Tip 'o Texas

Friends from Kansas, Paul & Patsy Kettler, stopped by for a visit and asked if we had ever been to the "Tip 'o Texas", the place where the Rio Grande River flows into the Gulf of Mexico. I knew the Rio Grande emptied into the Gulf, but I had never heard of anyone who had ever been to that spot. Paul had talked to someone who had been there, so we decided do a little exploring to find the "Tip 'o Texas".


Paul drove his car and we thought we would see a little of Brownsville, Texas, on the way, so we checked out the brochures and decided to stop at the Brownsville Museum. The museum is in the original Rio Grande Railroad station and has a lot of historical displays and artifacts of the area including items from both sides of the border. Back in the 1800's this area changed hands six times: Spain, France, Mexico, Texas, The Confederacy, and the United States. That in itself explains the varied history and cultures of "The Valley".

The museum was very well done plus it included an adjacent building which was a railroad museum. A very early steam engine was on display along with numerous railroad artifacts. A very interesting place.


After we left the museum, we toured part of Brownsville; the International Bridge to Matamoros, Mexico, the old downtown, Fort Brown, the International Airport, and the Brownsville College which is huge and ultra-modern.They must be enjoying considerable growth as many large new buildings are under construction. At least one of the buildings under construction was being built by JE Dunn, a Kansas City construction company.


We then drove on East to find the "Tip 'o Texas". After about twenty miles crossing what appeared to be a large wasteland interspersed with tidal basins and fields of cactus, we ran out of road. The wide two lane blacktop road simply ended at the Gulf of Mexico . . . nothing in front of us but sea and sand!

That's Paul standing literally at "the end of the road". Nothing behind him but sea and sand . . . no river in sight!





Looking South down the beach toward the river, we could see a number of vehicles driving on the beach, all four-wheel drive vehicles. We were in Paul's Mercury, so we were at the end of our drive to find the "Tip 'o Texas". I estimate the Rio Grand River flows into the Gulf about a mile further South, so I shall return another day in the Blazer, drop it into four-wheel and drive down the beach to the "Tip o' Texas". Stay tuned!








In the salt air at the beach, we all worked up an appetite. So we returned to civilization, drove past the Port of Brownsville through Port Isabel and across the bridge to South Padre Island for a great seafood lunch at Dirty Al's. That's Carole, Patsy, and Paul entering the restaurant on the bay.

I had a great blackened fish sandwich and Carole had her usual shrimp and oyster basket. Also the beer was nice and cold. I had a Shiner, a dark beer bottled in Shiner, Texas, which was pretty good.






With our stomachs full, we drove North up South Padre Island almost to the end of the road. Then on our trip back South to the bridge, Carole and Patsy spotted a couple of shops where we just had to stop . . . one of which was a Fresh Produce shop . . . one of Carole's favorite women's clothing stores. I caught Carole and Patsy in their comfort zone . . . shopping. Fortunately, Carole was just shopping today, not buying.







We then drove back to "The Bus" talking about how close we came to the "Tip 'o Texas" and another day, another trip.