We have a few days in March for vacation, so we wanted to go somewhere for birds that we’ve never been, and this is likely the only opportunity I’ll have to visit Texas for years… so any advice?
This list of towns is probably not everyone’s cup of tea - it’s designed around getting to Santa Ana National Wildlife Refuge, Atascosa NWR, and Aransas NWR. But suggestions on places to avoid, places to eat - Austin is probably a place a lot of folks have been, so suggestions for our days/nights there would be very welcome.
Is there really going to be much difference in the birds between the Atascosa and Aransas NWRs? They’re only 100 miles apart, and are likely to be the same old salt marsh that runs along the entire Texas Gulf Coast. I wouldn’t think the birds would be materially different.
I might skip one of those two and hit San Antonio instead- you’ll probably be near there somewhere between Austin and the other places you list anyway. It’s a cool city- lots of history and a fair number of touristy things. Austin is interesting; it’s basically a way oversized college town combined with a state government. Ultimately it has great food and fun nightlife, but not too much in the way of touristy stuff- what there is mostly centers around it being the state capital or around the live music scene.
It’s a ways from the places you mentioned (Rockport would be closest, I think) but the Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge was a great place to experience diverse bird life.
If you’re into paddling at all, I’d suggest looking at some of the marked coastal kayak trails. There are several in different coastal communities near Rockport.
Down near McAllen is Port Isabel which is an interesting seaport town and has a historic lighthouse to visit. Across the bridge is South Padre Island which is a pretty typical tourist beach community.
Please keep distances in mind, Austin to Brownsville is a 5 hour drive. I’ve covered the coastal attractions but the Austin area itself can occupy the entire vacation. Head down to San Marcus and float the river, have some German food in New Braunfelds, have BBQ at the Salt Lick, etc…
It just struck me that I’ve responded to posts asking for advice in both West Texas and South Texas over the last couple of days. Yea, Me!
I’ll give another vote for San Antonio over Austin unless nightlife is your main objective, although San Antonio has lots of that too. The Riverwalk has something for every taste and is beautiful to boot. And the Alamo!
Of the other places on your list I’m only familiar with Rockport/Fulton and the Aransas NWR area. Familiar enough that I could give you guided tours of those “same old salt marshes” mentioned above
One thing that Aransas has that the others don’t is whooping cranes. They should be there in (relative)abundance in March. They winter in Aransas and usually begin their migration north in late March and April. Roseate spoonbills, both white and brown ibis, both brown and white pelicans, awesome caracaras(and lots of other raptors), herons, egrets, etc. are there year-round.
There are also dolphin watching and bird watching boat tours from both Fulton and Rockport harbors. You might see more birds from a boat than at the wildlife refuge, but fewer alligators.
There are plenty of restaurants in Rockport and Fulton, from relatively high-end(for me) to cheap tacos and a beer on the dock. Seafood, naturally, is the big draw. Lots of new places have opened with the rebuilding after hurricane Harvey. Almost all of the Harvey-damaged places have re-opened, including the Texas Maritime Museum but sadly not the Rockport Aquarium.
I don’t know where you’re from, but if you have never seen the effects of a Cat 4 hurricane (and have a slightly morbid curiosity), you can still see lots of that, though fortunately less and less as time goes by. Around the Copano Cove area on the west side of the peninsula there should still be(I haven’t been through there since around Thanksgiving) plenty of houses that have not been replaced and debris that has not been removed.
Thanks for all the responses - we wanted to fit in the bat colony in Austin (although we might be a little early in the year for it to be very active) - I’m led to understand that San Antonio has a bat colony too? Flights into/out of Austin seemed pretty inexpensive, so that was a bit of a boost for Austin.
We’re also excited about seeing the Whooping Cranes and the Caracaras - and we have a boat trip out of Rockport booked already.
Regarding going to both Aransas and Atascosa - the closer you get to the Mexican border, the more of the subtropical rare visitors to the US you’re likely to see; so we want to spend some time on the Mexico/US border, including Atascosa, but also some places where people have told us access may be difficult in the future, like Bentsen-Rio Grande Valley State Park.
