Our first stop of the day was Padre Island National Seashore. This is only the second National Seashore we have been to (Point Reyes, north of San Francisco) and unfortunately it didn’t make us want to rush to see another one. Mainly what was most disappointing was the lack of activities to do and lack of any interpretation outside of the visitor center.

Basically it preserves the largest undeveloped barrier island in the world. The most common thing to do is walk along the beach that is accessible from the visitor center. Due to recent weather, the bird viewing opportunities were minimal but we did get to see lots of pelicans as well as some shorebirds. And seeing the Gulf of Mexico was neat.

This seashore is known for protecting the endangered sea turtle but of course this is the wrong time of year to see them. We enjoyed a nice walk along the beach watching birds eating at the waters edge and ghost shrimp making air holes in the sand. We spent about an hour and a half here before heading on to Brownsville, TX and our next NPS site.

A short three hour drive south brought us to Palo Alto Battlefield National Historic Site, one of the first battles in the Mexican-American War. The visitor center is decent with good use of quotes from both sides of the battle. There is a 15 minute video which is a must see to get a good understanding of what happened here. Without it the battlefield trail would not have made any sense.

There is a battlefield loop trail that leaves from the back of the visitor center. We were challenged to figure out what was going on as the signs and map provided were confusing and inaccurate to what the movie said. We got it straightened out when we realized the map the ranger had given us was outdated. It did not include the spur trail that took us to closer view of where the Mexican troops were stationed. It also did not include the unfinished spur trail to the American troops location.

We completed the loop trail and was fairly disappointed with the lack of interpretation along the trail. We have been to many battlefields and the interpretation is always what makes the experience more meaningful. Once back at the car we decided to drive a little further to Edinburg instead of of staying in Harlingen.

We found a pretty decent Comfort Inn and had dinner at Pizza Hut. We got ice cream to take back to the hotel and watched the Alamo Bowl. Kim enjoyed a relaxing bath in a huge tub before we hit the hay for an early rise. It was one of the better nights of the trip.