand into the RV. So grateful that God gave us a beautiful day to play on the beach in December. We left with many memories, seashells, and more sand than we wanted.


Until next time, God bless!

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