Solitude, warm nights, sea breezes, and a full moon in dark night skies create the backdrop for a Valentine’s Day beach getaway. In my opinion the best free winter beach camping in the country is at South Beach in Padre Island’s National Seashore.
“Bigger in Texas” Padre Island National Seashoreis the world’s longest stretch of undeveloped barrier island. The seashore creates the first break, or barrier, before the sea winds and water slam into the mainland.
Rugged, remote, and prolific ocean wilderness
Coastline, dunes, prairies, and wind tidal flats are home to 380 bird species on 70 undeveloped miles of the preserve. You’ll see far more birds than people at this National Park.
All five species of Gulf sea turtles can be found on the island and surrounding waters. The Division of Sea Turtle Science and Recoveryworks to monitor and protect the turtles and is the only division of its kind in the National Park Service.
The endangered Kemp’s ridley sea turtle has safe nesting ground on these beaches and no effort is spared to save these turtles.
This is the setting for the best free winter beach camping in the US.
It Wasn’t Always So Beautiful
Four different nations have owned the expansive preserve on the Gulf of Mexico and none erected endless rows of condos. But the beaches and dunes had extensive damage from oil drilling and cattle grazing. Restoring the island to pre-European conditions became a goal in 1969. Two years later cattle were removed and Texaco paid for clean up of oil sites.
Today the mended island is a safe permanent and migratory home to Nature. And a perfect way to escape the city and hit the beach for free winter camping,
If you love isolation in Nature this is it. Almost.
The beach is a public road! You can drive up and down much of the national preserve beaches and even primitive camp or boondock free on the beaches.
My favorite area is South Beach because it is less crowded than North Beach located just outside the National Park’s preserve system and the sand is more packed. It also has fewer mosquitoes than Bird Island.
How to Get to The Best Place to Boondock on Padre Island
Take Hwy 358 southeast out of Corpus Christi. It becomes S. Padre Island Drive (SPID) and then Park Rd 22 and goes to park entrance directly. Entry fee is free with a National Parks Annual Pass or $10 per week. Be sure to register to camp at the entrance to South Beach at Padre Island National Seashore.
Stop at the Malaquite Visitor Center to get a copy of the tide tables and view exhibits of island history. Sign up for ranger led programs for birding and sea beaning. The center also sells ice and has cold water free showers.
Access to the south beach road starts at the park paved road just past the Visitor Center. The first 5 miles of South Beach are accessible by two-wheel drive. Beyond the first 5 miles South Beach goes on another 60 4WD ONLY miles before ending at the jetties at the Port Mansfield channel.
Tips for South Beach Driving and Free Winter Camping
This free winter beach camping is primitive and remote so come prepared with plenty of water, food, shelter, and mosquito spray. There’s little to no internet past the Visitor’s Center so be sure to make one final check of weather and tides while there.
Set up camp a minimum of 100 feet from the waters up to the edge of the white sand dunes. No camping is allowed in the dunes.
Just remember this is Texas public highway. Obey the standard laws – street legal, licensed, obey all traffic laws, speed zones, and remember to buckle up.
Because you’re gonna need to be strapped down to get to the perfect campsite. The sand road can disappear beneath surging waves forcing drivers closer to the soft, unpacked sand that can trap a car in seconds. Most of the road can disappear in high tide so plan accordingly or you’ll get trapped. Campers tend to set up in the 20-30’ section between the road and dunes.
Small inlets created by eroding high tides can provide some break from the wind, but are also sand traps. Remember to look for a site 100 feet from the water and off of the sand dunes. Look for the high tide water mark and set up at least 10-15 feet above that mark. Factor in the anticipated tide level each day listed in the tide table forecast.
Be Prepared For The Unexpected
High temperatures in winter are usually between 50°-70°. The forecast was for low 50’s with sea fog. But the third night on my Valentine’s excursion a sudden, strong cold front barreled through. Gale winds blew and temperatures dropped quickly to the 30’s.
Rocky and I napped nervously through the irritable, howling night. Winds slammed logs in jams, created dunes around the rv, and forced sand into every possible crack and crevice. Even with the built-in stabilizer jacks deployed my rig swayed and lurched in high winds.
Morning awakened the rage of a winter storm that upended predicted tide levels. By mid-morning unrelenting brown waves thrashed each other in the race to shore. The ocean swallowed the beach road four hours before predicted high tide. My mouth dropped when waves began blowing into my cozy, sheltered cove at the edge of the dunes.
