Port Alto Plus

The girl friends and I are always looking for a chance to spend some quality time together.  About mid-September it came together, quickly, and we got to do just that!  Carole came from Concan.  Wanda came from Austin.  Dee and I came from Crescent.  Virgie came from Houston.  Patricia came from Richmond, Janie and Dot were able to come for only one day...but, it was a good day!

The photo below shows how beautiful it was...at the moment the photo was taken, anyway.  The weather did change a bit and we had a wonderful thunderstorm that lasted quite a while, I think.  This all happened about six weeks ago, so I might not get everything exactly right.

A correction might be made at this time concerning the post when I said that I thought I saw a shark in the shallow water down toward the public beach.  During this trip to Port Alto, we saw a dolphin very close to the shore.  It was in and out under Janie's pier and at one point it did the quick swoosh turn that I had seen before.  The water it was in couldn't have been much more than a foot and a half deep!  Since we saw what we knew was a dolphin perform that movement, I have doubts that what I saw before was actually a shark.
Thank goodness!

When I was looking at Facebook one day, I noticed a page for Lavaca Bluffs Vineyard and Winery...at Lolita.  Lolita!!!  I wasn't sure I knew exactly where Lolita was located, but I knew it was fairly near the bay.  So, I did a little research and found out that it was within 20 miles or so of Port Alto.  When we were getting the bay plans together, I suggested we make a trip to the winery for a tasting.  Everyone seemed very happy to try out the little winery in such an unlikely spot.

The tastings occur on Saturday and Sunday or by appointment.  Since we wanted to have our tasting on Monday, I called and talked to Beth, the owner, and she was happy to accommodate us.  That's the day Dot and Janie came.  Patricia wasn't able to stay.  I think she was hosting Mah Jong the next day.

Lavaca Bluffs Vineyard and Winery overlooks the Lavaca River.  The owners, Beth and Doug Reed, met us in the tasting room and explained how they came to be there.  Then Doug started opening wines, describing them and pouring them into our glasses.  They had wonderfully descriptive names and Doug explained them while also giving us snippets of Texas history.  Unfortunately for me, I paid about as much attention as I did when I was taking Texas history...because, I remember very little of what he said.  It was interesting at the time, though.

After the tasting, we each bought at least one bottle of our favorite wine.  We also bought a bottle to enjoy on their deck as the sun was making a dip toward the horizon beyond the river.  We unpacked our cheese, pate, strawberries, etc., and made ourselves at home...expecting to see a great sunset.

Doug said that they grow some varieties of grapes to be used in the wine they make on the premises, but this year they had purchased either six tons, or six thousand pounds (I can't remember now which it was) from other grower.

As it got nearer to sunset a huge bank of clouds moved in, obscuring the exact area where the sun would go down.

We decided to make a run for Port Alto, hoping we would see the last of the sunset.  Once the decision was made, we looked as if we had just robbed the place...tossing all our things in bags as quickly as we could and racing to the car.  We hadn't been on the road for more than a minute when I looked out the back window and saw the most amazingly beautiful sunset!  Oh, ye of little faith!  If only we had stayed.

I don't know why we didn't at least stop the car to admire the sunset and maybe take a photo, but we didn't.  All in all, however, we decided it was a fun excursion and we will probably do it again sometime.  Meanwhile, if you are interested in the winery, perhaps booking your own tasting ($5 per person and you get to keep the glass...such a deal!) click here.

Bay Days

(This was started a week ago...so please adjust for the time gap.)

I've been at Port Alto for almost a week now.  Last weekend Wendy, Kelly and the boys and I came down on Saturday.  Gage hasn't been here in a year...maybe more.  Zane was here with me in July.  Gage walked through the house (at age 8) remarking how he remembered this and that...as if it had been decades since he had been here.  Of course, Zane felt like an old hand having been here so recently with me.  He definitely knew to run to the house from the beach so he could be the first to rinse off while the water in the hose was still warm.

Zane

They left on Sunday and then the ladies started arriving.  Wanda brought friends from Austin.  Friends from San Antonio and El Campo came with Dee.  Janie's sister came from Bay City.  Carole came from Concan and stayed with me.  Patricia came.  Pat left...she had all her family...from Eldorado, Texas, and from California during the previous week.  She had to leave to take the Californians to Austin to fly back to their home.  Virgie was in Connecticut enjoying her grandkids out there.

I think I'll let the photos speak for themselves.  We gathered at each house for different meals, games, and visiting.  We spent some time on the beach; we read.  It was quality time spent with good friends. 

Why doesn't anyone tell me my visor is crooked?

I know, we're all blurry.
But, look how sharp the grass looks!