Rio Hondo, Texas

The arroyo is the whole character of the place. The Arroyo Colorado runs deep enough here for boats headed to the Laguna Madre, several parks sit right on the water with lighted piers and boat ramps, and the 1953 swing bridge in the middle of town still opens for traffic. If your season is built around trout and redfish without paying coastal prices, this is one of the smartest addresses in the Valley.

FM 106 east out of town is also the road to Laguna Atascosa National Wildlife Refuge, one of the top birding sites in the country, so the refuge's winter flocks are a day trip that starts in your driveway. The Texas Air Museum on the edge of town keeps a hangar of warbirds and is worth an afternoon.

Rio Hondo itself is a couple of stores, a few cafes, and not much else, so the weekly grocery run and all medical care mean Harlingen, about twenty minutes west. The waterfront parks also book up with returning anglers, so call well ahead if an arroyo lot is the point. If you don't fish or bird, most of what makes Rio Hondo special will be wasted on you.