Road trip to Texas what do you think of this route?

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RickCanada

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Joined
Dec 5, 2009
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Hi: I am taking a roud trip to Texas second half of December.  I have
decided on this route.  What do you think?


South from home through Indianapolis, Little Rock
Arrive Houston, travel to Galveston, Corpus Cristi (Nuevo progresso if there is time), San Antonio, Hill Country, Austin
and home via Dallas/FW, Ozarks, Gary IN.

What do you think? I will have a total of 16 days to take this driving trip..  This includes 10 days in texas.

Should I take the time to visit Mexico for 1/2 day?  Is it worth the
diversion?  (200 miles)


We will want to spend some time birding, museums, attractions, history, hiking and scenery.
 
Unless you have a reason to go to Nuevo Progresso, I wouldn't waste the day.  The Rio Grand valley is worth visiting for Padre Island National Seashore since you like birding and hiking.  Not much for scenery however, in my opinion.  Lots to see and do in San Antonio, and the Hill Country is nice (but I'm prejudiced :) ).  Weather will be a big consideration for that trip so be prepared for delays if it goes sour.
 
Since you mentioned birding, I suspect you are well aware of the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge and the whooping cranes that winter there. If not, check out this site: www.fws.gov/southwest/REFUGES/texas/aransas/
You won't want to miss it and it's on your route.
Herm
 
hljantz said:
Since you mentioned birding, I suspect you are well aware of the Aransas National Wildlife Refuge and the whooping cranes that winter there. If not, check out this site: www.fws.gov/southwest/REFUGES/texas/aransas/
You won't want to miss it and it's on your route.
Herm
Click to expand...

Absolutely! Aransas is a priority for this trip and perhaps Santa Ana preserve as well. 
 
My wife and I were in SanBenito Texas this year and loved it. We're heading back in January. From Chicago we took routes 55 to 12 to 10, going through Tennessee, Mississippi. Louisana and Texas. We found a nice campground in Livingston, Lousiana and headed west on route 10 to San Antonio. Saw the Alamo and went on a boat ride at the riverwalk area of San Antonio. Enjoyed both. Headed south to San Benito and spent 2 months there seeing lots of birds at local sanctuaries and visited Brownsville and South Padre Island.
Side trips included Corpus Christi and surrounding islands....Mustang Island Aransas Pass. Took a $.25 ferry ride and visited the Lexington Naval Museum and the aquarium next door. Loved it all.
On the way back we stopped in Galveston and went down to a pier area for dinner. Lots to do there except I don't remeber the name right now. Suggest a stop there as well.

Hope this helps.

Bob
 
Bobandpamlemay said:
My wife and I were in SanBenito Texas this year and loved it. We're heading back in January. From Chicago we took routes 55 to 12 to 10, going through Tennessee, Mississippi. Louisana and Texas. We found a nice campground in Livingston, Lousiana and headed west on route 10 to San Antonio. Saw the Alamo and went on a boat ride at the riverwalk area of San Antonio. Enjoyed both. Headed south to San Benito and spent 2 months there seeing lots of birds at local sanctuaries and visited Brownsville and South Padre Island.
Side trips included Corpus Christi and surrounding islands....Mustang Island Aransas Pass. Took a $.25 ferry ride and visited the Lexington Naval Museum and the aquarium next door. Loved it all.
On the way back we stopped in Galveston and went down to a pier area for dinner. Lots to do there except I don't remeber the name right now. Suggest a stop there as well.

Hope this helps.

Bob
Click to expand...

Sounds like a great tirp.  Thanks. When you were in Brownsville did you bother to cross over to Matamoros?  The trip sounds very similar to what we plan to do but with way less time. lol.  What did you find interesting at South Padre other than the beautiful beaches?  Thanks again.
 
Rick: We were planning on going to Metamoras but the week before our planned trip the drug cartel and the Federalies had a shootout on the bridge. We decided not to go. We did go to Progresso though. No big deal and I wouldn't waste my time again.
As for South Padre Island, it's a nice view but I like Sanibel and Captive better. There were a few good restaurants that we went to. One was called the Dock, I believe. We sat on the deck looking out at the bay. I don't remember the other one but we faced the gulf. There is a restaurant in Port Isabel that we went to several times. Pirates Nest, I think. Right at the base of the bridge.
The most fun I had over there was taking my pickup on the beach in 4 wheel drive.

Bob
 
tkhattabaugh said:
I would recommend Big Bend National Park while in south Texas.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately due to the limitations in time, Western Texas will have to wait for another trip.  thanks. 
 
Bobandpamlemay said:
Rick: We were planning on going to Metamoras but the week before our planned trip the drug cartel and the Federalies had a shootout on the bridge. We decided not to go. We did go to Progresso though. No big deal and I wouldn't waste my time again.
As for South Padre Island, it's a nice view but I like Sanibel and Captive better. There were a few good restaurants that we went to. One was called the Dock, I believe. We sat on the deck looking out at the bay. I don't remember the other one but we faced the gulf. There is a restaurant in Port Isabel that we went to several times. Pirates Nest, I think. Right at the base of the bridge.
The most fun I had over there was taking my pickup on the beach in 4 wheel drive.

Bob
Click to expand...

Thanks for your great reply.  I think we will be in the S. Padre area christmas day so it would be a perfect place to stop since everything else is closed.  Can I assume you went to the market in Progresso?  Do you prefer Metamoras? (other than the gunfire).
 
If you like museums and war history there are two great museums in Fredricksburg, TX in the Hill Country. One is the Admiral Nimitz Museum and the other is the National Museum of the Pacific War which includes George H.W. Bush's time in the Navy.
 
Rick: We never went to Metamoras as this year was our first time in the area and I don't do well with gun fire. In Progessio we walked about 3 blocks which contained lots of dentists, doctors, pharmacies and street vendors. We did find a good restaurant and enjoyed a good lunch. We didn't go any farther. I guess the tank that we saw with 6 guards armed with machine guns scared us away. Maybe next year.

Bob
 
I second Jim Dick's nomination of the Nimitz museum in Fredericksburg.  Fabulous museum!  As a child of the WW II era, my high school history books had about one paragraph devoted to that important time period.  The thing I loved about the Nimitz museum was that the displays were in chronological order with a timeline up at the ceiling that told what else was happening in the world while the event below was taking place.  It really put things in perspective for me!  By the way, we went in one afternoon expecting to spend a few hours and returned the next day to complete our tour.

ArdraF
 
The new portion of the Nimitz museum just opened.  We'll be going back there next spring when we return to our lot.
 
Jim Dick said:
If you like museums and war history there are two great museums in Fredricksburg, TX in the Hill Country. One is the Admiral Nimitz Museum and the other is the National Museum of the Pacific War which includes George H.W. Bush's time in the Navy.
Click to expand...

Is the museum about Colonel Nimitz, or about the Aircraft carrier?
 
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