As I mentioned on Friday, today the producer, Lucy, Twiggy, and I will be relocating to the Austin Texas area. Since this is my last Port Aransas post I decided to give you a view of my neighborhood. I have taken many pictures of other neighborhoods but this is a first for my own. We enjoyed the last twelve years living by the Gulf but now is time to move to a new chapter. I hope you enjoy the little tour.

Here is the entrance sign to our neighborhood. After Hurricane Harvey a number of things needed to be replaced. This sign was one of them.

Marie will hate this but here is our main gate

This is the golf car crossover to the beach.

Speaking of that here is the first picture of our golf cart. Notice the raised suspension and nubby tires. All the better in the sand. That number and red flag denote our lot number and residence status. (All carts in our community are registered.)

Bit of fog yesterday when I took these photos

A shot from the crossover of the pool area.

That little house contains the bathrooms and pool pump. By the way, The Producer was tasked with developing the color scheme for the neighborhood. She redesigned all signs and chose the colors.

Here is a shot of the expanded lanai.

This is a view of the front of our house. The Producer also designed our home and worked with an architect to bring it to reality

Here is the back view. I have taken many photos from the backyard but this is the first from this view. My office is on the third floor overlooking the pond.

I hope you enjoyed the Port Aransas series and next week we start anew from Austin.

Of all the treasures in Port Aransas, the Museum has selected eight which have been labeled The Eight Wonders of Port Aransas. I thought it would be fun to take a look at what the museum considers the eight wonders.

Number one is the Lighthouse. Construction started in 1854, and the first light went on in 1857. The beacon could be seen as far out as seven miles into the Gulf. It was an operational lighthouse for Ninety -nine years before decommissioning. (photo courtesy of The Port Aransas Museum)

Number two is the jetties. There are two and were built to stop the erosion of the ship channel. Work was begun in 1862, but it was not until 1910 that the jetties were constructed finally strong enough to withstand the sea force.

The third is the Tarpon Inn. So named after a popular gamefish that is now extinct from the Port Aransas waters. The hotel was built in 1886 just when it was clear that the jetties would be successful in protecting the ship channel from deterioration. The channel meant new visitors and new business opportunity.

I couldn’t get the Tarpon Inn in one shot so here is another

The fourth wonder is the University of Texas Marine Science Institute. Established in 1941 the institute has educated thousands of scientists on how to move marine science forward. Here is a picture of the educational center.

The fifth is the Port Aransas Museum. It is housed in a building that was initially a “kit ” home built in 1914. It has been moved three times around the island. It served as the life-saving station from 1916 to 1925 and then a private residence for seventy-seven years until donated to the museum.

The sixth is the Farley Boat Works. Founded in 1915 the works made boats that could withstand the heavy surf around Port Aransas. They were used primarily as fishing boats. The works continued to make boats until 1970. In 2011 the Farley Boat Works began making crafts once again.

The seventh is the Chapel in the Dunes. It is atop the highest dune in Port Aransas. It was built in 1937 to serve as a devotional place for the Carter family. It also became the center for ice cream socials for the children of Port Aransas held by Arline Carter know as the “Angel Lady.”

Photo courtesy of The Port Aransas Museum

The eighth wonder is the Last Farley Boat. The last boat to leave the boat works. It was a finished hull bought by James Mayfield a local shrimper. He was going to have the shell made into a new shrimp boat. He never got around to it and instead inverted the hull to form a roof on his shop.

I hope you have enjoyed a glimpse of the Eight Wonders of Port Aransas

 

Last year I featured the bollard in Port Aransas being covered by crochet wraps. There were about thirty the previous year and more than one hundred and thirty this year. The creator of this display is Diana Vondra and a host of helpers. They are being called the “Bollard People for reasons you will see in a moment. There are some photos, and I could not put them all in this post. Also, the sun was at an Eastern angle so for you to see the faces I had to manipulate the photos a little.

Here’s one that looks like a superhero.

This is a view of the way they look when you drive up.

Another shot of a group of them.

Wise one.

Pink.

Looks like an ode to Saturday morning.

Mama in her curlers.

Delighted.

Dignified.

Lost.

Happy.

An author I’ll wager.

Hates to wear glasses.

“May I take your order?”

“Put all the money in this bag.”

Frosty’s youngster.

The sister.

Do Bee.

Ladybug.

Grandma.

Of course, they are from Minnesota.