Spot Guide › United States › Texas › Bird Island Basin

Bird Island Basin

Texas, United States · 27.4673, -97.3138

Wing Foiling
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Bird Island Basin Campground at Padre Island National Seashore at dawn.jpg
Photo by Jennifer Rangubphai · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 4.0
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wind meter
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tide station
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guides & forecasts

conditions & access

Best wind

S-SE thermal is the principal warm-season setup; N winds arrive with cold fronts. Confirm a safe onshore/side-onshore recovery at the chosen Bird Island launch.

Season

Year-round access per NPS; the official campground page notes occasional winter cold fronts/gales and a June-November hurricane season, so conditions vary materially.

Hazards

Laguna Madre averages only about 4.5 feet and can be much shallower, so verify mast clearance. Stay within the wing-surfing area, clear of learners, swimmers, anchor/sail lines and the boat ramp; the nearby Intracoastal channel carries large boats and barges. Offshore S/SE needs a recovery plan.

Parking & access

NPS requires the park entrance pass plus a Bird Island Basin boat-ramp/parking-area fee: $5/day or $30/year; first come, first served, with overflow at Malaquite. Trailer parking is restricted by the current compendium: https://www.nps.gov/pais/planyourvisit/fees.htm?fullweb=1 https://www.nps.gov/pais/learn/management/superintendents-compendium.htm

“Flat water but can be shallow. Intercoastal waterway on North Padre Island and has Worldwinds shop. Windsurf, windfoil and now wingfoil. Side offshore is common in the spring with an Requested-field batch 09 verified 2026-08-01: exact, nearby, regional, city-centroid, operator-selected and mismatched-pin relationships remain explicit; unresolved items remain Unknown.”

— via WingfoilTips via FoilersHub; Requested-field research, last verified 2026-08-01

Live wind

wx.ikitesurf.com South Bird Island - NPS (1.23 mi) Nearest live iKiteSurf station (nearby, not confirmed at launch): South Bird Island - NPS (1.23 mi) — https://wx.ikitesurf.com/spot/26195 wx.ikitesurf.com

Surf forecasts

surfline.com Bird Island Basin Nearby coordinate-centered Surfline map (not an exact spot report): https://www.surfline.com/surf-reports-forecasts-cams-map/%4027.46725%2C-97.31379%2 surfline.com

Tides

NOAA CO-OPS Tide predictions — station 8775870 Nearest tide station, 16 km from the launch. tidesandcurrents.noaa.gov

Local guides

nps.gov Bird Island Basin Exact/current access or conditions guide for Bird Island Basin: https://www.nps.gov/thingstodo/boating-paddling-and-windsurfing.htm Additional current nps.gov nps.gov Corpus Christi – Bird Island Original exact/candidate source for Corpus Christi – Bird Island: https://www.ventosurf.com/spot/corpus-christi-bird-island Exact/current resource: ht nps.gov nps.gov Corpus Christi – Bird Island Original exact/candidate source for Corpus Christi – Bird Island: https://www.ventosurf.com/spot/corpus-christi-bird-island Exact/current resource: ht nps.gov

Links are community-sourced and open directly on the provider's site. Verify conditions locally before riding.

nearby spots

Texas, United States Kiteboarding North Padre Island Wing Foiling wind · guides · tides Texas, United States Packery Channel foil area Wing Foiling wind · guides · tides Texas, United States Corpus Christi – Bird Island Wing Foiling wind · guides · tides Texas, United States Port Aransas South Jetty foil area Wing Foiling wind · guides · tides

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