Monday, our adventure to Boca Chica Beach to check out Space X was rerouted when the area was closed for rocket testing. Our reroute got us back to Laguna Atascosa NWR, along the highway there were a lots of shorebirds and waterfowl.
After we ate, we took a 2 1/2 mile hike down a dirt road with the temps in the upper 80's. We had several views of the lake.
We spent a little bit of time around the visitor center, then made it back to camp. Ferny Kat was ready for some outdoor time, using the a/c water runoff from the camper for her bath.
Tuesday, we spent most of the day at Santa Ana NWR. It was a nice day with temperatures in the low 80's. Although, it did got hot when we didn't have shade. Dang, we can't complain, it's January!!
We thoroughly enjoyed our 3 1/2 mile hike taking pictures of all kinds of critters and plants. The Willow Lakes Trail was awesome, especially when we got to the lake and heard all the noises the critters were making. The song, Welcome to the Jungle, started playing in my head.
We checked out the birds and waterfowl at Pintail Lakes before having our tailgate lunch in the parking lot.
On our way home, we stopped for a quick look at La Faria Nature Center, and found a couple more cool critters.
We went outside when we got home. It was hot and very little wind. After Ferny Kat decided it was time to go in, we followed and sat inside waiting for it to cool off.
Wednesday morning, the weather changed. It was a breezy day with temperatures in the 60's. We did a little bit of shopping, then came back to camp and relaxed. We went to the track and watched the race. When we got back, we enjoyed a nice sunset while Ferny Kat enjoyed being outside.
Thursday, we spent the day checking out 4 of the local parks. Our first stop was the city lake. There were 100's of Whistling Ducks there.
This is the first time that we saw the colorful feet of an American Coot.
We made a stop at the soccer field, and saw the largest gathering of Cattle Egrets we have ever seen.
We spent several hours at the Hugh Ramsey Nature Preserve. The birding activity was good, but not quite as busy as last week.
2 different people asked us where we were from. One had recently visited the Sandhill Crane Refuge and the other had live in Ponchatoula, La. for 20 years. Us 2 rednecks must stick out like a sore thumb in this area.
We went to McKelvey Park bike/hike trail and walked to the bridge and back taking a few pictures of birds and plants.
We got back to camp in time for the produce drive through. Afterwards, Ferny Kat came outside for a while, then went back in and watched us from inside the door.
We explored the National Butterfly Center on Friday. It is a nice place, with plenty of places to walk and take in nature. We saw lots of new butterfly species. We can only imagine how many we would have seen if the blooms were in full swing.
We saw plenty of birds, including, our first in the wild, Screech-owl, sleeping in the thatch roof of one of the pavilions.
We took a ride to the river for our tail gate picnic lunch. We had a great view. While we were there, a Texas Highway Patrol boat motored by. Their boat was equipped with machine guns. I definitely, don't want to mess with Texas!
In addition to enjoying the plants, butterflies, and birds, we found a Common Spotted Whiptail. He was quite camera shy, hiding in the grass.
We stopped on our way back home at the Pumphouse Nature Center. We took a quick look around then continued on our way.
Saturday, we went and got a new battery for Amber and a new vacuum cleaner for the camper. Afterwards, we just sat outside watching the wind blow, Ferny Kat taking her bath, and our resident Kestrel.
We have been planning on going to Boca Chica Beach for almost a week. It didn't happen due to possible rocket launches. Sunday, we were successful. It didn't take us long to get the heck out of dodge. It was cold, cloudy, and way too many people for us.
We did a drive thru at Laguna Atascosa NWR, and again decided that there was way too much wind and too many people.
We continued on our sightseeing drive, came to a field with hundreds of sandhill cranes. (Way to go, Crane Whisperers, just saying!!)
We kept on riding to Port Mansfield to see all the deer that reside in town. They were everywhere.
We ate our snack, sitting inside the truck, overlooking the water, then made our way back to camp. It was another fine day on this South Texas adventure.
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