Boca Chica Beach
The land immediately surrounding State Highway 4, including where it empties on to the beach, is controlled by Cameron County due to the highway easement. The land immediately to the north of the road, along the beach, is Brazos Island Park, a part of Texas Department of Parks & Wildlife.
The land to the south of the highway, along the beach, is a collection of parcels, some of which belong to Texas Department of Parks & Wildlife and some of which belong to SpaceX through its land acquisition company, “Dogleg Parks LLC”. The land at the very southern tip of the State, right where the Rio Grande River empties into the Gulf is controlled by US Fish & Wildlife Service.
There are also other parcels of land inland from the beach owned by oil company interests.
The county will shut down Highway 4, preventing access to the beach when SpaceX is running tests or launching rockets. Anyone camping along the beach at these times will be escorted off by Sheriff’s deputies.
The brown sign says that “operation of recreational vehicles prohibited” and cites a law from Texas Natural Resources Code. This code says…
Sec. 63.093. PROHIBITED OPERATION OF RECREATIONAL VEHICLES. No person may operate a recreational vehicle on a sand dune seaward of the dune protection line in any county in which a dune protection line has been established.
The above only applies when a sand dune has a “protection line” established. Otherwise, keep your recreational vehicle on the beach and away from sand dunes.
In our experience, this beach is rather dirty with trash and litter everywhere. The sand feels firm enough for RVs to camp on, however when the tide comes in at night you need to be ready to move. It’s also loud with party-goers at night.
