“What are you going to do for two months in Galveston?” a friend asked several weeks before we jumped in our car and drove south.
“Live,” was Michael’s reply. And so, we are – living.
Queens BBQ
Today, the last day of the year, is forecasted to be the warmest day since our arrival on December 26. So, there is only one way to bid farewell to Auld Lang Syne — a picnic at the beach! And to make things easy, I think a to-go picnic at Galveston Island State Park sounds perfect.
After delaying our departure till the sun climbs high enough to heat our corner of the world to seventy degrees, we pack our car with a picnic tote and beach chairs and drive east. We could probably walk to Queens BBQ on Avenue S, we’ve done it before, but today we need wheels to get us to the State Park, only eighteen minutes away by car, but a three hour and fifty-five-minute walk according to Google maps.
One o’clock finds us at Queens BBQ with diners in the back room and a few in the front of the restaurant, and no customers in line. I guess you could call us fortunate. However, that was our plan all along – to be fortunate.
Michael knows what he wants: a smoked half chicken, smoked gouda mac & cheese, and coleslaw. I want a quarter pound of brisket, coleslaw, and potato salad. Then I learn I need to order a minimum of a pound of brisket, and I pivot. Opting instead for a Smoked Brisket Texas Drip sandwich with grilled onions, white cheddar, and house-made aioli on a po’boy roll with a side of au jus.
“It’s a big sandwich,” the Queen’s employee tells me. Then I wonder if I should have ordered a pound of brisket, saving money and calories and having leftovers for dinner. But I’m curious about the Texas Drip, so I let the order stand. I add our previous choice of three sides, a pint of coleslaw and a half pint each of mac & cheese and potato salad. The plastic silverware and paper napkins stay where they are. Picnic plates, cloth napkins, spoons, forks and one very sharp knife safely reside in the insulated picnic tote I ordered from Amazon just yesterday.
Galveston Island State Park
Traffic is slow on Seawall Boulevard this New Year’s Eve Saturday as we drive west toward Galveston Island State Park. We stop at every light with oodles of cars in front of us and behind us. But I have two insulated containers — one for cold and one for hot food, and we are in no hurry. We happily chug along.
We have been visiting Galveston for decades, yet it has taken forever for us to discover this 2,013-acre park. The state acquired the land for Galveston Island State Park from private owners in 1969 and opened it to the public in 1975. This state park is an area that might become one of the last undeveloped bastions against encroaching civilization. Galveston is brimming with beach houses, hotels, restaurants, and bars, and they keep coming! Building. As it is, the Galveston Island State Park is sandwiched between residential developments on both sides.
I feel we are lucky that the park is here and that we are too.
The Bay Side
After we check in at the park office and receive our day pass, we backtrack and make our way to the quiet side of the park. The bayside. We discovered this area last year after another impromptu picnic on the seaside of the park, finding the quietness appealing and thinking we should try it out someday. I guess this is the day. And it is perfect. We are alone in our tiny picnic heaven with only the sun, gentle breezes, and sea birds to keep us company.
Michael dubs his smoked-half-chicken delicious! I dip my Texas Drip sandwich into the savory au jus, and it, too, is very good. I don’t offer to share even though Michael slices off a piece of smoked chicken for me to taste. The coleslaw is great — the potato salad, ordinary. The smoked gouda mac and cheese would be heaven if it were hot. But we both consume the cheesy goodness in a semi-warm, almost cold state.
As we sit and munch, we watch a cormorant and snowy egret across the way. Soon, another snow-white bird joins them. So much for the old adage that birds of a feather flock together — their common bond seeming to be that they are all catchers of fish. It looks like they are playing a game of follow the leader as they make their way around the small inlet of West Bay. The cormorant dives. The egrets watch then continue their slow stalk, looking for lunch.
When the threesome gets close to our picnic site, they all flap their wings in unison and fly across the pond back to where they started — continuing their journey in the opposite direction. From here, watching these seabirds, they look like three friends out for a day of fishing. There is no inter-species squabbling, no intense flapping of wings — just the elegant snowy egrets following the expert cormorant fisherbird!
The Gulf Side
Our picnic at an end (I could only eat half of that giant sandwich), we return to our car and the highway in search of sun and sea and sand. Turning into the parking lot leading to the beach side of Galveston Island State Park, we are greeted by many families toting piles of beach paraphernalia leaving the beach. I wonder if they have festive NYE plans that pull them back to their cars, or have had enough sun sea and fun for one day. A small tyke, wrapped head to toe in a colorful beach towel, leans into the family car, trying to absorb the warmth while her father loads up the trunk.
Michael walks to the back of our car, exchanging his shoes for beach sandals, and begins to remove the beach chairs, our constant companions in Galveston, always in the trunk. Because of what seems like a mass exodus, I worry the beach conditions beyond the dunes may be less than desirable, so I say, “Leave them. Let’s just walk.”
The Sea
The moment we step onto the soft sand at the edge of the dunes I realize my giant mistake of not bringing our beach chairs. The day is still beautiful. Couples, families, and children of all ages laugh and cavort. A group of young men (old boys?) are doing something with a ball. Soccer without a goal? Volleyball without a net? I am no judge. I just know the game they play does not have anything to do with football — the ball is round — and that they are having fun.
Seagulls squawk and dive bomb and walk along the edge of the sea. Tiny tots run to the water, get their feet wet, turn, and run back to Mom and Dad. Some try to scare the seagulls, making them fly away. They smile with joy when they succeed. There is a giant love letter in the sand. I walk around it to see what it says – I LOVE YOU MOMMY! A long, low castle edges the gentle surf. Yes, I should have let Michael bring the beach chairs so we could just sit and be. Look. Listen. Absorb this time.
So, instead of sitting, we walk along the edge of the blue-blue Gulf of Mexico and commune with nature. It’s a lovely way to end a lovely year.
For more information on Queen’s BBQ and Galveston Island State Park, click on the following links.
https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/galveston-island
Leave a Reply
Your email is safe with us.