Camps: 2026 Texas 200

 The 2026 Texas 200 will start in Port Isabel. It’s been a few years since we’ve started here, and we’re looking forward to getting back down there for this year’s start. You are free to arrange for and utilize any slip, marina, motel, or boat ramp in the Port Isabel area that you feel is best for you and your crew. The mandatory Captain’s Meeting will occur in the parking lot of the White Sands Motel at 7am on Sunday morning. The location is shown with the red location marker in the Google image above, near the corner of N. Trevino & W. Houston. 

No rooms or slips are being reserved by the Club; each boat’s captain and crew are 100% responsible for their own room and boat slip accommodations. There are plenty of options in Port Isable, but it is HIGHLY recommended that you get your accommodations several months in advance, for both motel and boat slips, since they could fill up if another major event occurs that same weekend. The White Sands motel is usually the epicenter of our activity, and it offers motel rooms, a boat ramp and boat slips, so you might want to start there. 

The actual start of the sailing on Monday morning will be from wherever you and your boat are located in Port Isabel; there is no starting line or starting time. 

While you’re in town, note that the Port Isabel lighthouse, which was built in 1852, recently received a new lens and was lit for the first time in 117 years in December 2022. Tours of the lighthouse are offered daily, so make some time during your time in Port Isabel to check out a unique piece of Texas maritime history. 

 26° 33’ 46” N, 97° 16’ 43” W 

One of the best camps on the trip, this is a large, north-facing sandy beach. The camp is located a few hundred yards from the beach on the Gulf of Mexico, right before you get to the jetties themselves. This camp offers an opportunity to take a walk on the Gulf beach or just sit back at camp and enjoy the sound of the surf in the distance. The camp is located about 6 nautical miles up the channel once you make the turn to starboard from the ICW near Port Mansfield, usually only 15 or 20 degrees off the wind, so it can be challenge to tack up it. But trust us, it is worth it. Make plans to leave Port Isabel early on Monday morning, and allow time to tack or motor out to this camp with the rest of the fleet.  

Note that over the years, some TX200 participants have chosen to sail to this camp using the “outside route” in the Gulf. Due to the inherent dangers of sailing a small sailboat in the open ocean, it is highly recommended that all participants sail to this camp using the protected Laguna Madre/ICW. There have been several incidents of capsizing and rescue of TX200 sailors in the Gulf and in the inlet/pass itself (which sometimes has breaking waves across the entire entrance from the Gulf to the cut). Please do not put yourself and crew at risk; sail with the rest of us in the ICW and avoid the added risks associated with sailing in the Gulf. 

 26° 55’ 49” N, 97° 27’ 24” W  

This camp is located on the right (east) side of the land cut. We have used this camp several times over the years. Make sure your shoes are tied on good and tight before you step off your boat, and keep one hand on your boat as you do so. This is some of the thickest, deepest, foulest-smelling, shoe-eating, child-swallowing, fall-down-and-never-get-up-again mud on the Texas coast. The Land Cut forms part of the ICW and has active commercial barge traffic. You do not want to anchor any more than just a few feet out from the beach into the Land Cut. Also be aware of the large wakes than can be generated from these barges as they pass close by. Anything you can do to fully beach your boat and get OUT of the Land Cut would be recommended for safety reasons. 

 27° 23’ 46” N, 97° 20’ 30” W 

“The Dunes” is a camp that’s never been used as a formal camp on the Texas 200 before, and some of us are wondering why it’s taken 19 years to figure this one out. It is a very unique camp, made up of a massive set of sand dunes that are 2 or 3 stories high, and offer great views of the bay and barrier island…. the exact opposite of Camp 2 in the Land Cut. There are plenty of places to set up tents, down by the water and up in the dunes themselves, but you should be warned that the beauty of this large expanse of white powder sand is offset a little by its ability to find its way through the mesh on your tent. Keep that in mind when you choose your tent location if conditions are windy. For anyone who doesn’t want to deal with the sand, you can sail past this camp and within about a mile or so you’ll find several patches of sand/dirt along the barrier island where you can set up shop for the evening. But if you decide to pass on The Dunes, do yourself a favor and at least make a brief pit-stop to climb to the top and enjoy the unique nature of this spot and the views it offers.  

 27° 55’ 00” N, 97° 04’ 36” W 

This is a great camp that we’ve used several times over the years. It is a generally north-facing shell and rock beach, with an approach to the beach that is deeper the further west you go, with the deepest approach (for deeper draft boats) near the blue marker in this  Google Maps image. East of that blue marker there is usually plenty of beach but the approach can be shallow so keep that in mind.   

 28° 19’ 57” N , 96° 27’ 51” W 

 This is one of the best camps on the entire Texas Gulf Coast, and is always a Texas 200 fanfavorite. This camp is used almost every year. Deeper draft boats will want to use the boat slips, which are shown in this image just above/right of the blue pin. We ask that smaller, beachable boats please use the beach/grass area to the left of the blue marker for entering and beaching your boats, since slip space is limited at the docks. Note that these slips are large, and we usually accommodate 3 or 4 boats per slip. 

Participants should note that a permit is required for camping here. One permit is required for each person, and permits must be purchased in advance. There are no permit sales on-site at Army Hole; they must be purchased in advance, and this can be done online. More information on permits can be obtained at www.tpwd.texas.gov.  

28° 33’ 27” N

96° 31’ 40” W 

We will finish at Magnolia Beach where we will have our traditional shrimp boil and celebration starting at approximately 3:00pm on Saturday.  Please remember that the shrimp boil requires registration and pre-payment, which should be done on the Texas 200 webpage in advance.  This is a sand and shell beach and the approach is fairly deep right up to the beach.  There are relatively new public restrooms with showers right there at the beach, and tent and RV camping is allowed if you want to stay the night after the event.  At the north end, there is a boat ramp for pulling out.   Our vehicles and empty trailers are located about a mile from the shrimp boil, and it’s usually fairly easy to find someone to drive you over to get your vehicle.