Diario de alflinn329

We once walked in this place regularly, but our walking buddy moved and other things have gotten in the way. But our scheduled first day hike was cancelled due to weather and we needed to hike. Construction blocks the regular entrance so we went in the other entrance - one we never use. Of course we got a little lost, but Google got us out.

The only birds moving were Cedar Waxwings and Crows and maybe a Cardinal in the distance. There were NUMBERS of waxwings. I guess I forgot how beautiful they are.

We will plan the next walk a little better. I need to check the area where most of the milkweeds were in the spring/summer. There were plants in the open areas and all along the ditches on both sides of the roadway. Of course these have been bulldozed and I fear all the plants destroyed. I will have to be more alert to construction and "saving" before it is too late.

I left the house a little before 8 a.m. on Friday the 29th for a trip to my hometown. First I'd stop in Victoria to pick up a co-conspirator. Then we would run the highway to Sinton. We will be down here for a few days with others - including our brother. He knows the birds. We have "oohed and aahed" at the raptors along the route. I observed 15 hawks and 7 kestrels.

My plan was to add to my "road-kill" observations as 183 from Luling to Cuero and then 87 from Cuero to Victoria are generally "covered" in dead critters. I didn't give myself much time and so only recorded a few as I counted hawks.

Just south of Gonzales I glanced at a pond and saw a Great Blue Heron and Great Egret wading. Now THAT was worth turning around for - so I headed back to try and grab a photo of the birds and found, Killdeer as well.

All in all we observed loads of birds along the highways, at Indian Point Park, at Sunset Lake, in fields around Sinton, at the family property near Taft, and on our alternate route home through Rockport. We stayed through Sunday morning, giving us a little more time to enjoy the Roseatte Spoonbills, egrets, herons, pelicans, ducks, and ibis (and so much more).

These were two of my top three trips to Indian Point.

[And I'm keeping up with the roadkill.]

We were there, but the frogs didn't show. We heard a handful of Killdeer and saw a couple at the edge of the lake. The domestic ducks were there, but the frogs were not calling or present for a photo. We traveled around the pond and took a few photos of plants and such.

A bird's leg was strangely caught on a bush. We weren't sure what to make of it, but it warranted a photo.

It was a beautiful night with a great group of people, but we are going to need some rain and warmer temps, perhaps for the frogs to participate.

It was a great evening at Berry Springs. We caught 3 tadpoles - enormous tadpoles. We also observed some scat we suspect is either beaver or nutria. The weather was still a little too cool for the cricket frog song. Next month we might start hearing some frog song.