The Rio Grande Valley

Louise and I have just wrapped up our 10th winter in the Rio Grande Valley (simply called "The Valley" by most of the people here).

The Valley starts at Rio Grande City in the West and runs to Brownsville in the East.  Total population of the area is about 1.3 million people.  The population swells by about 710,000 people in the winter as "Winter Texans" descend on the area to avoid winter in their home state.

If you drive through a shopping center parking lot, you will see more out of state and out of country license plates than Texas plates.  Ontario and Quebec plates are very common, along with those from the Mexican state of Tamaulipas.  Winter Texans from Wisconsin, Iowa and Minnesota are everywhere during the winter.

The Rio Grande Valley is roughly divided into three areas with the upper Valley starting at Rio Grande City and including Mission, McAllen, Edinburg, and Pharr.  The mid Valley runs from Alamo in the west to Harlingen in the east and includes Weslaco, Mercedes and La Feria.  The lower Valley is dominated by Brownsville and includes Port Isabel and South Padre Island.

The Hispanic influence is everywhere and the Spanish language is as common as English.  The Valley is separated from sister cities in Mexico by the Rio Grande River.  Reynosa is just across the river from McAllen, Nuevo Progreso is a sister city to Weslaco, and Matamoros lies just across the river from Brownsville.

Winter Texans have traditionally crossed the border in droves to shop in Mexican towns.  Their spending has focused primarily on pharmaceuticals, liquor, dental services, and of course, souvenirs.  Because of the drug wars which have become common in Mexico, many Winter Texans today are hesitant to cross the border.  Louise and I used to regularly cross the border but quit doing that about five years ago.

Interestingly, the number of Winter Texans is declining rapidly.  Five years ago, it was estimated that about 800,000 people came to the Valley for the winter.  That number today, as stated earlier, is around 710,000.  It seems that many of our generation and the one following are not attracted to the RV lifestyle and to spending their winters in warmer climes.

Louise and I do really enjoy our winters here.  It seems that every year, about October, we begin to really look forward to going south.  The park where we stay, VIP La Feria, is in La Feria, about seven miles west of Harlingen.  We've been there long enough that we have a lot of friends in the park and spend a lot of time visiting back and forth in each others' sites.  We see these friends on a daily basis, unlike at home so we really are closer to them than to our friends at home.

I think we will continue to come to the Valley as long as we can.  We sure don't miss the Oklahoma winters!