It sounds like Port Isabel might be a nice place to spend some time in between birding - we like quaint little seaport towns (Port Townsend is probably our local equivalent.)
Is the Alamo really cool as far as a tourist attraction, or is it more of a standard museum-y thing?
Nothing wrong with them- I just meant that the actual coastline of the Texas Gulf Coast is awfully similar along its length- barrier islands, dunes, shallow bays, salt marsh, etc… and that there’s not a whole lot of difference between spots 100 miles apart.
Txjim, if you’re going to New Braunfels or San Marcos, you’re 3/4 of the way (or halfway in San Marcos’ case) to San Antonio anyway.
My point was that if you’re going between Austin and either of the Atascosa NWR or Santa Ana NWR/McAllen, you’ll go through San Antonio anyway.
It’s more of a standard museum-y thing. So yes, it’s really cool!
But it is just walking distance from the Riverwalk.
bump: I took no offense - it was mildly humorous in my mind thinking about how well I know the Rockport area, but could easily get lost in the Brazoria or San Bernard NWRs, or even Anahuac in my own back yard.
Agreed, I was just pointing out a few other attractions that can keep one in the Austin/San Antonio area. I suspect we can agree that one should throw Fredricksburg in the mix as well.
I have to admit, I’ve never visited the Atascosa NWR, will make sure to save time next time for it next trip down (June to Port Mansfield, it’s close enough for a visit)
Lots of bat colonies- the biggest one is between Austin and San Antonio- it’s like 10x the size of the Austin one.
The Alamo is cool… but it’s really touristy and more of a Texas Independence thing, than a battlefield museum, since most of the actual battlefield is paved over now and built over.
All I’ve got to add is that my son lived in Harlingen for a couple of years, and had NOTHING good to say about the area - including McAllen and Brownsville. But he wasn’t bird watching.
I always heard Big Bend was good for birdwatching…
Remember, there is no basement, so you won’t find Pee-Wee’s bike there (or Jan Hooks, either.)
If you’re going to Port Aransas, try to avoid catching the ferry on a Friday afternoon; there will literally be a mile of cars waiting to cross. Same thing coming back Sunday.
Almost forgot: be sure to hit the candy store on the main drag in P.A…
Wow - Bracken Cave looks awesome; we’ll have to see if we can’t time our visit there to see fly-out. Sounds like some good recommends for San Antonio, Port Isabel, Port Aransas (as long as we avoid busy times on the ferry.) I also had no idea there was a German town in the middle of Texas.
Luckily, I also just heard back from the Santa Ana NWR, and it sounds like border barrier construction is not planned there for this spring.
If San Antonio makes your list, consider the Missions National Park. Examples of how Spanish missions worked that included churches that are still active. What the Alamo was prior to that disagreement with Mexico.
From what I hear, if you are a birder, you have to make it down to the Valley (I am a casual birder). You are going to see birds you can see no where else as well as high numbers of varieties and sightings. Birding is a big industry down there, so they have invested a lot into infrastructure so that you have a good time. You just have to pick how many of the “birding centers” you want to hit along the border. McAllen and Brownsville are like any other mid sized American city with decent hotels and restaurants, but hotels may be tough to get during Spring break, especially in Brownsville.
South Padre is a decent beach but it will be run over by Spring Breakers in March. If you like crowds, action, and excitement though, it is the place to be.
Laguna Atascosa is pretty good, you may even see an alligator or an ocelot (I have seen both there).
The Boiling Pot in Rockport is my favorite there.
If you have time, San Antonio is a nice place to visit. Stay downtown, hang out on the Riverwalk, go to Market Square (exactly like a Mexican market), eat as much Mexican food and BBQ as you can. The Alamo is fun if you are into Texas History, they have stepped their game up over the past few years with more exhibits and they often have people there dressed in costume giving demonstrations. If you really need to bird, there is Mitchell Lake to the south and Friedrich Park to the north to knock the Golden Cheek Warbler off your list. Actually, the San Antonio/Hill Country area is worth a separate vacation.
If you go to Brazoria, I’d also recommend Brazos Bend State Park, which is nearby. I’ll admit I wasn’t there to see the birds but it’s a nice park and the alligators are impressive.
