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:

BBB Day 23

March 18

Hiked 3.5 miles

Time to move to another campground in Big Bend. Because of size warnings to drive to Chisos Basin, we went to the Cottonwood Campground instead.

The drive was magnificent with gorgeous rocks:

and ever-changing vegetation:

After lunch at Cottonwood (named for these poplar-like trees; in the foreground is a type of Acacia which fills the air with its scent):

…we headed to the Santa Elena Canyon Trail (thanks again to Marilyn!). It was very hot (probably hit 100) and the climb UP was hard, but the reward at the end in the cool of the shade by the river (and yes, the “mighty” Rio Grande again) was worth it:

A rare photo of the two of us (sweating):

It was a beautiful day, topped off with the view from my chair:

BBB Day 22

March 17

Hiked 7 miles

A day for hiking in the heat (up to 93 today)!

We headed to the Rio Grande River Trail within our campground. It was a short climb then a walk along the shore to the river.

Here were two ways to cross the border:

There were many collections of handcrafts with requests for money:

Things were beautiful, but there were warnings that purchasing was illegal. So we enjoyed them from afar.

Here are some views from our first hike:

Thanks, Heather!

Ancient holes for grinding nuts and seeds:

We then headed to Boquillas Canyon for another hike (thanks to Marilyn Gris for the tip). It was hotter but the views were beautiful (along with some river-side shade). By the way, the water you do see here IS the mighty Rio Grande. Not what we were always seeing in the old Westerns. It’s dry or shallow and narrow:

And what was this? Five Mexicans crossing the border illegally?

Alas not. This was a Mom and four sons from Iowa. And the sombreros were purchased there at The Party Store! So funny.

After lunch, we intended to take another hike to the Hot Springs, but David’s leveller head prevailed. And, as we spoke to a woman who had to be paddled back from the Hot Springs because of heat stroke (lucky that an outfitter was passing as she sort of collapsed), we were glad.

We waited until things were cooler and hiked back up the trail in the campground to see the sunset. A beautiful end to our day (with REAL Mexicans!):

Here’s the view from my chair (just keeping with the theme of the day!):