Snakes on Mustang Island - Wild Texas Forums: Parks, Travel & Recreation

taddison4x · 07-16-2005, 12:05 PM

HI every one! We have decided to camp at Mustang Island. If we camp in the primitive area, are there snakes or scorpions around there? Someone had mentioned snakes about St. Joseph's Island ( I don't even know where that is) but it got me thinking about the snakes on Mustang.
Also, we have 15" tent stakes. Is that good enough to hold the tent in the sand or do we need bigger?

Thanks for all your help

MissionCamper · 07-16-2005, 01:38 PM

The park folks say there are snakes on the island, but in the grassy areas.

I've not seen any during either of our two trips to Mustang or our one trip to Padre Island National Seashore.

taddison4x · 07-16-2005, 02:27 PM

Snakes as in rattle snakes? YIKES!

Do you think our 15" tent stakes will be OK to hold the tent? Is it really windy there like sand will be in everything?

We are really excited about the trip. I hope this is a good choice of where to camp

Any other tips would be appreciated.

copuswalker · 07-18-2005, 12:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by taddison4x

Snakes as in rattle snakes? YIKES!

Do you think our 15" tent stakes will be OK to hold the tent? Is it really windy there like sand will be in everything?

We are really excited about the trip. I hope this is a good choice of where to camp

Any other tips would be appreciated.

I am sure 15" stakes should be fine. Especially if they are the wider. Sand should be quite hard.
Snakes are there. We have encountered them in the water at night on One occasion. Keep in mind they really do not want to waste venom on something they can't eat. Unless you are really small :eek:
A little common sense is all it takes. I live outside and have never been bit...

taddison4x · 07-18-2005, 02:12 PM

Thanks for your post. When you say you have encountered them in the water, do you mean the ocean? I didn't think they would go into salt water.

Have you ever seen them on the beach during the day? I would use caution but I have heard stories of them coiling up under a chaise lounge chair, getting in a sleeping bag, etc.

Would be be better off camping where there are more people? What about if we camped at a regular camp ground, are they also known to be there too?

Sorry for so many questions but I am not used to even have to think about snakes and their behaviors.

copuswalker · 07-19-2005, 08:10 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by taddison4x

Thanks for your post. When you say you have encountered them in the water, do you mean the ocean? I didn't think they would go into salt water.

Have you ever seen them on the beach during the day? I would use caution but I have heard stories of them coiling up under a chaise lounge chair, getting in a sleeping bag, etc.

Would be be better off camping where there are more people? What about if we camped at a regular camp ground, are they also known to be there too?

Sorry for so many questions but I am not used to even have to think about snakes and their behaviors.

Yes, We were crabbing one night and we saw a 3' snake. In all honesty it wanted away from us as much as us from it.
We were camping at Galveston State Park one time and there was a snake in the restroom. So more people does not mean fewer snakes? When I first moved to Texas I was afraid to walk outside. I heard all these stories about snakes hiding under the front door, Hanging from rooftops... I do a lot of hiking and have seen many snakes and have never seen an aggresive snake yet. If you are careful in the dunes you should have no problem.
I will say you run a higher risk of danger being surrounded by people

I am willing to bet you will not encounter a snake at all.. Go for it and have a good time.

taddison4x · 07-19-2005, 08:17 AM

Thanks for your post. We will just be careful. We love the outdoors and hiking/camping and the idea of camping on the beach is just too much to resist. We have to do it

Where did you move from? We are wanting to move to Texas from Ohio (8 months of snow is just too much) and we really are interested in the Gulf Coast side. Somone had suggested Portland area so we will take a look at that area when we are down there.

We had our hearts set on Sedona (awesome hiking) but the 109 temps even in Sedona are making us rethink AZ. I think Texas will be a better answer for us and our 2 dogs.

Is there any areas that you would suggest we take a look at?

Thanks for your time!

Jenny

copuswalker · 07-19-2005, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by taddison4x

Thanks for your post. We will just be careful. We love the outdoors and hiking/camping and the idea of camping on the beach is just too much to resist. We have to do it

Where did you move from? We are wanting to move to Texas from Ohio (8 months of snow is just too much) and we really are interested in the Gulf Coast side. Somone had suggested Portland area so we will take a look at that area when we are down there.

We had our hearts set on Sedona (awesome hiking) but the 109 temps even in Sedona are making us rethink AZ. I think Texas will be a better answer for us and our 2 dogs.

Is there any areas that you would suggest we take a look at?

Thanks for your time!

Jenny

We moved here from Massachusetts 26 years ago. Seems like yesterday :eek:
I always liked the rivers of West Texas....Utopia area. In fact I wanted to move to utopia and had gone and located land and everything. The wife and kids refused to go (something about 60 miles to a grocery store). I always hated cities so we settled on East Texas. Moved to Houston County Lake near Crockett. It is a spring fed lake that is very pretty. It looks a lot like New England topo. wise.
Unfortunatley there seems to be a fair amount of inbreeding

of course there are many real nice folk too!
Been an experience to say the least......oh better quit before I jump on my soapbox.
Are you retiring here? Corpus and Portland are flat and relatively treeless. Nice though!

taddison4x · 07-19-2005, 11:05 AM

OMG you are just too funny. That inbreed comment got me LOL.

No we are not ready to retire. We're 40 and still have a few years to work. We are official DINK's (double income no kids).

What made you move to TX? That must have been a huge decision.