The power of the howling wind and rising waves roared like a tornado. Instinct grabbed control from my analytical mind still pondering how tide tables and weather forecasts could be as wrong as maps and GPS.
It didn’t take this plains gal more than two blinks to break camp, say a quick prayer, and drive nonstop through blowing wind, sand, and waves. Subaru’s all wheel drive combined with the offroad tires of my NuCamp RV made me howl with delight! Every time land slipped in surging water we quickly recovered forward progression.
Malaquite Visitor Center was crowded with campers surprised by the sudden winter storm that brought coastal flooding and wind advisories. I didn’t hang around to contemplate my options. Instinct was still in charge and it drove me far inland before I realized the escape had left a mark. I had no trailer lights and it was dark.
Deal is, the best winter beach camping adventure can end like this and there’s only one thing to do. Check into a hotel, take a long hot bath, catch up on laundry, run camp dishes through the dishwasher and binge watch all the Crocodile Dundee movies!
Special Thanks for Your Help!
The fantastic folks at Custom Tinting and Truck Accessoriesfound and replaced the trailer hitch fuse shorted by seawater. They even taught me how to change the fuses myself. Good thing since shorting fuses outside of the standard auto fuse box is becoming a thing with me. Thank you for the great work Johnny Salazar and team in Victoria, Texas!
Fortunately the teams at AAA Premier RV and Subaru’s Extended Warranty programs will cover the unexpected hotel and food expenses while my vehicle was out of commission. These two programs pay for themselves every year that I’ve been on the road.
Go prepared. Stay flexible. Have fun!
This All American Road has 11 amazing national or state forests, parks, monuments, and recreation areas. You won’t want to miss any! Each is a destination in its own right, so give yourself ample time.
Spanning from 
time in a land that has shaped resilient, tenacious people. The range spans 
Vistas spanning hundreds of miles and eons of time offer a rare silence broken occasionally by the faint drone of airplanes. Sunrise and sunset delight the senses while expansive 
Scenic Byway 12 has two entry points.
All American status
A single lifetime is not nearly enough.
Two weeks in downtown Minneapolis can suck the last drop out of a gal like me. I travel the rough back roads of this country solo and rarely feel vulnerable, afraid, or exposed. But a lot of time in most cities is draining. San Francisco, Montreal, and Istanbul are the exceptions.
hikes along the downtown Nature trails infused Rocky and me. The festivals, museums, music, and food reflect an appreciation of high talent and passion. I’m grateful for the hospitality the fine staff at Town Suites on 2ndStreet offered Rocky and me.
state parks are within an hour drive of the city. The flooding of St. Croix created an awesome canoe ride on a sunny Sunday.
I knew what I needed and why. I didn’t know what state or national forest would answer my call for a cold, mountain creek with deep forest shade and enough flat space to set up camp. Frequent rain is a bonus.
Firing up my orienteering brain, GPS, and the Forest Service’s off road maps we set off to find our next hermitage in the woods. But the answer to my call for a mountain peak and valley creek took me far beyond even Subaru’s impressive off grid GPS coverage. The paper map led me to blockades of private land, cut timber, and herds of cattle common in today’s national forests.
One deep breath disabled the brain and my open, willing heart took the lead focusing with gratitude on the cool, moist breeze, towering spruce, green rolling meadows, and distant granite peaks. Each turn on the ATV trail offered more than I had planned or prepared for. What did it matter if there was no creek?
A delighted laugh flew from my heart as I rounded a bend. A small clearing created when diseased trees were removed nurtured a new meadow
I couldn’t overthink camp set up because there was only one possible, perfect option. Shade for the camper, space for the shower/bathroom, 
stumps and cut timber for tables and chairs. The meadow was just right for optimum solar collection and a small deer trail led to the creek. I quickly assembled a basic camp and slept deeply to the sound of running water.
Over coffee a curious bumblebee with an odd flight pattern feasted on purple flowers by my chair. He might have a limping flight but was not lacking in strength and agility I noticed lighting incense and settling into meditation.
He was gone when I came back to physical awareness but returned often. His visits correlated with each new item I set up in camp. The two awnings, bathroom tent, a tablecloth over stumps to create a kitchen seemed to draw him like an inspector. He would hitch a ride on my feet, arms or hands.
I would too! I thought watching him crash land on the kitchen counter and crawl onto the raw veggies to nap.
Bee arrived with a hard landing on the map and danced in circles along the winding map trail markings. Between dances he slept, so still the only sign of life was the light reflecting in his eyes. So bees sleep with eyes open?
