b'P a d r eI s l a n din the world. In those deepest near-shore guts, big fish are fed on by even bigger fish, which makes Big Shell and Little Shell exceedingly popular with shark hunters and other big game fishermen. The park boasts that some 380 species of birds, half of all those identified in the United States, have been spot-ted here. (361) 949-8068MustangIslandStateParkencompassesalmost 4,000 acres that stretch across Mustang Island be-tweenNorthPadreIslandandPortAransas,and includes shoreline on both the Gulf of Mexico and BEACH PARKS PROTECT ISLAND ECOSYSTEMS Corpus Christi Bay. The facilities area of the park, located within the main gate, includes RV spaces and campsites, restrooms and ranger station. Park beaches tend to be less crowded with fewer vehi-Padre Island National Seashore is the native island experience in its rawest form, including the best shorecles, and two rock jetties extend in to the gulf. On fishing in the countrya bold statement to be surebut consider that one of the worlds strongest oceanthe back side of the island, a network of flats and currents, the Gulf of Mexico Loop Current, enters the gulf at Mexicos Yucatan Peninsula and exits at themarshzonesprovidesfantasticfishingandbird-Florida Straits, and makes its sharpest turn along the National Seashore. The result is that the gut, or drop-offwatching,alongwithanextensivepaddlingtrail. between sandbars, can be up to 15 feet deep between the shoreline and first sand bar, among the deepestGoogle: Mustang Island State Park126THE COASTAL BEND GUIDE TheCoastalBend.com'