We are really want no snow. We would be heading to Hawaii (I lived there for 10 yrs in college) but we have 2 older dogs and wouldn't want them to have to go through the flight, quarantine, etc. So we are going to find a place for about 5-6 yrs and then move on.

That is why I thought the Gulf Coast would be great....mild winters, ocean, etc. We love hiking and boating. Considered Cape Coral Florida because you can have your boat/dock right at your home and have direct access to the ocean but the hurricanes there are just too frequent.

Thanks for all the info. every little bit helps.

taddison4x · 07-19-2005, 11:43 AM

Copus Wakler, I almost forgot. Is there a coastal campground you recommend? We don't have to stay at Mustang. Can you think of a better one??? I just was saying Mustang because I found it on the Internet. I'm open for suggestions.
Thanks
Jenny

copuswalker · 07-19-2005, 01:37 PM

Unfortunately the inbreed comment is all to true. You can see it in their eyes :confused: But I was warned before I moved here!

I moved when the blizzard of "78" knocked my rent house down. Seemed like a good time for a dumb kid to move. Thought two maybe three years and I'm still here. I really do like Texas and it's wide range of climates and scenery. Never liked the way Mass. had so much control over your life.

I understand being a dink, my wife says I can be a prick

Galveston State Park gets pretty crowded. After school starts it becomes better. I camped on South Padre years ago and remember getting stuck. Couldn't really say much more as it was a drinking trip :confused:
We do not spend much time down on the south coast. Maybe we should??

taddison4x · 07-19-2005, 06:58 PM

You can spot it in their eyes??? I always look for the big forehead! ROFL!:eek:

Is there any place where I can see what the various areas are like to live. Now I know it won't say "beware people with beady eyes live here":eek: but at least I can get an idea.

Well you were lucky to get out of the snow zone...the winters are just getting way too long. We had over 200 inches of snow last year...now that is what controls us here. We spend our whole year planning vacations to get out of here. It went from Bad to worse. Homes are going down in value...we have lost $50,000 from 96.....others homes are doubling and here in 9 years our home has dropped 50K. Oh yeah...I am ready to get out of here.

Well, I think we are going to go with the Mustang island....now are those snakes out crawling around at night? We have a screened room to sit in at night....there isn't a floor so it is probably not a good idea since they can just slither their way in.... What about other creatures? Scorpions? Spiders? Ugh! I can't even think about it....

We have a van, do you think we will have a problem getting to the primitive camping on Mustang? I don't want to experience getting stuck.

OK thanks again...you are being awesome with all this info

Jenny

copuswalker · 07-20-2005, 09:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by taddison4x

You can spot it in their eyes??? I always look for the big forehead! ROFL!:eek:

Is there any place where I can see what the various areas are like to live. Now I know it won't say "beware people with beady eyes live here":eek: but at least I can get an idea.

Well you were lucky to get out of the snow zone...the winters are just getting way too long. We had over 200 inches of snow last year...now that is what controls us here. We spend our whole year planning vacations to get out of here. It went from Bad to worse. Homes are going down in value...we have lost $50,000 from 96.....others homes are doubling and here in 9 years our home has dropped 50K. Oh yeah...I am ready to get out of here.

Well, I think we are going to go with the Mustang island....now are those snakes out crawling around at night? We have a screened room to sit in at night....there isn't a floor so it is probably not a good idea since they can just slither their way in.... What about other creatures? Scorpions? Spiders? Ugh! I can't even think about it....

We have a van, do you think we will have a problem getting to the primitive camping on Mustang? I don't want to experience getting stuck.

OK thanks again...you are being awesome with all this info

Jenny

The large foreheads are the Inbreds that graduated :eek:

If I were moving here I would try and take some time to visit the areas. Don't get me wrong. East Texas is very pretty and there are a lot of fine people.....it's just that there are a lot of,,,, deliverance type souls

Lagrange can be nice and was settled by Germans and Polish..New Braunfels with it's clear cold rivers. If your bent on the coast then I think the areas you are looking at are the best? Will you be working? Are jobs available in certain areas only? If you can work out of your home (like me) then you can live most anywhere??

So many choices so little time!!

taddison4x · 07-20-2005, 01:38 PM

The large foreheads are the Inbreds that graduated <----ROFL:laugh:

LOL Your messages just kill me! LOL:laugh:

Well we aren't set on the coast exactly....I don't mind if I have to drive alittle to get to the ocean...here I have to fly to it! But I know I don't want any snow at all. I can't even look at another snow flake again or I'll be in therapy! LOL

We will have to work. My husband is a Pharmacist so he can pretty much get a job anywhere. He just has to stand th eboards for Texas...as for me, I do real estate investments. (office in house) so we can live just about anywhere.

Do you know if there is a way to send messages with our email addresses? I have a few more questions and I feel bad using up all the space on this message board???

Let me know if you know how. Last time I tried to even write the word "email" this board wouldn't let me send it

Jenny

Shannon · 07-20-2005, 02:15 PM

There's plenty of room on the forums, I promise. I upgraded our web server recently and we could quadruple in size and still have breathing room!

To send a private message to someone, use the Private Message feature. You can get to it by clicking on a user's name in the forums and looking for the "Send a private message" option. We don't publicize our forum participants email addresses due to spammers who harvest them for illicit use. And I'm not sure why "email" would have been a banned word, but if you encounter any further issues let me know and I'll look into it!