I was searching the internet for dolphin tours in the Portland area, and somehow I came across The Dolphin Connection.   A husband and wife team, Irv and Sonya Strong, that have been taking people out to MEET the dolphins for something like 16 years.  They know many of them by sight and have named them – and the dolphins know their boat and their sounds too.  They are located in Ingleside on the Bay, TX – basically around the corner of the bay from our RV park.

Their blog says they have their business up for sale and this might be the last year for them doing this, so I booked us in. We were supposed to go on the Monday but it was way too windy and in the little boat they use, we’d have been tossed around the waves in an undesirable manner.  So we waited a day and headed out Tuesday.

Sonya met as at the dock and right away we were loaded up on the boat and off we went.  No formalities, no waivers to sign, no payments first – just hop in and off we went.  I opted for a life jacket (with my paranoia of water) while Rob opted for none.  It was just us two and them – perfect.

Dolphin Connection - Sonya and Irv

See Dolphins or It’s Free

They talked about the dolphins and that their usual schedule has been a bit “off” lately, so we were sure if we’d see any today or not.  They guarantee an encounter with them or you don’t have to pay – hence why no prepayment was done before we boarded the boat – sweet.  Personally I’d rather pay and see them, then go out and see nothing for free.

Irv took us around the bay, looking in the spots where the dolphins usually hang out at this time of day.  They have patterns and tend to hang out in groups he said, but their pattern wasn’t following the usual routine in the last couple weeks so they were having a hard time predicting where and when to find them.  It’s a big ocean – lots of water to cover in a small boat.

We eventually did find one guy, but he wouldn’t come close enough for Sonya to touch him, he was playing coy with us.  But Irv did show us a cool trick where he speeds up the boat and the dolphin basically body surfs inside the wake.  We watched him do it for a while.  Not sure if it’s playing to them, they’re very playful animals, or an easy effortless way for him to get from point A to point B.   It’s like a kid putting on roller skates and bumper riding, same concept.

Riding the wake of the boat

We did see a couple more but nothing close enough for us to touch.  They just were not in the mood today and we didn’t find the big group Irv was looking for.  We still had a great trip though and as was indicated we were not required to pay, but voluntary donations towards gas were welcomed.  We left them some money anyway.

Also saw lots of pelicans, of course

Saw quite a few really large cargo ships too.

We said our goodbyes and thanked them for the ride and I took a few photos on the beach before we headed out.  I’m really hoping they hang in there for another year so we can go back in 2011 and give it another go with them.   Yup, that’s my intention – they will be there and we’ll go again and see the whole herd/tribe/gang – whatever it is you call a group of dolphins.

Texas sunset

Fish bones on the beach, left by the fisherman that cleaned and filleted them here

I thought it was pretty, even with the fish carcass

If you’re in the Corpus Christi or Portland Texas area, I highly recommend doing this dolphin tour.  It’s only $25 per person and you get a small personalized tour with people who know and love the dolphins.

Related posts:

1. Whooping Crane Birding Tour in Rockport
2. San Antonio Riverwalk
3. Day 55 San Antonio
4. Spanish Mission of Goliad

We knew nothing about San Antonio when we got here other than we know we wanted to see the Alamo and that was about it.  We kept hearing from people on Facebook saying we had to see the “San Antonio Riverwalk“.    So we figured we’d get to it and see the river, big deal.  We couldn’t figure out what the big fuss was about over a walk in a river valley, we have a river at home too.

That was until we actually saw it!

The Riverwalk

Built in the 1940′s the Riverwalk is an amazing system of canals, waterways, walkways, bridges, cafes, shops, restaurants and fountains.  The river was prone to flooding and near the turn of the century (1900) the city wanted to drain it and reroute the river out of the downtown section.  The conservation society put forth a plan to put in flood gates, a dam and to control the river rather than remove it.  They were successful and built a little mini city, one level under the main city streets and sidewalks.

For hours we walked around on the ground level, waiting forever for shuttle buses and getting sore feet.  We saw a few sites in the city and finally decided to find the “entrance” to the Riverwalk as marked on our map, and have lunch.  What we didn’t know then, we realized later when we took the tour boat – we were above Riverwalk pretty much the entire time we were walking up there!  All we had to do was look down and find a staircase to get to it.  Doh!

Rob’s comment: the entire time we were walking through San Antonio, I completely doubted the existence of any such river. There wasn’t one to be found. We had no idea we were walking on the roofs of the stores.

So we actually did Riverwalk in two parts.  The first day was when we went to the Alamo.   After leaving there, we did our walking tour and ended up at the shopping center, which has a courtyard facing the river on 3 levels.  From there we took the river walk boat ride.
The tour was the best thing we could have done.

Riverwalk Boat Ride

Peruvian band at shopping center on Riverwalk San Antonio

Tour boat at shopping center on Riverwalk

where we got on the river walk boat ride, I thought the light was stunning

Our boat ride tour guide was young but very informative.  He pointed out historic and important landmarks and buildings, including one old hotel that was picked up and moved 6 blocks to a new location!  We didn’t actually believe him at the time, but upon searching Google discovered he was indeed telling the truth, and we went another day to check that out.

We learned about the flood control system and at one point passed through a gate that would slam shut in 2 seconds if need be to keep out threatening flood waters.  He also told us about the history of the riverwalk, why it was created, etc.  All in all a very good trip – worth spending a few bucks on.  If you get to San Antonio – take the river boat tour!

Here are some random things we saw along the river on our tour.

Art deco style building similar to the Empire State Building in NYC. They are taking off the big radio tower and replacing it with a big American flag.

You can see the sidewalk is right along the river and walking bridges over at regular intervals.

I just liked the light on this one

Hotel room right on the river - nice view hey?

Notice the canopies are Texas flag motif? Flags and stars here everywhere

A couple days later we went back and did a walking version of the Riverwalk by day.  I had a coupon and menu from the Iron Cactus restaurant and we had eaten there on the first night after the boat tour.  We enjoyed it so much we went back again for lunch.

These guys were outside the restaurant when we came out. I herded them back into the water and away from the building.

Of course I happened to find a photo shoot in progress.

Don't know what his shots looked like, this is what I got over his shoulder.

One of the many places to eat on the river. This one had ponchos on all the chairs for patrons to wear if it is chilly.

We will be back to San Antonio again and we’ll go to the Riverwalk first! We recommend the riverwalk boat ride for anyone who wants to learn about San Antonio while seeing it from a different perspective. Make sure you do both though… take the tour, then take the tour.

Related posts:

1. Days 49-51 – Drama upon arriving in San Antonio, Texas
2. Day 55 San Antonio
3. Spanish Missions of San Antonio
4. Day 85 – Dolphin Connection dolphin tour