Category Archives: SW Trip 2018

Drive-thru Birding

The nasty Texas weather continues for a few more days but the forecast is good. 

We took the van out today, in 34 degree/misty weather to check out Anzalduas Park, a favorite local birding site. Here are a few photos from the van:

House Finches are supposedly rare here but these apparently didn’t get the memo.

Vermillion Flycatchers are delightful to watch was they forage and return to their starting point.

This Fox Squirrel was fun to watch on a rainy day.

Other encounters were a Cooper’s Hawk, dozen of Scaup and Coots, 15 Killdeer, some meadowlarks, and Least and Pied-Billed Grebes. And we stayed warm with the heater blasting.

Finally – Warm birding

After delaying several days for dangerously frigid weather, we got the van dug out and started and launched Sunday in -13 degree weather (we hit -21 on the road that morning) and after three long drives and motel stays, headed to Fountainbleau State Park in LA where we are resting for a day.

We’ve been out on a couple of walks and I’ll be posting a few photos tomorrow. It"s fun to run a camera with warm fingers.

Winter Trip Plans

We are planning to stay at one place this winter for about six weeks since we’ll be returning early to go on a birding trip in late March. We have reservations in the Rio Grande Valley at a funky little RV park called Americana The Birding Center RV Park.

I have stayed there before and while not really into all the “activities” offered, I like the fact that you can bike to the Bentsen- Rio Grand Valley World Bird Site and it’s a short drive or a day trip to eight others:

It’s easy to get up to Salenino and Falcon Lake State Park and dozens of other RGV hotspots. Sitting here in cool rainy Vermont, I’m getting itchy.

Here are some shots off the web of the park — it’s old school and very birder-friendly.

 

Park entrance

Tree-lined streets offer shade and onsite birding.

The pool is a popular gathering spot

The park, like most, has modest wifi. It is strongest here.

While we will miss hitting Arizona and California this winter, we’ll see how ‘staying put” works out. Stay tuned.