#13 Finding Oil

All of us sometimes benefit from major corporations’ attempts to gain a kinder, gentler image in the public eye, and we certainly did today with our tour of Exxon’s Offshore Energy Center. This museum and education center highlights oil exploration on the high seas, which commenced in 1938 and since then has drilled 56,000 off shore wells with a total drilled distance exceeding 110,000 miles!

This educational museum is built on the retired Ocean Star Off Shore Drilling Rig. The rig is a “jack up rig” that is towed to its location with a mat underneath the rig and its three support columns retracted.

When it arrives on location, the mat is dropped to the ocean floor and the columns are extended until they reach the floor too. The rig is jacked up so it is 25 feet above sea level. Then it is ready for drilling. When drilling is complete, it is towed to another site to repeat the process. Different rigs are required to drill and to pump the oil, if discovered.

The museum has many interesting exhibits including a large scale model of the sea floor with the various types of rigs (the “jack–up” is only one of four or five types of rigs). The types of rigs differ mostly with the depth of water they are drilling in.

Specialty equipment includes a hyperbaric chamber for decompression used by the divers ----

and an escape pod used if the men must evacuate the rig quickly.

The pod can hold up to 26 people. That is one ride you would not want to take with 25 other people!

Other mechanical equipment exhibited was the drill head drive mechanism

and the oil distribution “Christmas Tree”. Invented in 1972, the Tree consists of a series of hydraulic valves that distribute oil and other fluids to and from the well head at the sea floor.

And of course, we cannot forget the drill tower ----

Add to these the exhibits a full size crane, a helicopter, and an array of drilling bits, as well as a short movie and a number of interactive exhibits, and you will experience what we considered an interesting and informative afternoon about the complexities of oil exploration on the high seas.

#12 Living Large

Have you heard that everything is bigger in Texas? Sounds silly at first, maybe just bragging by those Texans. But having been here awhile, we have started to think there may be something to the big-ness claim. It’s a huge state – 28 million people and 869 miles from top to bottom - and you find wider streets, big plains (even bigger than Illinois in places), and huge ranches. We visited the biggest ranch in the US a few days ago, The King Ranch in Kingsville, Texas.

Still privately owned by the descendants of riverboat man Captain Richard King, the ranch was started in the middle of the last century and is now comprised of nearly one million acres, an area larger than the state of Rhode Island. The Ranch lays claim to the foundation sire of the American Quarter Horse breed, Wimpy (they were not too good at picking names!) and to starting two new breeds of cattle – the Santa Gertrudis (we have all heard of) and the Santa Cruz (most popular today).

The Santa Gertrudis breed actually got to be too BIG, nearly 3000 lbs, and so they bred a slightly smaller one, the Santa Cruz (the most popular breed today).

The King Ranch also bred thoroughbred racing horses, including the 1943 foaling of triple crown winner, Assault, also known as the Club Footed Comet. He had many injuries, and actually had an impaired walk and trot, but his gallop was great. You can check Assault’s interesting story on Wikipedia.

Longhorn

In 1915, Captain King’s widow built a new 32,000 square foot home that still serves as a private 5 star hotel that the extended family can stay at when visiting. It is not open to the public.

In addition to Ranching, the King Ranch also has a farming division growing cotton in Texas, and one of the largest orange groves in Florida (75,000 acres); its most profitable business today is the private hunting operation. The latter was developed by one of the family who was especially interested in conservation. Sounds like a contradiction in terms, but a constant population of each species is maintained and no exotic species are introduced, therefore, the reasoning goes, the remaining animals and birds are healthier and have sufficient natural food.

Enough history!! Let it suffice to say that we now understand why living in Texas is indeed LIVING LARGE!

On the way home - tons of Grapefruit!

#11 The Fairies

Actually, we are writing about ferries, but don’t you think fairies sounds more interesting? You know - ferries - the kind that transports people and their vehicles across the water.

Corpus Christi Bay is north of the city and on the north side of the bay is Aransas Pass and Port Aransas.

Just off the east coast is Mustang Island and Padre Island, and all of these are connected by causeways, bridges and in one case by the free ferry between Aransas Pass and Port Aransas.

Although the map shows the waterway between Aransas Pass and Port Aransas to be about 5 miles wide, the ferry transports you for only a half mile or so. The road stretches over narrow strips of land and bridges water in other areas. Some of the views are magnificent.

We took the ferry four times today - we just couldn’t make up our mind which side of the passage we wanted to be on!

The wait for the ferry can be very short or more than a half hour long. Several traffic personnel carefully guide vehicles into one of four lanes. The front car gets a block under the wheels to ensure the cars don’t rush the exit. The big diesel engine quickly pushes the ferry and its load of upward of 15-20 cars, trucks, busses, and RV’s across the short channel of water.

As you cross, you can see a number of water birds and maybe even some dolphins. Altogether an enjoyable experience – but you really only need to do it once or twice - not four times!

