Day 51 - Galveston, TX (Day 1)

This day was full of things we want to remember.

The short version ... we drove 111 miles and ended up camped at Jamaica Beach RV Park on Galveston Island.

The long version ... is a lot more complicated.

We were bugged:
Bugs have been a part of the trip from the beginning.  They weren't too bad until Monday.  We drove into flocks (?) of small black butterflies on the trip to Mustang Island.  Our windshield was plastered.  We cleaned them off on Tuesday and left for Palacios ... and then encountered lots of dragon flies.  They whacked the windshield, but didn't make as much mess.  Now we come to this morning.

Dick found ants when he woke up this morning.  They had climbed up one of the trailer jacks and gotten inside.  We spent an hour or so spraying with Raid and vacuuming/sweeping the ants up.  We did a pretty thorough job, but had to continue spraying tonight.

This is the first time in six years we've had a bug problem.  Arrgh.

The Route:
We pulled out at 10:30 and took TX-35 north to West Columbia, then TX-332 southeast to Surfside Beach and went north on Bluewater Highway to Galveston.

View across from our site in Palacios

This bridge took us over the
Intracoastal Waterway to Surfside Beach

Observations:
We saw gasoline at less then $3/gallon in Brazoria and elsewhere.

The terrain and housing reminded us of western and central Florida.

We seemed to be following the rainstorms.  It was sunny and clear when we left Palacios.  We drove into multiple, intense squalls.

North on TX-35 ... squalls ahead

Refineries line the coastal plain from Bay City to West Columbia to Lake Jackson.

Our scenic route provided many beautiful views of the Gulf.

All structures have legs

Hurricane Ike devastated the area in 2008.
Some properties haven't been repaired.

Most residences are new.  Many are modern.
Most are very colorful.

The Bluewater Highway follows the coast

The beaches are soft and white

Homes and rentals pop up all over the place.

The Campground:
We're in a nice campground across the highway from the Gulf.  All sites are cement pull-thrus. There are lots of amenities.  We're 13 miles from Galveston's historic district.

Site #54

The Gulf is a short walk away

They have a nice pool and Jacuzzi

and miniature golf

Galveston:
Don't even think about oil refineries when you think of Galveston ... there are none.  It's a tourist center.

The Bluewater Highway becomes Seawall Blvd in Galveston and runs the length of the beach.

Jimmy's on the Pier from Seawall Blvd
(the only "over the waves" dining on the island)

Pleasure Pier is loaded with fun

Hotel Galvez and Spa

We drove to the historic district and took the Tree Sculpture Tour.  

On the way, we noticed an unusual street naming sequence.  They have "halves" ... like Avenue M and Avenue M½.  The lettered streets run east-and-west and are named sequentially from north-to-south.  We guessed they used "halves" so they wouldn't run out of letters before they reached the Gulf.  Who knows?

About the tree sculptures ...
Hurricane Ike covered most of Galveston Island with a tidal wave on September 13, 2008. Thousands of trees were destroyed.  Tree sculptures have replaced the oaks that once lined the streets.  There were 21 sculptures on the tour.  Here are some.

Island Totem Pole

Birds of Galveston

Great Dane

Pod of Dolphins & Mermaids

Two Crested Herons

The Geisha

Monument to Galveston's Trees

Grandmother Reading to Her Grandchildren

Where Have all the Flowers Gone?

Large Pelican Holding Fish

We saw some exceptional old homes in the historic district.

They have high curbs and unusual drains

We headed home on Seawall Blvd and stopped at Landry's Seafood House for dinner.  Carol had fried shrimp, Dick had the fried seafood platter.  Dinner was very good, but didn't match our experience at their New Orleans location.

Heading home on Seawall Blvd.

Sunset from the campground

We've been battling ants all night and making no headway.  We may need to find an exterminator tomorrow.