We just returned home from a trip down the four-wheel drive section, at Padre Island National Seashore. Padre Island is the world’s longest barrier island, stretching from near Corpus Christi, Texas to just northeast of Port Mansfield. Beyond the ten mile marker, the path can be difficult to traverse – even for four wheel drive vehicles – depending on beach conditions. Because of the difficulty involved in getting there, it’s not the most crowded part of Padre Island – and that’s right up our alley for a “woof the beaten path” adventure!
Traveling to the Mansfield Cut
Mansfield Cut is a navigable channel, leading from the Gulf of Mexico to the small fishing village of Port Mansfield. South Padre Island can be seen a few hundred yards off in the distance, but since there’s no ferry or bridge, the only way to get there is by driving several hours – all the way around and up the coast from Port Isabel. See our Article on South Padre Island Camping
South of the National Seashore Headquarters, the “road” along the beach is nice and smooth. As you pass the ten mile marker, the sand begins to get a bit deeper and more rutted, and by the time you’re at the twenty mile marker and beyond, you’ll find that you may need to switch to four-wheel drive. We didn’t have to use four-wheel drive until just past the thirty mile marker, where the sand was deep, soft and rutted.
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- Witherington, Blair (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 424 Pages - 12/01/2022 (Publication Date) - Pineapple Press (Publisher)
Camping On The Beach
We drove all the way down to the Mansfield Cut, at the sixty mile marker, then drove back up to around the forty mile marker, where we found a nice section of beach with clear protected water – and a sandbar about fifteen feet off of the beach that was blocking the stronger waves. It was a great place to use the SUP board and to lie in the warm water and relax with our dogs. We opted to set up our four person tent, instead of using our rooftop tent, since it was way too hot for the dogs to sleep in the back seat of the truck, even with the windows rolled down. Also, our newest family member – Lizzy Lou – is a bit on the “fluffy side” and not as easy to lift up into the rooftop tent as Stevie Ray.
It was a bit warm, staying in the eighties even at night, yet the biggest downside was the mosquitoes. They pretty much left us alone until just after sunset, when they arrived in droves – even biting us way out in the water. We doused ourselves with bug spray – sprayed the dogs with Wondercide and lit some Tiki torches, all which seemed to help keep them somewhat at bay. You can see some of the ways we fight mosquitoes when camping by reading our post How to Keep Away Mosquitoes When Camping on the Gulf Coast.
That night the stars were amazing and we saw several shooting stars before drifting off to sleep. Around midnight, a big red moon – caused by the Saharan dust – came up over the water. We soon forgot about the occasional mosquitoes that were buzzing around inside the tent and finally got some sleep. Our nearest “neighbors” were about five miles down the beach, and other than the sound of the surf, it was nice and quiet.
Tips For Driving The Four Wheel Drive Area of Padre Island National Seashore
- Four-wheel drive is a generally must-have for anything past about the ten mile mark. You may not need it, but just in case…
- Cell phone service for AT&T and Verizon end not far past the 10 mile mark. We had a couple bars of coverage for a bit farther down, thanks to our cell phone booster.
- Be prepared to self-rescue. Carry traction plates or boards, a shovel and tow strap, etc.
- Be sure to gas up. Using four-wheel drive will burn more fuel.
- Carry enough water for all of your party, including your pets. It can be very hot down there!
- Sunscreen and a hat are must have items.
- Bring lots of mosquito spray – you’ll need it!
- You’ll be glad if you brought a sun shelter or some other form of shade.
- Airing down your tires can help with traction in sand.
- You may want to follow fresh ruts of other vehicles through deep sand. Also, don’t try to drive too far up toward the dunes. The sand is more hard-packed down toward the water.
- Never drive on or near the dunes – you can be fined for doing so.
- When you see any vehicle parked near the surf, don’t drive in between them and the water. Shark fishermen set out multiple lines from shore, so be sure to avoid them!
- Watch out for nesting sea turtles. Report any sea turtle sightings to park staff, who occasionally drive the beach.
- Leave no trace. Even though you’ll find a lot of trash that’s washed in – pack out what you brought so you don’t make the situation worse.
A Video Of Our Trip To Padre Island National Seashore
Below is a video we made of our trip with the dogs to the four-wheel drive area of Padre Island National Seashore.
For current beach conditions – including the four wheel drive section of Padre Island National Seashore – you can visit the National Park Service website.
