Date:         Thu, 21 Feb 2013 14:21:08 -0600
Reply-To:     mcneely4@COX.NET
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Dave Mcneely <mcneely4@COX.NET>
Subject:      Fwd: Re: [VANAGON] 2WD Beach Driving
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8

I guess someone else might be interested in the information I sent to Finn privately about Corpus and environs.
--
David McNeely


> Date: Thu, 21 Feb 2013 13:25:30 -0600
> From:  <mcneely4@cox.net>
> To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM, Finn Runyon <finnrunyon@GMAIL.COM>
> Subject: Re: [VANAGON] 2WD Beach Driving
> 
> ---- Finn Runyon <finnrunyon@GMAIL.COM> wrote: 
> > So I am finally about ready to get to take my first road trip with Roo, the 89 West which I bought with a bad engine.  I rebuilt the 2.1 from the ground up last fall and this winter... all new bearing, rods, pistons, cylinders, heads, wires, exhaust, cat, hoses fuel/coolant.  I sanded and painted all of the inside steel that fades and rusts over the years, and I am in the process of painting the fiberglass pop top with interlux marine paint and installing a new gray suede headliner, and a new sunbrella canvas from Pierre in Canada.  I thought I might take my son on spring break to Corpus Christi to get some beach time, and in looking at the state park there it seems that you can camp on the beach.  My actual question is regarding driving a 2WD Westy in sand if you have the Peloquins limited slip?  I would never consider trying beach driving in my automatic 87 Westy, but wondered if anyone has ventured into sand with limited slip?  I am also wondering if any list members have spent time in Corpus Christi?  As always, >many thanks and a reminder that anyone here traveling through northern New Mexico has a place to camp in Taos!
> 
> Corpus Christi is a delightful city and offers wonderful access to not only good beaches but also other nice natural areas as well.  It is possible to camp on the beach at both Padre Island National Seashore and Mustang Island State Park.  There are other parks in the area, including Lake Corpus Christi State Park.  Or if you want to venture a little further afield from Corpus, Rockport, Texas offers good camping at the state park there.  Aransas National Wildlife Refuge may still harbor some whooping cranes, but will definitely have a vast horde of waterfowl and other birds if you care for that.  You may be able at this late date to schedule a tour of the King Ranch if something like that is to your liking.  They offer both wildlife and historical tours.  Another kind of oddball thing to do might be a visit to the town of Sarita, which is the county seat of Kennedy County.  Kennedy County is the fourth least populous county in the U.S. with fewer than 500 people (Sarita probably has less than 100), almost all employees of either the King Ranch or the Kennedy Ranch, which occupy almost the entire county.  In fact, some folks refer to Sarita as "The County Seat of the King Ranch," though the ranch headquarters is actually in adjacent Kleberg County.
> 
> I just learned from my brother, a retired sailor, that Corpus Christi Naval Air Station has an RV park that is open to persons with no military connection -- I would suggest if you are interested, contact the Naval Air Station.  The park is on Corpus Christi Bay.
> 
> The Texas State Aquarium is at Corpus Christi, and it is a good one.  The University of Texas Marine Science Institute at Aransas Pass also has public visitor areas with historical and marine science (including live animals) displays.
> 
> The ferry ride between Aransas Pass and Port Aransas is worth doing.  There will definitely be dolphins accompanying the boat.  Port Aransas itself is an interesting little, old type resort town, with good, inexpensive places to eat and drink.  Being frequented more by fishing folk than drunk college kids, it is much quieter and more laid back than its South Padre Island counterpart.  The Tarpon Inn (not inexpensive) was there in 1900, and both of the Presidents Roosevelt and Ernest Hemmingway frequented the place for quiet time, drinks, good food, and tarpon fishing.
> 
> So far as driving on the beach, all of Mustang Island is open to beach driving, and most vehicles you see there will not be 4WD, but will be regular sedans and so on.   Just stay out of the dry sand.  Of course, you'll want to do a thorough wash job including undercarriage after leaving the beach.  Padre Island National Seashore is also open to driving, but only the northernmost part of the island for 2WD.  I believe that the 2WD  "road" extends four miles south IIRC.  Beyond that is restricted to 4WD, and continues for 126 miles to the "Mansfield Cut," where the island was bisected by a canal open to the Gulf of Mexico.  Another 25 miles or so of island beyond that is also open to driving, but of course one has to access it from South Padre, a place you probably don't want to be during Spring Break.
> 
> For that matter, Corpus Christi and environs will be pretty crowded, but since the NPS and TPWD contol a lot of the beach there, and much of the rest is privately held condominia and such, the drunken college crowd is not so evident as at South Padre.
> 
> I don't know where you are driving from, but if you'll be going south past Austin, avoid I-35.  There are a couple of ways to do that.  One is the new toll road, which has a speed limit of (really) 85 mph.  The other is to go around Austin to the east on the highway that goes to Lockhart and Luling, and then to take US 77 S. to Corpus (or you can get on I-37 on the S. side of San Antonio after bypassing the cities).  The City Market in Luling has the best barbecue in Texas (and so it has the best barbecue in the world), and it is worth a trip through Luling just to experience that establishment, where the 'cue is served straight from the smokehouse, on butcher paper.
> 
> You really don't want to drive through Austin, San Marcos, New Braunfills, San Antonio on the interstate highways at any time of day, unless you have reason to be in one of those cities.
> 
> Enjoy!!