#10 Corpus Christi and Environs……

Hoping to escape some of the dreary weather in the Rio Grande Valley, we drove about 140 miles north to Corpus Christi and for our efforts were rewarded with what the weatherman called “the worst weather day so far this winter”. That day included a predicted 4 inches of rain (we got about 2) and sustained 30mph winds (I would guess they were not quite that high). Not to worry, though, since we are expecting a few days of sunshine before returning to overcast skies and showers in the area most of next week!

We spent one interesting afternoon on the self-guided tour of the WWII Aircraft Carrier, USS Lexington – The Blue Ghost.

It’s interesting that the US has had warships with the Lexington name dating back to the Civil War. The Lexington CV-16 was commissioned in 1943, replacing the CV-2 Lexington that was lost in the Battle of the Coral Sea in 1943. The Lexington was decommissioned in 1991 and donated to the National Park Service in 1993, and is now at anchor in Corpus Christi Bay.

The self-guided tour takes you from the bridge and flight deck, complete with WWII era fighter planes as well as more recent jet aircraft, to the sick bay, to the galley and Captain’s quarters and everything in between. Numerous displays depicted the various areas of the ship. After walking the well laid out tour path, you wondered how the sailors avoided getting lost in the maze of passages, ladders, and twists and turns. The ship is about the size of a modern day cruise ship and typically had a crew of over 1000 men.

We spent another day at the Texas State Aquarium. Located right on the Bay, the new modern building housing the Aquarium has a dolphin training area, and several large tanks with fish and aquatic mammals.

We liked the dolphins and river otter exhibits. Two of the three performing dolphins were on a rotation program and came from the Brookfield zoo. Most of the fish exhibits were less than spectacular, though perfectly adequate. Petting the rays and watching the female otter scold her companion was interesting, and the short presentation and up close and personal exhibition of birds of prey, including a Swainson’s Hawk, a Bald Eagle, and an owl was also quite interesting.

#9 Go Fly a Kite!

The town of South Padre Island (yes, that’s the correct name) covers about a 6 mile length of the island itself, with the typical beachfront hotels along the shore, souvenir and beach wear shops, lots of condos, and narrow passageways labeled “Beach Access # --“, most with about 6 parking spaces, along the way. But down towards the end of the road is something different - a large sandy open space on the bay side, reserved for – you guessed it - Flying kites! With the near constant wind and large open space, it is a perfect place for flying. And Fly they did – at the 10^th annual South Padre Island Kite Flying Festival……

This two-day event attracts enthusiasts from all over the country and features team flying, individual flying exhibitions, and competitions. Ten or more really large kites, shown below, were continuously flying along the street – presumably to attract visitors. It must have worked, because there were probably upwards of 1000 spectators.

One man from Maine flew a kite with three 120 foot tails, and he could spin the kite so fast that the tails spiraled along their full length. The kite itself was pretty big and the fellow had to lean back at a 30-degree angle to balance the pull of the kite while flying.

Another man used a large kite to pull him along on his low-slung three-wheeled cart at speeds that approached 20mph. Controlling the cart and the kite took a lot of skill.

Team flying typically entailed three to six man (and woman!) teams with each person controlling one kite. To perform the maneuvers requires a kite with four strings attached – presumably the four string kites can do more tricks. With and the ups and downs, dips and spins, it’s really hard to understand how they didn’t get all those strings horribly tangled. The teams would take the kites off from the sandy beach in unison and fly them to pre-recorded music sometimes in formation and sometimes not, for several minutes before landing them again in unison, with outer edges touching down like slowly descending rocket ships attesting to their amazing skills.

Although the day was mostly sunny and around 50F, the high winds made it pretty chilly on the beach. We would have liked to watch longer, but the wind chill nixed that idea. Nevertheless, it was a thrill to see these expert kite flyers in action.

#8 Nuevo Progreso

Today we drove about 25 miles to a town called Progreso, just north of the Mexican border. You can park right near the border for $2 and then for $.25 you can walk across the Rio Grande to a another town called Nuevo Progreso, Mexico.

As soon as you get there, you are assaulted with the smells, colors, sounds, and people who are selling everything from dental work to medicine to all kinds of food.

Both sides of the street have numerous stores and businesses, and on the street-side of the sidewalk there are stands with various vendors. Most of the time there is only a space of a few feet to walk, and the vendors kept pushing things at you and asking if you want to buy. If you didn't buy, however, they were polite about it with no problem.

Quite a few of the items were very reasonable, especially, it seemed, some of the clothing and pottery. Well tooled belts and boots were less of a bargain, but still quite nice. Many folks were buying liquor, which was pretty inexpensive. We heard one fellow say that he bought two bottles of tequila (not sure how big the bottles were) for $4. Some folks on the street were hawking dental work, eye glasses with exams, and medicines. There were perhaps 6 dentists and 10 or more pharmacies. We priced one name brand medicine, but if I remember the prices correctly, the price was not that much better than back home.

