But the best time to find shells anywhere on the seashore is right after a big storm, he added. 15, where activities and tours will explore the 200-year history of ranching on the island.īeachcombing: You can find shells near the Malaquite Visitor Center or anywhere down the seashore, said ranger Patrick Gamman. An annual pass is $80 a senior pass for age 62 and over costs $10 and military members with a military ID and their dependents are admitted free.īirthday program: The seashore will close out its NPS centennial events with a Cowboy Connections program from 9 a.m. Additional fees for reservations, camping, tours and concessions paid to third parties still apply on free days. Of the more than 400 national parks and historical sites, 127 normally charge entrance fees. įree NPS days: Mark these days on your calendar for free days in national parks that normally require a fee: Aug. The pet wash station would have come in handy had our dog not avoided saltwater with a passion. Where to stay: We had a kitchenette and a queen bed in our dog-friendly funky Laughing Horse Lodge cottage, with a rate of $140 for a weekend night plus a $25 pet fee. No gas stations or convenience stories are inside the park. Gas up your vehicle and bring your own groceries, too, or plan to eat in Corpus Christi or Port Aransas. But the Malaquite Visitor Center has bathrooms and showers and two more bathrooms are located along the road right before you turn onto the beach for a drive. Plan ahead:You won’t find any public toilets on the drive down the national seashore beach. The use of the Bird Island Basin is an extra $5. A $10 entrance fee for a car or truck is good for all the occupants for seven days. You can pay on the way out if you don’t pay on the way in. The seashore entrance is about 10 miles south on Park Road 22.įees: The seashore is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, but the entrance station has varying hours. NPS website directions say drive east through Corpus on Highway 358 and cross the JFK Causeway onto Padre Island. Getting there:Padre Island National Seashore is on North Padre Island southeast of Corpus Christi. Find the schedule at, along with info on other events like sand sculpting or watercolor painting. You can join a ranger for a leisurely, educational hour-long stroll on the beach, or catch a deck talk at the shaded Malaquite Pavilion. daily, with a model showing how Kemp ridley sea turtles lay their eggs in the sand on the beach. See the following web pages here on National Park Planner for details on each campground.Malaquite Visitor Center:Open from 9 a.m. At least a dozen of them got in my tent when I had to get out to use the restroom, and when I started killing them, it was like squashing blood-filled water balloons. They are about five times bigger than the mosquitoes I’m used to and have stingers about a quarter inch long, which means they can get to you right through your pants and shirt. They say things are bigger in Texas, and they aren’t joking. I was camping at Malaquite Campground, and when the wind was blowing there wasn’t a mosquito in sight, but when it died down, they were perched on the outside of my tent just daring me to come out. However, there’s no way I’d camp here from June through September.ĭuring the warmer months, if the wind isn’t blowing, mosquitoes are a big problem everywhere on Padre Island. I camped in late October, and it was extremely hot during the day with the sun beating down, but the night wasn’t too bad. With no shade, even mildly hot summer days can be brutal. One thing to keep in mind when deciding to camp at Padre Island National Seashore is that there isn’t a shade tree in the entire park. The primitive campground and all beach camping is free, but you do need to fill out a permit. There is a fee at the two developed campgrounds, and these are paid at the self-service pay stations at the entrances. There is, however, a dump station at the entrance to the Malaquite Campground that is available to all campers.Īll campsites are taken on a first come, first served basis. Amenities are sparse even at the developed campgrounds, and while RVs are welcome, there are no electric or water hook-ups anywhere in the park. There are two developed campgrounds (Malaquite and Bird Island Basin) and one primitive campground (Yarborough Pass) at Padre Island National Seashore, plus you can camp anywhere on the 60-mile-long South Beach or the 1-mile-long North Beach. Tent camping on South Beach, Padre Island National Seashore
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