South Padre Island, Texas- With so many adventures by land here in the Lone Star State, we headed to the coast to see what we could find on South Padre Island. We’ve checked off the Port Isabel Lighthouse, built sand castles and even enjoyed some local seafood, but when we heard about a way to see South Padre Island from the water, we jumped aboard.
Relaxation, recharging, and really just having fun are some of the most popular things to accomplish down here. But as the sun starts to set on south Texas, there’s a charter that will take you away for a serene sunset sail.
“You’re on the water, you get a view, you can’t go wrong with that,” Rhonda Ferrone said.
Rhonda Ferrone (Fur-own) and her husband John started Southern Waves Sailing Charters back in 2006 when they moved to the Island from the big ol’ city of Dallas.
“It’s dangerous because it’s like being on vacation every day,” Rhonda said.
With multiple businesses on the bustling island, it all started with the boat cruise and the simple idea of taking folks out on the water, making them a meal, and watching the sun set.
“Where else can you go,” Rhonda said. ”You have a grill, a chef grilling away, a musician singing away. I think it’s definitely different, and I think that’s the novelty of it.”
Faustino Camacho goes by the name Captain Tino and he’s in charge of this two-hour tour. As the cruise moves along, the smell of fajitas starts to fill the sea air and the sounds of a few BYOB cans popping interrupts the waves hitting the bow, but not in a bad way.
“You’ve got Chef Diego there, a five star chef, you know, everybody loves his cooking,” Captain Tino said. “Taylor on the tunes, every night, beautiful music and our weather. Our weather is one of the main things everybody loves about it. And of course Captain Tino.”
This low-key cruise focuses on one thing: relaxing and seeing the sights of South Padre from a different perspective.
“I think it’s two hours of escaping reality really,” Rhonda said.
Conversations are quiet. Reflections happen on the water and in the minds of those soaking in the final minutes of a summer sunset.
“Something about it, nice and relaxing, you can stare at it and watch another day pass by, “ Captain Tino said. “Looks like we’re going to have a good one. Real good one.”
These moments are some of our favorites here on The Texas Bucket List. It’s a chance to think about this crazy ride called life and how lucky we are to live in state full of so much history, personality, and passion. How each one of us in somehow connected to this piece of the planet that somehow calls to us in a way we love to hear.
“It’s home to me, that’s for sure, “ Captain Tino said. “I’m a local, so I’ve been here all my life, born and raised and growing up on these waters, you know, wouldn’t have it any other way. This is nice.