I was Born & Raised in Harlingen. Native Texan, but New Mexican by Choice. Lets see the Pros & Cons for HGN.
Harlingen, being close to the Gulf, will be somewhat more humid than the Upper Valley around Mission. Easer to get to the seashore from there. Depends on ones definition of 'Wind', but, yes, being closer to the Gulf it is somewhat breezy most of the time. Keeps bugs at bay, makes it cooler. Haven't spent much time in the Upper Valley.
Water out of the taps, Might not want to drink it, unless it's been purified. Reverse Osmosis my nephew uses. Best Citrus in the World, Great Veggies grown in the Winter. Warm Gulf water to swim in as I mentioned is a close drive away.
I did see ice form outside, once, growing up down there. Got some freezing temps, my dad put a sprinkler out under one of our trees. Real Icicles. A water line broke in a practice field at school & the water turned to ice. We got to slide on ice.
My dad lost 10 acres of citrus trees, young ones. Many neighbors lost established trees.
A rare event, down there.
The Original Iwo Jima Memorial and Museum (The original full-size plaster model of the famous bronze sculpture in Washington, DC. of the Flag Raising.) is worth a visit. IMHO. It's near the Marine Military Academy and the Harlingen Airport.
http://www.texasbob.com/travel/tbt_iwo_jima.htmlI would suggest going to the Laguna Atascosa Nat'l Wildlife Refuge out from Rio Hondo. Refuge. The last time we were there on a Spring Break, we got to see a couple of alligators as well as birds. "Alligator Pond: Alligator watching has become very popular at the refuge. During wet years they seem to inhabit every pond. Alligator Pond, .25 miles south of Osprey Overlook, usually has a gator or two. Alligators can also sometimes be seen on the resaca on Lakeside Drive. Alligators can be dangerous; stay on the road and do not feed or disturb them. Keep a close eye on small children and pets." They have camping as well, I believe. "Overnight camping and a boat ramp are available in the Adolph Thomae, Jr. County Park, located within the refuge near Arroyo City."
RV Park Reviews - has other cities & towns to see Reviews for them as well.
Laguna AtascosaA MUST see down there is the Gladys Porter Zoo, an oasis nestled in the center of Brownsville, Texas. With 26 acres of lush tropical plants and some 1,600 animals, the Gladys Porter Zoo is known for its successes in breeding endangered species of wildlife.
http://www.gpz.org/South Padre Island was where I first got a taste for camping. Very dispearsed camping back then, a '46 Jeep CJ, a tarp for shade, a cot to keep off the sand & away from the sand crabs, a summer weight sleeping bag and food & water. Had a blast, would drive down the beach until no one else were around. Maybe 10 miles from the entry point. But my first campout was at Boca Chica with my parents. At that time, you had to take a boat ferry to Padre Island, then get a ride on an old Army Half Track to get to the beach on the island. When my mom was a teen, to get across to the island, they could wade across, before the InterCoastal channel was cut. They also had to cross by row boat to get to Matamoros. Port Isabell was called Point Isabell then as well, but the Lighthouse was there.
SouthPadre -----
BocaChica (Small Mouth in Spanish) _____
Matamoros - Death to the Moors or Kills Moors but can also be a Braggart, boaster or swashbuckler in Spanish.
Lighthouse and
Museums in Port Isabel On the southern tip of South Padre, there is ISLA BLANCA PARK, a Cameron County Park with a pretty nice campground. We camped here one night in 2000. We were in a C-Class at that time. We also spent a night at a turn out along the road up the island away from things.
Park Map There is a rock Jetty out from the Park (used to be a nice restaurant there by it); it was fun to walk out onto the jetty.
Photo JettyThe South Padre Island Birding and Nature Center with it's Nature Tail was very neat.
Birding CenterA must to do is drive by the shrimp boat docks in Port Isabel and stop at a Seafood Market. We got Crab Boil of some kind and boiled up a couple of dozen or grill some on the Bar-Bee. Oh, so good! If memory serves me, we got some shrimp close to where the shrimp boats were docked.
SeaFood Markets and
CrabBoil The RGV has a lot of people down there. More highly packed in some areas. Crowded in other words. Especially in the Winter, there are the Snowbirds who flock down there & many Migrant Works return from working up north.
It is Sub-Tropical = Warm (Hot) most of the time.
This older post has some info on
South Texas plus other places. Maybe it will be of some use.
More on RGV, Plus ---- and ----
Corpus Area :)
What is the RGV?The large city of
Brownsville at the Tip of Texas; and
Ditto.
My hometown,
Harlingen.
Try thisNow a fairly large city, in the Upper Valley,
McAllen.
The
Mission Area of South Texas, the RGV.
Up by Falcon Lake,
Zapata , on the way to Laredo.
The beach town of
South Padre Island and nearby village of
Port Isabel.
Should find plenty of Golfing in the
RGV.......
Valley Golf.
Most of the old posts are old & some of the Links may no longer be working.
Last time I visited my old hometown, we eat at Big John's Bar-B-Que (west side of Harlingen) 3806 W Business 83; Between Lewis Ln and Paloma Ln. As I remember, it was excellent.
Big John's Reviews After posting about Big John's, I happen upon a BBQ Cook Off on Cable. One of the cooks was from up in Kerrville, if you happen to get up that way, might be good to try his place out:
Buzzie's BBQ.
Forty-Some yrs ago, Milano's was one of THE places to go for pizza in the Valley. My neice, who lives in McAllen said it is still good. It is in Weslaco and out in the sticks back in the late 60's and early 70's.
http://www.milanos.us.com/It was worth driving from Harlingen for back then.
Can't help on finding an RV Park. There are many down there to choose from.
Harlingen RV Park Reviews More on the way to South Padre:
Los Fresnos and
Port Isabel.
San Benito
