4th of July weekend PINS trip and campout

Beached Bum, I have an original 15 inch Wrangler spare that still has the little whiskers on it. It is yours if you want it.

Beached Bum wrote:

Im still in. I think I have everything. I still need to find a rim for my spare tire. I dont have a spare yet. Ill have to buy a new rim if I cant find one. Cant wait. The day cant come fast enough.

RichSATX wrote:

Beached Bum, I have an original 15 inch Wrangler spare that still has the little whiskers on it. It is yours if you want it.

CJs have 5 on 5.5 and TJs have 5 on 4.5 bolt pattern so it won’t work unless you get an adapter but it would be probably cheaper to get the right rim

Thanks Raul, didn't look at what he had.

Here I am lurking again...you guys are making me want to steal the JK from the exwife for this trip.... If i didn't already have plans that weekend I'd be begging some to let me ride shotgun..or hang on the rear bumper for a ride down there...lol...farthest I've been is 35 miles down...you guys have fun and be safe!!

oh well, thanks for the thought Rich. Ill get one before the trip. Was just holding out to see if anyone had an old rusty one in the field.

Anyone know of a RV park in the area that I can use? The wife don't camp.... and I enjoy being married.

Looking for a place that I can get to in the evening and back to the group in the morning if it exists. Did we figure out which way we are going to go? From south to north or north to south? I can do a search by area if someone can narrow it down a bit.

Mr.RonGilbert wrote:

Anyone know of a RV park in the area that I can use? The wife don't camp.... and I enjoy being married.

Looking for a place that I can get to in the evening and back to the group in the morning if it exists. Did we figure out which way we are going to go? From south to north or north to south? I can do a search by area if someone can narrow it down a bit.

The only way to go is from north to south. Starting at milepost 0 and finishing at milepost 60 (this is where we will set camp).

Click below for the map

http://www.nps.gov/pwr/customcf/apps/maps/showmap.cfm?alphacode=pais&parkname=Padre%20Island%20National%20Seashore

There is a camp area near the park headquarters but I don’t know if it is setup for RVs.

Do you really want to do the drive up and down by yourself in a day? It could be somewhere between 2-4 hours drive depending on the condition. What would happen if you get stuck? Cell phone reception is close to none there.

We are staying at mustang island state park starting on Thursday. We leave our rv there when we go. We will be staying through the 6th of July. its 16 dollars a night water and electric.

Do they let you reserve a spot or is it first come basis?

You can do it either way, however i would highly recomend reservations to garantee your spot. You can make them by phone at 1-512-389-8900 or online however I recomed by phone. My wife and I stay there everytime we go and really enjoy the park and surrounding areas. As I said we will be arriving on thursday and leaving on wednesday. So if ya'll do go and have some time to stay after the campout we would enjoy the company. There is alot to see and do there. If I can answer anymore questions please feel free to call me. 830 - 832 - 6449. As Raul said it is a long hard drive down to the end and back and hard to do in one day. Just take everything into consideration. Hope this helps.

We are planning on making this one. We'll be in Corpus by Fri. early evening and spend the night at our place there where I'll be leaving my trailer and driving the Jeep down to PINS.

Thanks for the info.

We will nail down exactly what we (read she) wants to do and go from there. Even if it means pealing off at a set time to get back.

Hey Guys,

Just talked to Rich, sounds like this is going to be a fun trip.

Rich has offered to lead the group down to the pass, he and his wife have been down several times, this is great because this trip can be challenging if you don't plan right... you guys are in goods hands.

I think Rich is going to post up a recommended list of things to take, hope you all have fun. Take lots of pics for us!

I think its time to start thinking on where and when we are going to meet.

Do you guys want to meet at the American Bank parking lot (361 with SPID) or at the parking lot of Malaquite visitor center (after the park entrance station)?

Rich, what time are you thinking we should start heading down?

FYI. For does that don’t know, there is an entrance fee for the park. It’s $10 for 7 days pass or $20 for the year.

This looks like a lot of fun. I have a few questions:
1) We are supposed to go to the RGV that weekend to visit some of my wife's family. I could probably get permission to go to PINS (without getting in too much trouble) and would bring my oldest boy who is 3. I'm a little concerned it could be too hot for him though...any experience with this?
2) Are you all heading down Saturday and coming back Sunday? I would need to head back Sunday and not sure if I would be driving back up PINS alone or if others were doing that too.

