Adventure in Palacios

While on a recent jaunt to the Middle Coast of Texas, Suzanne and I passed through the small town of Palacios. Hoping to find something unique off the beaten path of Highway 35, we drove into the heart of town. Old buildings lined the road like a ghost town in the making. As we stopped at an intersection, an antique building caught our attention, the “City by the Sea Museum”.

The museum looked lonely and deserted, but we thought we should check it out anyway. As we entered the building, an energetic lady greeted us. With a wealth of knowledge and a friendly smile, she gave us an overview of the museum contents. Left to explore at our own pace, we strolled around and looked at all the exhibits.

My interest led me to the Hurricane Carla display. Hurricane Carla plowed through Palacios in 1961. As a young boy growing up in Pasadena, I remember the storm. My family huddled in the living room of a very small wooden house to ride the storm out. I remember the fear in my mom’s eyes as the high winds howled and the sheets of rain beat against the windows. Weeks later, after the storm passed, my dad drove us boys down to Galveston to view the destruction.

Suzanne’s interest led her to the display on the French explorer Rene-Robert La Salle. The recovery of his ship, La Belle, in Matagorda Bay in 1996 was quite the endeavor. The artifacts and photos of the recovery were very interesting as was the video documentary of the subject. Our hostess mentioned the half-sized reproduction of the La Belle built as a traveling ambassador for Palacios and moored at the local marina.

Wanting to see this replica of the La Salle ship, we left the museum and started a new adventure to seek out the “La Petite Belle”. Driving up and down along the harbor roads led us to view the historic Luther Hotel built in 1903 and the huge Shrimp Fleet in harbor. What we didn’t find was the La Petite Belle. With frustration and a sense for regrouping, we stopped at a renovated city park for a walk along the shore. With lady luck by our side, I noticed some sailing rigging rising from the marina next door that seemed different from the others.  We went to checked it out. To our amazement, it was the ship we were seeking. Unfortunately, it was located in a fenced-in locked marina. We could only see it from a distance. But no matter, the search for the ship was the fun adventure we wanted!

With our visions of grandeur and lust for adventure fed, we left Palacios with a sense of accomplishment. We had entered this small town with no clue as to what expect, but we came away impressed with the history of this quaint town and happy that we had taken the time to find out what it had to offer. Exploring the back roads and small towns is what makes it great to see Texas Thru My Back Door!

We want to hear from you!  Let us know what you think of the places we visit or suggest new places for our next adventure.  See you next week...