From the bay-side dock on the north side of the island, pedal immediately toward a small stand of salt cedars 300 yards to your left that birders reverently refer to as the "magic triangle," some of the only trees on the island and a magnate for rare white-tail hawks and peregrine falcons. Then, cross the secondary airstrip, hang a left on the main airstrip, and follow the signs to the 1852 lighthouse, passing fields of swaying yellow broomweed and pink gulf coast muhly as you go. Beware the swamp rattlers and alligators as you leave the path to approach the lighthouse, and mind the large holes in the ground rooted out by feral hogs.

Access the beach (3.5 miles from the dock) by backtracking from the lighthouse and turning left on the beach road. Since no more than 100 visitors are allowed on the island at a time, you'll whiz past a handful of beachcombers as you head south for the first mile. After that, it's just you and small gatherings of endangered brown pelicans, staring blankly out to sea. Watch for white-tail deer in the dunes. Three access trails (at 4.7, 9.5 and 20.8 miles, respectively) lead inland from the beach to the road that splits the center of the island and goes back to the dock.

There is absolutely no shade along the beach and no water anywhere on the island, so pack a shelter and stock up on fluids in Port O'Connor. If you're not up for pitching a tent on the beach, relax 18 miles south in Seadrift at the Hotel Lafitte, a Victorian railroad hotel built in 1909.