Headed to Port Aransas for 7 months this fall

Our favorite campground in Alabama where we stay over winter turned in to an extension of Florida so On the beach RV park, Port Aransas here we come. We hear the area is very RV friendly.
I'm looking for some opinions on the area. Good fishing spots? Good food? Local culture and the best time to get through Houston pulling a TT with our Tundra.
Thanks!

 

Port A was my stomping ground growing up! Beautiful, but man, tourist season makes it not fun imo. If your Tundra is 4WD, I highly recommend going PINS (Padre Island National Seashore) for beach and fishing. Go out to Big Shell - it's past the big sign warning people to only proceed if they have 4x4. Raw and untouched by most. Observe tide times because it's possible to literally get stranded out there when tide comes in, but it's a fun area for shark fishing. Otherwise, the jetties are where many folks go when the reds are running. Seen some mighty nice bulls come outta that area.

Driving through H town will blow a$$ at any time of the day but your best bet is between rush hours on weekdays (between 9-10 & 3PM) and weekends it's pretty much up for grabs...

 

Thanks for the info. Probably the hardest part about staying there is that there is no Aldi near by. There is a Toyota dealer nearby and I'm hoping to get my last freebee oil change while there. We plan to arrive Oct. 1st and leave May 1st to head home.
There's a Cabelas or Bass Pro on the north side of Houston that we may stay before we get to Port Aransas and if I lolly-gag around before heading out I should be OK. I usually prefer to find a campground but the lure of all that good stuff in one spot is hard to pass up. When asked why I don't stay at Walmart parking lots, my reply usually is "I'm not buying pink leotards and yoga mats. I'm at Cabela's buying 9mm hollow points.". So, we should be safe there.

 

You'll probably like it. I spent all my youthful summers there with my grandparents who owned a small motel there. Granddad built a lot of houses on the island, and inland around Gregory, Aransas Pass, Ingleside. Before he built the 5 unit motel, Grandma owned a burger shack on the beach. On weekends, Granddad and I would sit under the shade of the burger trailer and watch people get stuck in the sand. Then he'd pull 'em out for 5 bucks. City eventually ran all the burger shacks off the beach. But I'd hang around on the beach all day. Sometimes could walk a mile up and down the beach and never see a soul. Early 50s. Ain't that way anymore. Ain't that way ANYwhere anymore. Doesn't even smell the same anymore. My favorite "fragrance" was always a mix of diesel, creosote and dead fish. I miss the sleepy little fishing village that used to be Port A. But I still haul my boat down there, 4-5 times a year.

 

Just in the little bit of time since I was a teenager hitting up the beach and now in my late 40s it's changed so much. The newest version of Bob Hall pier is gonna be finished soon so even more change is on its way.

 

As to places to eat, there are a few places where you can get some good seafood. Trout Street, not spectacular, but decent. Fins about the same. One of my favorite spots is back on the mainland. Take the ferry and in Aransas Pass, turn right at the first light (Commerce) go just over 4 miles down the highway and on your right, you'll see a development called City by the Sea. There a restaurant there called Crab 'N'. Pan seared snapper with butter cream sauce.... my go-to dish. Since you'll be there a while, you'll want to check out the area, including Rockport/Fulton. There are a few good places there, too. Moondog, Charlotte Plummer's. Wherever you go for seafood, don't get the "catch of the day" unless you find out specifically what the catch is. You'd be surprised (or maybe not) that the catch of the day is tilapia.

Several piers on the channel to fish from, plus Horace Caldwell pier on the beach. You can fish from the jetty. Take lots of tackle to the jetty, 'cause you're gonna lose some in the rocks. And of course there are your usual area guides for specks and redfish in the bays, and offshore charters and party boats.