Exploring Corpus Christi and surrounding area

We’ve been in Corpus Christi for a few days now and had a chance to get to know the town and surrounding area.  Our impression is that Corpus Christi is a classic port town with a heavy military presence from the three or four Navy airfields scattered around.  The town is strung out along the shore of the inner coastal waterway, spilling onto several of the larger islands in the area.  The air is not quite tropical, but certainly has a Gulf feel to it.  The wind is blowing almost all the time and only stops long enough to change directions.

The first day here we took a drive onto Mustang Island to check out places to camp next week.  Following a road indicating beach access, we suddenly found ourselves driving on the beach.  I mean on the sand, on the beach.  Apparently taking your car onto the beach is o.k. here. Way cool.  We took time to walk in the warm waters of the Gulf and take some pictures.  At Port Aransas, the only way off the island is via ferry.  The ferry was well organized and cut about an hour off our drive.

We had not washed the outside of the coach since leaving California and it was becoming embarrassing.  Washing the coach turned into an all-day project.  There was about 80 feet of coach to wash in addition to the Jeep.  There was no need for a workout that day.

We finally hit an RV Park with a phone hookup and used the opportunity to do some major updating to this web site.  Using the dial-up connection was gruesomely slow, but eventually we got most of the site updated.

One day we visited the USS Lexington, which for those of you who don’t watch the History Channel is an aircraft carrier commissioned during World War II and served until 1969 after seeing action in Vietnam.  Having visited the Yorktown in Charleston and the Intrepid in New York we were already familiar with the layout of the ship.  Visiting these ships it is always hard to imagine that they were in action at one time.

Today was mostly a lay-by-the-pool day.  We did some shopping to stock up for next week and had an excellent shrimp lunch/dinner at one of the local places that always seemed busy.  All and all, it was an excellent day.

The RV Park has cement slabs at each campsite that is perfect for our Pilates workout.  With no good running options, we were forced to run along the roads.  This is never a good option, although two dogs did help me pick up the pace somewhat.  From the size and shape of the locals, we suspect fitness is not a priority in this part of Texas.

We plan to spend one more day in Corpus Christi before moving on and have no idea what we will do.  Maybe we’ll break out the golf clubs. . . .