Andy Bowie County Park — Attraction in Port Isabel

Camped in a 35” motorhome. We are self-contained so cannot comment on restrooms/shower facilities. Overall – the septic spill issues far outweigh the pros - will not return

Pros – Great proximity to the beach – a short walk Across the street from the Birding and convention centers – both incredible birding opportunities Very friendly staff – seem overworked Very good Verizon and T-Mobile cell and i/n connectivity Full hookups

Cons – Spaces are obnoxiously close together – can hear conversations and televisions. It literally is a parking lot. Lots of RV’s moving daily in this small lot. Many had difficulty backing into their site due to the lack of space to maneuver. Now for the very bad part – the septic system was not built to handle the volume. If you leave your septic uncapped it will surely overflow when someone down the row dumps. We witnessed this first hand. Our neighbors septic overflowed all over the next site’s area when someone else dumped their tank. The site's rug, ice chests, chairs - all sitting in sewage. It was unbelievable. We called the office and they said this happens often. After 2 calls a guy came down to look it over and he told us that this happens frequently and that the county won’t pony up to build a new septic system. I called the office and they gave me their supervisors number. I called him and told him that if I saw this again I would call the health department and ask that the campground be closed due to health issues. Every morning we saw people try to dump before leaving and they couldn’t. The system was full. They would call and then have to wait until someone from the county would somehow release more out of the system….ugh. We learned to dump frequently when we could and the night before we left. The people that stay there for months knew all about this...

I realized on the way down there that a 568 mile drive is a lot longer than it looks on google maps! it was beautiful though, the drive was worth it alone! I did some yoga on the beach, felt the mist off the waves, watched a couple that was dancing together by a campfire, saw a stunning sunset, watched waves for hours, admired my injenuity as I used my truck to block the wind from my tent, went and sat in the water, got karate slapped by a deceivingly small wave, so got out of the water. Then went to get a lighter from the gas station but got badly stuck when my truck sank to the bumper into the sand, luckily some awesome beach goers towed me out! So I drove a little further to get stuck again. yay :). And got towed out by some different awesome beach goers! This morning I woke up to the thundering sound of waves that were relaxing and sounding really close, and when I stuck my head out, they were really close! Apparently I didn't account enough space for high tide and they were stopping right on the other side of my truck. So I quickly packed up my tent (rolled it into a tight wad) and started down the beach entirely paranoid of getting stuck...again... and losing my truck to this vacation. The beautiful mist off the sea had so kindly covered my window with an impressive layer of salt and sand, which my windshield wipers did a fantastic job of mixing together and who knew thats how you make mud! So a little wet, squinting through my windshield wipers finger painting, with a huge body rash from sleeping covered in sand, and yet somehow truly satisfied I headed back at 5a.m. It was an experience I would trade for nothing but I'm getting a...

We have been coming here for a beach access car parking lot location. $12 entrance fee plus $3 transaction fee if using a card. Place has an RV parking lot apart from regular vehicle parking. Bathrooms are available with indoor showers and a set of outdoor showers as well. Not giving 5 starts because their wooden porch dining area doesn't have an overhead tarp, so your dining in direct sunlight and their "play area" has been broken down for a long time. Also not 5 star because their bathrooms are only opened until 6:30 pm. I feel like they should be opened to at least 9 pm. Some people enjoy the beach at night or wait until sundown to wash off.

Walking to the beach is kinda short, but if you're dragging a cooler or a wagon, the thick soft sand will slow you down DRASTICALLY!

This place has become our favorite place to go for beach access. It's north enough to get away from the mass crowds, but not too far north that you're away from help.

We've cooked out here and ordered food to here...