LouTex Day 11

March 5, 2014

90 Minute Beach Walk

It was a chilly, overcast but dry start to the day. We’re moving south along the coast. But before we do, we stop up the road for some Whooping Cranes and Sandhill Cranes, a sight we’ve looked forward to.

And we weren’t disappointed. People in the houses along Fourth and Eight Streets here have feeders, and the birds flock here during the breeding season:

In addition to these beauties were some not-so beauties:

…and the beautiful “Big (Live Oak) Tree”:

We drove south to Mustang Island State Park and got a site (16) for two nights ($20 for Electric and Water). After lunch, we headed out for a sandy beach walk:

It was warmer than it looks, but windy, for us and the birds:

After searching along the breakwater,

…I found a “Sand Dollar and Fifty Cents”:

Today’s Cat’s Eye View is of another of her perches, on the bug tent stored under the dinette table:

And here’s the view from my chair:

LouTex Day 10

March 4, 2014

2 Hours Walking

Well, it rained all night and most of the day. Yuck. But, with a good book, old TV shows, the Gulf, some dolphins swimming by far in the distance, my cat and my honey, it was a good day.

The Cat’s Eye View is of the cat playing (I THINK she was playing):

Finally, at 3:30, things brightened enough to head out for a walk and some bird watching (yep, that’s full down jacket, headband and mitts!):

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It seemed everyone finally got out around that time. Here are some of our sightings:

No new view from my soggy chair (I sure hope I’m sitting out in my chair one day soon!).

LouTex Day 9

March 3, 2014

Hiked 1 1/2 miles

We drove south east towards Goose Island State Park (this is our third visit here). We saw little oil wells everywhere and miles and miles of furrowed fields, which we learned are rice fields, since this is the “Rice Belt of Texas”.

We passed the Natural Horisun Nudist camp, but sadly, it was too early to stop for the day. We stocked up on supplies at an H.E.B. Texas grocery store, and got to the park around 1:00.

We decided on a bay side site (#4) and have the Gulf as our front yard. Beautiful, but a little cold (45 F).

After lunch, we bundled up and took a walk along the pier just outside our door. Finally a few shore birds and ducks, including some winter Loons. We took a birding walk here last year and learned a lot about these guys, but I’ve forgotten a lot, so need to reacquaint myself with their names. In the meantime, here are some pictures:

That’s us across the bay:

And here’s a view from my chair:

LouTex Day 8

March 2, 2014

Biked 7 miles

Another sunny start to the day. We hung out at the camp site and talked with a couple from Sarnia, Ontario (the State Parks are good to us Canadians, putting us in good spots). This is their first trip to Texas, so we offered some recommendations.

After lunch, we rode some more of the bike trails. There are 35 miles of hiking and biking trails in this park, all flat and picturesque: my favourite kind of biking.

There are signs everywhere that say, “Alligators-Caution-Stay on Path”. We thought that they were warning US to stay on the paths until we had to give THIS BIG guy (maybe 12 feet) a wide berth:

The birds and turtles were pretty again, a fitting end to our two days here:

It remained about 75 F until 5:30 when the temperature dropped about 40 degrees in two minutes. Brrr….

Here’s a view from my chair before the cold front blew in:

LouTex Day 7

March 1, 2014

Biked 7 miles (finally!)

It was a gorgeous morning. Sunny, bright and warming. We took the short ferry hop and drove along the Gulf towards Port Arthur, Texas. There is still much evidence of Hurricane Rita (which totally demolished this area in 2005). A year later, we still saw many trailers replacing homes but some new building right in the footprints of the fallen houses (money must be coming through).

• Saw a cemetery right behind a Rural Healthcare Clinic

We found a lovely “Safety Rest Stop” on Highway 10 at Exit 813. It’d be a great place to stay for a night. We hit Houston and some traffic, but it only took about 20 minutes to get through.

• Southfork Drive, but we were in Houston!

We got to Brazos Bend State Park and snagged a water and electric site in the Overflow Camping area (Site OE 18, $15). It’s worth asking for since it’s away from most other campers.

We ate a quick lunch and got on the bikes and rode two of the many hiking/biking trails, IN SHORTS:

There were lots of people, especially families, enjoying the birds and Alligators (we saw AT LEAST 30!). I even touched a teeny one in the Visitors Centre. Here are a few of the birds, gators and turtles we saw:

We’re here for another night so will relax a bit. The Cat’s Eye View is her little hidey hole under the driver’s seat. A little Black Forest Ham can coax her out:

Here’s a real view from my chair, complete with bare legs, Valentine’s Day pedicure and my own Live Oak Tree:

LouTex Day 6

February 28, 2014

It was a noisy sleep with a train in our backyard, blowing its whistle all night long! Oh, and here’s yesterday`s view from my chair (sort of):

Today was a nostalgic tour of the Creole Nature Trail we liked so much last year. We started with a visit to the Cameron Prairie National Wildlife Refuge Visitors Centre. It’s a little haven of information and birds, especially the Common Moorhens, American Coots, the beautiful Black-necked Stilt, and the nesting colony of Roseate Spoonbills:

We next drove the Pintail Wildlife Drive and saw only three geese, many White-faced and White Ibises, Snowy and Great Egrets and, count them, FOUR alligators:

After,we took the Ranger’s advice and drove (too far) to the Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge. Kind of a waste of time and gas. So we returned to the Pintail for lunch and another circuit and were rewarded with FOURTEEN Alligators, including this cute pair:

…and a huge flock of geese: Snow, Ross’s and Greater White-fronted:

We decided to stay at the Jetty RV Park in Cameron ($25 for Electric, Water and two passes for the Fishing Pier). At last, the Gulf! And some relative warmth. We beachcombed a bit (don’t let the toque and headband fool you; it was just windy):

It was a good day ending with this sunset:

Here’s a view of me and our site. That’s me in my Pink in the Rink on Power in Pink Friday: