April 2007 Trip Review: Saturday

Saturday morning, Matt and I grabbed an early coffee at Agua Java before the others got ready.

Before breakfast, we got a call not to show up for surfing at worldwinds. Apparently the wind was even more fierce than Friday, in the 30 and 40mph range. Rumor has it that there were 50 Mph gusts.

The second bit of bad news was that Freddy's leg was injured. He hurt it a while ago playing football. Apparently windsurfing in Friday's howling wind wasn't therapeutic. Now his leg was black and blue. Understandably, Freddy was concerned that he tore the muscle. Freddy and Gumbo decided to visit a doctor.

All of us, sans Freddy and Gumbo, ate breakfast at La Bahia. Over the feast of Mexican delights, we discussed possible plans for the day. One group wanted to visit the Lexington, the other wanted to explore some other beaches in Corpus. We decided to split into two groups.

After breakfast, Matt and I took a stroll down to the marina. Justin joined us after a while. We explored for a while, and watched some Laser sailboats get blown around in the wind.

Jason, Matt, Karen, and I drove to the state beach on Mustang Island. Justin, Jacob, Mike, Saurabh, and Jeff went to the Lexington. Freddy and Gumbo went to see the doctor and visited some friendly girls at Hooters for lunch.

The Mustang Island State Park was a little disappointing for the former Floridians among us. Somehow we managed to put our expectations of white sand and leaping dolphins behind us and have a good time. We walked along the beach, chatting, enjoying the sun's warmth.

Karen found a sand dollar (or was it Matt?). Matt touched a jellyfish, proving it didn't have stingers. Sand blew into our eyes. The blue angels performed overhead in perfect precision.

We climbed a red granite-block jetty into the gulf near a group of hearty surfers. Waves crashed into the end of the jetty, the wind throwing spray into the air.

A fisherman caught a small hammerhead shark as we watched. He held it by the tail so we could get a better look at him. The fish got a better look at us too, aiming his tiny eyes and open mouth at each of us in turn. The scales flashed holographic in the sun as the fisherman lobbed him back into the sea.

Matt, Karen, Jason, and I drove to Worldwinds so we could participate in the events there, a combination windsurfing Q&A and free Sausage Wraps. While waiting for the show to start, we watched the windsurfers tearing through the water.

For much of the Q&A, Randy and Angela fielded questions about various kinds of jibes. Randy stood on a old board carrying a skeleton rig of mast, boom, and a length of cord. Most of the Q&A involved fancy-pants skills beyond our abilities, but I think we still picked up a few useful pointers.

After the Q&A, most of us ate at the Executive Surf Club. Matt and Karen ate at the Waterstreet Oyster Bar. They reported that the Oyster bar was awesome.

After dinner, we all walked to Havana for a few more drinks. This time was Mike's turn to make a new friend. After Havana, it was back to Bourbon Street for the Saturday night crowd. I think everyone -- especially Mike -- had a good time.