STILL WHINING ABOUT COLD WEATHER?

So, it turns out that I am much more of a cold weather whiner than Chuck.  Weather never seemed to bother me.  Upon reflection (not very deep reflection necessary) it was probably due to the fact that I rarely spent more than 4 minutes each North Florida winter day in the cold; 1 minute per trip to and from the car going between home and office with maybe an errand thrown in occasionally.  Chuck on the other hand spent his typical working day in the woods, wet or dry, cold or hot. Hmmm.

Seminole Canyon State Park, TX– We were camped on a high plateau, at 30 degrees in 25-30 mph winds.  Gluten free pumpkin pancakes and sausage were on the menu, and since I have always been fond of breakfast for dinner, we stuck to the plan.  The pancakes were a greasy flop.  Some of the egg replacer I use blew away in the wind before I could mix it, and I think the wind blowing straight into one ear and out the other caused me to use twice as much olive oil (as opposed to butter!) than the recipe called for.  I gave up in disgust prepared to go to bed without dinner, but Chuck volunteered to finish the pancakes (he hates going to bed hungry). We ended up eating cold sausage and greasy pancakes with a heavy dose of syrup while shivering inside the van. Thankfully, before going to our campsite that afternoon, we walked a trail near the park entrance and picked up three new species. After very little sleep with the winds buffeting the van, and knowing the weather was worsening, we decided to spend the next night in a heated hotel/motel just outside Big Bend National Park.  It snowed that night, and we enjoyed the respite.

Big Bend NP, TX-

This was actually the first National Park that we visited this year-shame on us!  Since the campsites had no electricity or showers, clearly, the decision to spend the night in a motel prior to entering the park was a good one.  The weather improved, and we enjoyed our stay while birding in warm(ish) sunshine… at last.  We were told that the park was filling early since it had been an unusually wet winter which was causing the flowers to come in sooner than usual.  We didn’t understand how significant that was until we got into the park.  The desert abloom is a marvel; and over the 3 days we spent there, the bloom increased noticeably. Bluebonnets and other annuals spend their time as seeds just waiting for enough rain to allow them to

struggle out, add their beauty to the world for a short time, seed, and then wait until they can glory us again.

Being accustomed to flat Florida, the vista’s inspired awe, and we were startled at the variance of weather.  Traveling 10 mountain miles in 15 minutes caused a temperature variance of 10 degrees. We could see blue sky and mountain peaks on the horizon, yet couldn’t see the peaks shrouded in clouds beside us.   The cacti were amazing as well.  In the Big Bend NP there are some 1200 species of plants, at least 60 of which are cactus with the number of cactus species second only to Mexico.  After this Big Year Birding Adventure, perhaps we should consider a Big Bend National Park Plants Big Year- it would easily take us the full year.

Our first morning in the park, we ate our oatmeal entertained by our first bird of the day. The Vermillion Flycatcher was not a new species for us, we had seen it as a rarity in January at the St. Marks Wildlife Refuge in Florida.  Here they are quite common, and since we were seeing it later in the year, it was even more beautiful.

One of our planned hikes included a climb down the Chisos Mountains on The Windows Trail, which moves from desert scrub to hardwood forest in a nice easy downhill hike, which turned out to be not so easy to get back up. After 7 miles of hiking, and with no showers available, we made sure to stop at the park’s hot springs; all that was missing was a nice glass of wine. In our two days in the park, we found a total of 8 new species, many in the hardwood drain adjacent to the Rio Grande River.  While the desert species are the ones we are locating now this area of the country will be even more important (and exciting) come spring migration.

Big Bend Ranch State Park, TX– This state park is actually adjacent to the Big Bend NP, but drivers need more skill to get through this park. The roads reminded Chuck of being on Space Mountain, the Disney Thrill Ride, but for this ride he was controlling the roller coaster. Passengers may need to close their eyes! Like the National Park, Bluebonnets, and other wild flowers lined the roads.  We stayed in an interesting town called Terlingua, which boasts a ghost town and the Starlight Theater, in an eclectic community of some 850 souls with an emphasis on the arts. The Starlight was packed for 2 for 1 burger night which included live music and local brew.  A little civilization, a good Porter, and good music were a welcome change after days of fairly rustic camping.

Davis Mountains State Park, TX 

Just when we think that we should be getting past whining about the weather it gets colder… 20 degrees, but we decided to tough it out in the van with our little space heater. Thank goodness for my 5′ 9″ bed warmer. We woke to frost on the INSIDE of the windows behind the curtains. In spite of the cold and rain we added 8 new species, including this handsome Acorn Woodpecker.

The Acorn Woodpecker is a unique species that stays busy most of the year storing acorns by fitting them into holes they drill into trees or telephone poles, and then continues to move them from one hole to a snugger hole as the acorns dry and shrink. This park reminded Chuck of the Hastings Environmental Forest in Carmel which is an Oak Grassland System conducive to the Acorn Woodpecker. Chuck and I agree that this is a Texas State Park we will return to when we can make time to stay awhile. The town has a quaint old west look and feel, although our politics may differ a bit…. PIX OF GUN SIGN.

 

We found this part of Texas much cleaner than the South Texas Gulf Coast, but the World Birding Center sites continue to rank highest for their outstanding facilities for birders. Can’t wait to get back there in April.