BBB Day 24

March 19

Hate to say it, but another beautiful morning.

We said goodbye to Pauline and Mike, a couple from Colorado. He had a stroke six years ago which has affected his speech and mobility, but he does well in a wheelchair, scooter and recumbent bike. she’s a runner (they’re in their 70’s) who has taken over all things: driving the van, pulling the trailer, lifting him and equipment. She’s a talker, but he isn’t (because he can’t), so she and I have enjoyed some talks.

Anyway, I also forgot to mention the owl we saw and heard last night. Not sure which it was, but the swoop was fun to see.

We went to Terlingua, kind of because you have to when in the area. It’s a ghost town now occupied by an artist community complete with an expensive coffee shop (more than Starbucks), but there are some interesting things to see:

Next came another must stop, the Contrabando Movie Set. It was used for “The Streets of Laredo” with James Garner, and it was left for us tourists to wander through (must see if Netflix has the movie):

And we also saw another Life Bird there, a Black Phoebe:

We drove through Presidio, a real border town that is 1/2 prosperous and 1/2 derelict, like many places in Texas. But there WAs another Inspection Station at which we were again chatted up while the dog sniffed AND were asked for passports:

We drove through Marfa, a pretty town, saw GIANT greenhouses and watched the desert turn to dry grasslands (along with our first tumbleweeds).

We arrived at the Davis Mountain State Park just before Pauline and Mike arrived (we’re seeing people over and over on our travels), just in time to catch the birds at the feeder and see FIVE new Life Birds:

Male and Female Phainopepla (also called Black Cardinals):

…two new Juncos; the Oregon-race:

…and the Pink-sided-race:

…the Lesser Goldfinch:

…and the Florida Scrub-Jay:

These names were thanks to the two great couples who taught us a lot (and kindly!).

Forgot to mention that we also saw the elusive Javelina. There are warnings about them and everyone, except us, sees them all the time. Sure enough, just as I had sat down to pee, David yelled, “There’s a Javelina”. After all this time, I almost missed this ugly critter:

Here’s the view from my chair: