Surfing on Padre Island

It had been over a year since our last trip to North Padre and the Corpus Christi area. With all the rocket launches over the past few years, the extra four hours of driving had become a no-brainer. But with launches on hold this summer, we decided it was time to head back to North Padre Beach and take another shot at learning to surf. Yes, it’s the same beach where we usually catch sharks.

I bought an 8-foot beginner softboard as a graduation gift for my daughter. She’s headed to college in Hawaii, so surfing feels like a necessary skill. I caught my first wave last year thanks to a surf lesson, and the biggest takeaway was this: I need a big board. It makes things a lot easier. Unfortunately, the 8-foot semi-longboard I ordered from Amazon wasn’t quite big enough for my 220 pounds—but it turned out to be the perfect size for my daughter.

The first day in North Padre didn’t go well. No waves were caught, and my daughter got stung by a jellyfish. I did manage to catch one fish from the beach, so it wasn’t a total disaster.

On the second day, I went out early and finally reached the point where I could consistently catch waves and ride them into shore. The board still wasn’t big enough for me to stand up on, so for now I’ve put that goal on hold.

On our third day in Padre, I dragged my daughter out to the beach at the crack of dawn to beat the heat and talked her into giving surfing one more try. Unfortunately, she got stung by a jellyfish again and has officially had enough of this surfing thing—for now. I did manage to get some footage of myself catching a wave, and even convinced her to help edit a video for YouTube.

On the way out of town, we spent the day at the Corpus Christi Aquarium and the USS Lexington aircraft carrier. The aquarium is excellent—easily the best in Texas.

This was my first time touring the Lexington. I was surprised by how much of the ship is open to the public and converted into museum exhibits. It’s massive, and you can explore quite a bit of it. You’ll need to be in decent shape, though—most areas require climbing up and down steep stairs originally designed for use when the ship was active. For those who can't manage the ladders, there are some areas accessible by elevator, including the huge hangar deck.

I’ve also never been on a battleship tour before, but now it’s on my list—next time I get the chance.