By the third morning he had let go of gathering nectar in the meadow, preferring to stay snuggled in the altar bustling with a community of spiders, honeybees, beetles and ants. Extravert aye? I mused as I broke my “don’t kill the wildflowers” cardinal rule and placed his favorite purple flower next to him on the altar. He perked up and fed for hours between naps. I tucked him in that night with visions of angelic hives, prayers for peace, and a deep appreciation for his quiet companionship.
Seemed fitting. Like Elijah, Bee reminded me to be bit more mindful of daily manna in the wilderness that defy life or death polarities. This elusive, often fleeting awareness deeply restores a vibrant, healthy, happy harmony in every part of me and has since I was a girl living in the woods with creeks and ponds.
“I’ve driven from coast to coast on backroads but never experienced this one yet,” I chuckled surveying the tire so flat it had collapsed in on itself with an angry pop and forceful hiss after I clipped the partially buried wedge of shale forcing a split in the sidewall of the tire.
I held up my hand to stop him. “There’s just one more thing I should show you before you volunteer to help. It’s quite the hassle,” I warned moving to the rear of my car to open the hatch and reveal the solid wood chest of drawers built to fit in the full cargo area of the Subaru. My favorite carpenter had built it for me to haul my gear. With all the drawers removed it still takes two strong people to lift. Someday I’ll find someone to build it out of lightweight aluminum but for now this 300 pound behemoth serves me well.
“I’m going to need one of you to help back here,” he quietly motioned.
And family they are. Three strapping brothers, their sister, mother, and a sister- and brother-in-law out for a picnic near beautiful meadows and old mine in Castle Peak wilderness area of the Black Hills National Forest in South Dakota.
With a grateful heart we shook hands, hugged thank you’s and good byes and went our separate ways. Just as I was getting in my car a mammoth, cobalt blue 4×4 pick up pulled up and offered help. I shook his hand in introduction and George swore I was the spitting image of his cousin. He may have missed out on the heavy lifting but he did stay in my site until we hit paved road where he waved good-bye.
A week earlier when I entered the deep forests, meadows, creeks and cliffs of the Black Hills I immediately felt peace, safety and belonging in my marrow. My sleep has been deep and filled with adventurous dreams of close-knit family living here for generations. My camp in the pine and spruce forest has been busy with visitors of all kinds. The same bumblebee lived with us for three days. Two majestic bucks visit the 
leaping brookies. Hummingbirds dive for my morning maple syrup. Angels dance with fairies and family long gone embrace me with a smell, a warm breeze, and memories of laughter and love. In all my travels it’s the longest I’ve stayed in one spot and I have no desire to leave.
In that instant I felt her unity with my journey in the very empty seat beside her. Yes the blessing of close, loving, grown children surrounded her. But she too knew unbearable loss and lonely, dark grief. I’ll never forget the glow of her face when she observed “you are free!” I think like me, she lives a celebrated recovery beyond the losses with a grateful mindfulness of the gift of each breath every day simply because we are alive.
Dear West Family and blue pick up George know that I still feel your infusion of safety, reassurance, and rescue. Your big medicine is now a part of me available to ground and guide me during the next calamity. May your blessings return to each of you in the gentle breeze with my grateful hug.
The heart and soul of the Colorado Plateau in southern Utah is expressed through canyons, arches, spires, and mesas carved by the Green and Colorado Rivers.
It’s almost impossible to wrap my mind around so much stunning beauty but it is as natural as breathing to allow all of that to become all of me. In my prayers and practices it also flows to each of you.
Inside both parks there is no food, gas, or other amenities. Each has one national parks campground.
and animals still live in much of this remote, rugged, and wild countryside. Lots of folks call it “The American Wild West” but it’s been around much longer than we have and God willing will continue long after we’re gone.
A thin, fragile veneer of biological soil crushed by your footprints alone (compression) may require five to seven years to recover. Cyanobacterial growth can take 50 years and lichens/mosses even longer.
The Moab BLM Field Office manages over two million visitors annually on 1.8 million acres in the heart of the Colorado Plateau.
Reservations are not accepted except group camps. All are first come first served. All BLM developed campgrounds have vault toilets, picnic tables, and metal fire grills. Fees are $10-$20/night.
Weather can make unpaved roads impassable. Check with rangers for latest conditions.
Lone Mesa Group Camp
Primitive Camping – Island in the Sky Section of Canyonlands National Park
Hardscrabble – South of Hardscrabble Bottom
Murphy Hogback – near Murphy Point trails