I'm sure I'll have another question or two if it looks like I may be able to make it. Thanks!

Im all for leaving as early as possible, doesnt matter where we meet just let me know when and where.


we just got back from a beach camp on mustang island and it was fairly hot out in the sun light but we got in the tent every now and then and with the breeze it was nice.

the plans are to head out on saturday and come back on sunday, it appears the times are currently being discussed

I think we should meet in the parking lot at Malaquite. There is plenty of room to get together. We need to do a briefing and establish the guidelines for the trip. Thanks for mentioning the cost Raul, it is a pay park. I will put together an online briefing today and post it up. As I've said, this is a serious trip. We have to be prepared, and understand that based on conditions, we may not be able to go all the way to the pass. Out of 7 times trying to make it to the end, we have had to turn around short 2 times. More to come shortly.

Rich

Anyone bringing an air compressor ?

OK here is the plan based on tides.

http://nearshore.utmsi.utexas.edu/tides/Tidecharts2011/pajul2011.pdf

Meet at Malaquite parking lot at 8 am Saturday the 2nd with a briefing to follow. We will head out down the beach at 9 am. High tide is at 0657 hrs that morning. 9 am will give the tide a bit of time to start working it’s way out as we head down. Pace will be within the speed limits on the beach, and what conditions will allow. Be prepared to move from the “groove” up in the dry sand down to the packed wet sand as conditions change in order to keep a good pace going. There will be times that we have to stay in deep powder sand for miles. We will need to make a few stops along the way in order to let Jeeps cool down and take breaks as needed. We will be on CB channel 14 during the trip.
Scheduled stops will be at Big Shell around the 22 mile mark, Angel Wing at the 38 mile mark, and the wreck of the SS Nicaragua at 50 miles. Shell hunting is great at these locations. Of course we will take more breaks as needed by the group. Whether we can make it all the way will be a judgment call on the trail.
As I have said before, fuel is a huge thing. It can be a situation where we can drive there and back and have over a quarter tank left. Or it can be a situation where extra fuel is needed to just get back. Take extra fuel. We can haul some jerry cans in the back of the Super Duty (chase vehicle) for you. We will provide some BBQ for everyone Saturday evening. But take snacks, an evening meal, breakfast, and snacks for the trip back. Water will be huge with the high temps that we’ve had. If you haven’t parked near the beach overnight, salt water condensation will form on and in your open Jeep overnight. We are taking a cover for overnight to guard against this.
Vicky is a physician and I have had emergency medical training. If anyone else has medical training please speak up so that we have an idea of who we can turn to if needed.
Again, just so that everyone knows. This can be a fairly easy trip, very difficult, or even impossible based on the conditions.
The return trip Sunday will be an on the spot call based on tear down of the camp. We should leave no later that mid afternoon.
If you have any questions, you can call, text, pm, or email.
(210)347-0470
rlitton@satx.rr.com

List of items we are going to take:
Fuel
Water
Shovel
Fire extinguisher
Plenty of tools
Tire plugs
Air compressor
Good first aid kit
Bedding
Tents (will be bringing the kid again)
Lights
Glow sticks
Awning
Extra food/snacks
Gatorade
Dog food (will be bringing the lab mix and my golden girl)
Fishing gear
Beer (God is great, beer is good, and people are crazy)
Ice chests
GPS
Binoculars
Ham Radio
Marine Radio (both radios in case of emergency)
GMRS Radios for family
Hygiene products
Cloths
Smoker and Wood

Rich, thanks for putting together the briefing, all sounds good.

May have another jeep goin. Friend of mine who helps me out alot has an old jeep he is fixen up. If we get it going this weekend he will join us with his two kids.

Two more weeks, Cant stand the wait.

Looks like I may be fooked on this one...

Will have to work on July 1st and 2nd...... sucks.

MAN I HOPE THE FORCAST GETS BETTER. I KNOW ITS STILL A WAYS OUT BUT EVERYDAY ITS GETTING WORSE AND WORSE.

maybe some rain will cool off the sand and pack it a little bit..

those headed down from SA.. what time are yall headed down? friday night or saturday morning? im looking at headin down friday..

IM ACTUALLY HEADED DOWN THURSDAY