Camping on Padre Island in Texas is one of few public places where you can park right on the beach for free. This is because a large strip of beachfront is part of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and is free to public access.

Sleeping on the beach in the Gulf of Mexico was a surreal experience, and surprisingly, it gave me more privacy and remoteness than I’ve ever gotten at a campground or RV park.

Heading to Padre Island

I wanted to avoid the weekend beach crowds, so I drove from San Antonio Padre Island on a Thursday. The drive took about three hours, and there was nothing besides a clear, open road ahead of me.

There’s not much between San Antonio and Corpus Christi – the main city before Padre Island. There were just long hot stretches of road. Alongside the two-lane roadway were splashes of white, yellow, orange, pink and purple flowers growing wild. After a while, I realized they were variations of daisies that I once tried to grow in my backyard at the home I owned in Michigan. My daisies never really grew that well, so it’s funny to see them grow wild here. Some things just need to be wild and free to thrive.

Island Fog

When you think of a beach, you think of sunshine and sand, at least I do. My arrival on Padre Island wasn’t what I expected. It was 99 degrees as I drove through Texas, but once I crossed the long bridge onto the island, the temperature was in the 70s.

I anticipated a beach resort type of town, and it is, but I couldn’t see it. Everything was obscured in grey. It was so fine and at first, I couldn’t tell if it was mist or maybe even smoke. At a glance, it didn’t really have the characteristics of either. It didn’t seem that moist, and it didn’t make me cough. But, I soon realized it was an intense mist rolling in off the Gulf of Mexico. It was so intense that I couldn’t see more than 50 feet in front of me.

Finding Free Tent and RV sites

Padre Island is just a thin barrier island in the gulf. There’s not much to it. It encompasses about 70 miles of coastline, prairies and dunes that are only 1.5 miles wide. There are only a few bridges onto the island and then you can turn either left or right.

There is a large swath of beachfront on Padre Island that you can drive on. For miles, there is nothing but sand and gulf waters. Few people park along the shore, frolic in the water, search for beach shells and play games.

The first section of beach I found wasn’t the public land I’d heard of, so after a while, using two different map apps, I made my way to the public land. Here, with a pass ($14), you are free to park and, in some areas, set up camp.

This public land is often among the most beautiful, well preserved and remote land in the country. There are 250 million acres of public land in our country. I’ve been using an app called Free Roam to find all the free sites. Take a look; you’ll be surprised.

Port Aransas and Mustang Island

My journey took me through Port Aransas. It’s a city on the part of the beach called Mustang Island. Port Aransas is an adorable little beach town with many colorful condos and semi-permanent RV parks in the green, blue, yellow, orange and teal colors of the Caribbean.

There are dozens of little shops and restaurants selling beach gear and accessories, drinks in go cups, and tacos by the dozen. A favorite pastime in Port Aransas seems to be to drive golf carts – there are rental lots on every other corner and you see them driving up and down the beach roads.

Camping on Padre Island

I soon found the BLM beach and bought a beach pass. It’s good for all year and allows me to stay for up to two weeks at a time If I choose. There are no facilities, just outhouses, garbage cans and the Gulf. But for a short time, I think that could be all you need.

The beach is mostly clear and empty. A few RVs, vans and modified school buses line the parking areas but are few and far between. There are even a few tents in the sand, but not many.

I found a spot somewhere in the middle and made my camp for the night. With my little Ford Transit van, making camp simple means parking and turning off the engine. A bed in the back is already made, and my plastic bins of food and clothing are packed underneath. There is a mini-fridge powered by a converter that keeps my drinks cold.

Working Remotely on the Beach

After walking around a bit, dipping my toes in the warm water and collecting a few seashells, I am content that the place I have chosen is good.

I walk past a few of the “campsites,” wave and say hello, but I think they’re a solitary lot. BLM campers are different than you’d find in a campground. They’ve come here for the solitude because it’s remote and few others are near.

The cellphone reception is excellent and working well, so I work from my makeshift desk on the beach with only the seagulls as my office mates. The sound of the waves is my background noise.

I work while sitting in a chair on the beach, powder-soft sand between my toes, and the view of the Gulf of Mexico in front of me. The roar of the water is loud. I always forget how loud it is until I am in front of it. The screeching of the seagulls is ever-present and the smell of the fishy, salty water permeates everything.

Sleeping on the Beach

I slept in the van to the sounds of ocean waves and seagulls. It reminded me of the white noise sounds I use on my Alexa app. They were very similar and with my eyes closed, I could have been anywhere. But I was on the beach.

In the morning, it was overcast, so I didn’t get the beautiful sunrise I hoped for, but still a nice morning walk on the beach and you can’t beat camping on Padre Island for free. Thank you, BLM.

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