A Day with Marilyn and Jude.. :): Galveston Island State Park 11/12/11

A day at Galveston Island State park. This is the first scheduled meetup.com that I've set up for the Houston Traveling Family. Joining us on this trip is Sue and her sons Brandon and Dillon. Sue is a single mother of two boys (a teenager and an 8 years old). Along with being a single mother, Sue works full time in the environmental field and goes to school full-time. How she can juggle all this is a wonder to me, but she seems to be doing a great job. I admire her instantly for her strength, independence and bravery. Her bravery comes into play because she follows her heart. Not many people can say they do this, and because of this, she found herself and her passion.

Sue and her teenage son Brandon.

We are both two very busy individuals but manage to gather the kiddos and the camping gear for a trip to Galveston Island State park for a saturday night of bayside camping. We didn't get to the site until 6 p.m. so we rushed to set up tent. Galveston Island State park is separated into two parts; a bayside and then the beach side. Camp spots along the beach side has electronic and water hook-up, and a covered picnic table. The great thing about getting a spot in this area is being close to the beach and hearing the wave crashing through the night. Unfortunately the beach side was full and booked well in advanced. We camped out in the Bayside of the island which is separated by a main road. The bayside offers two areas for camping. The area we were in provided water and a a covered picnic table and is set up for tent camping although RV camping is allowed. There is another area in the Bayside as well that has both water and electronic hook-up. The Bayside provides toilets only (no showers). The camp area doesn't allow very much privacy with camp sites in a grassy open space. There are also no trees for shades so camping here in the summer time won't be ideal since it can get sunny and hot so I recommend camping during the fall or winter. The facilities are clean, which is a bonus. This state park doesn't provide too many camping spots so early reservations is crucial. Ever since Hurricane Ike, which damage the state park, there hasn't been too many sites available.

The Bayside campsite

Also available at this State park is fishing without having to get a fishing license. At the end of the Bayside is an open water area where fishing takes place.