Lunch was at Arturo's where we had tacos with beans and rice. The place was packed with Winter Texans. Food quality and prices were similar to what you might expect in the states, and service was a cut above. We did not have the water, but many people did, so I expect no problems.

Coming back across the border required a passport, and entailed a short line, but otherwise no problems. We came back across the border with some bargains and tired feet. It was an interesting visit to our southern neighbors in Nuevo Progreso.

#7 Brownsville’s Gladys Porter Zoo

We set out to go to a flea market in the border town of Brownsville, about 20 miles from our home away from home. Dutifully following the GPS route, we arrived in Brownsville and ……. no flea market. Just an ordinary neighborhood without even a garage sale. We asked around and found we had passed the flea market a few miles back.

Anne suggested we have a look at the Gladys Porter Zoo that she had read about, so we did. The GPS did much better getting us there, and we were soon driving through a suburban neighborhood when we came upon a modest parking lot and entrance to the zoo. It was misleading, because once inside we were treated to a huge variety of animals in some of the most natural zoo habitats we have ever seen.

Although confined to individual habitats, the animals are separated from the public by moats or by other natural barriers. Lush plantings with many trees and waterways provide authentic settings for the zoo animals.

The variety and number of animals housed in a relatively small zoo was amazing. Our favorite animals were a community of perhaps 12 Great Apes - Lowland Gorillas. Watching the boss man wander around his tribe, beat his chest and hoot was scary, even from the safety of our vantage point. The whole community listened to him, and some of the young adults made some obviously submissive gestures.

Though small, perhaps the size of the Lincoln Park Zoo, it was easy to get lost on one of the many paths through the various exhibits. We finally figured out that the designers wanted visitors to wander through the zoo, and not have a fixed walking route. It gives the feeling of many distinct areas within the zoo’s confines.

Numerous indigenous birds, exotic for us Midwesterners, were simply flying free and “visiting” the grounds, which were designed around a resaca - an old river bed. Many small monkeys, alligators, snakes, Mongolian horses, lions and tigers and bears (oh, my!) all made for a unique zoo experience. The pictures tell the story better than we can ……..

This zoo was named after the daughter of the benefactor, Earl C Sams, one of the founding partners of the J C Penney Co. It was built in the early 70’s, and for us seems to us to be something of an architectural and zoological wonder. Anne later found that it is considered one of the 10 best zoos in the US, and it is at the very top of the list of our favorite zoos.

Another unexpected gem………

#6 The RV Life

Living in the RV has its good points and its bad points, especially when you have 3 “kids” (actually 2 cats and a dog – but more about them later).

On the “good” side is:

- doesn’t take long to clean the house

- easy to move from one neighborhood to another

- everything is within 10 steps of everything else

- stuff that is lost is easy to find, sometimes

On the “not so good” (ie. bad) side is:

- everyone is always under everyone else’s feet

- it’s easy to knock things over (like the coffee grounds on the carpet yesterday morning)

- dogs always want to play

- you can’t get too far away from the others inside

Everyone in the RV Park is very friendly, which is really nice, but when you are outside, walking or riding, you have to say hello a hundred times! You find that in the park, it is a real melting pot with the people next door from Iowa and Montana, and the ones behind you are from Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Colorado – all Winter Texans now. Everyone is fleeing the cold weather, and most of them will stay in this park for 3 months, usually Jan. – Mar. Many have been to this park many for years in a row.

The main building has some offices and a big hall where dances and other meetings are held. They have many functions ranging from Sunday services to bands, magicians, karaoke, shuffelboard, swimmimg pool, etc. A lot of acts come to the Rio Grande Valley this time of year from Branson and elsewhere to perform for the Winter Texans. There are also clubs for computers, model cars, kite flying (its windy here), and others. We have gone to one concert and listened to some karaoke so far, but haven’t done much more here at the resort (I keep wanting to call it a campground!!).

What else????

Overall, it is a pretty quiet, relaxed environment. It is only boring if you let it be so. Right now it is Saturday morning, 8am, and a sunny 49 degrees with a high expected of 67. Think I will go for a bike ride this morning. Then off to get some bargains at the Brownsville flea market.

Ahhhhh……the life of a Winter Texan……..

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Ps. Here are some numbers, for those who like them:

- monthly rental at this resort: $480 (doesn’t include electricity)

- distance from chi town: 1550 per R odo

- RV mileage, towing the car (diesel fuel): 8.1 mpg

- Unleaded fuel price here: $2.59/gal

- Camping fees on the way down:

o Low: $13

o High: $38.50

- Best Bargain: 4 Texas red grapefruits for $1

- Biggest ripoff: $38.50 for KOA in St Louis

- Harlingen population in 2000: 57,000