This was basically a driving day. And just as well since it was misty raining most of the afternoon. No deluge but bits of drizzle and I can look out the window of our motel and it is still drizzly. This is the first day we have had a rainy day. We have had foggy misty days with no rain and spectacularly hot days which are like summer days. So we have been quite lucky with the weather on this trip. No complaints from us. It was 75 here today and it has not cooled off yet, still in the 70s.
We left Laredo this morning and tried to bird around the Rio Grande banks but either we could not find the exact trail or the neighbourhood was too rundown and had a weird vibe. We really did not have to though as yesterday we had a wide swath of Rio Grande all to ourselves and we maximized on the opportunity. When we stopped for the Border Control checkpoint, the officers asked to see our passports. Then they asked about birds and the male officer was telling us about the trails that were literally underneath the bridges to Mexico. Like I said it is all kind of weird. I am pretty sure he was there as Border Control officer rather than a birder.
The weather forecast today was for rain later and there was a weather alert on this and knowing how a simple rainfall can turn out badly in Texas we figured that we should start our drive while it was not raining. We took a highway that was pretty quiet with no traffic or hardly anyone else on the road. We laughed and called it Caracara Highway as the Crested Caracara were the dominant birds at mature and juvenile stages. We must have seen about 20 of them along this stretch. There were also Red-tailed Hawks and Harris' Hawks along with many Kestrel's on poles and lines. We decided to stay in Sinton which is between Rockport and Aransas. We thought we would try birding in a nearby park recommended by the audubon organization tomorrow morning if there was no rain. There is also a stop we discovered that has many ducks, wading birds and shorebirds in wading ponds on a Farm to Market roadway.
The rain started about 15 minutes outside Sinton and it was a drizzle. We checked into a highway motel and then went out to get some victuals. With our shopping done, we decided to head to nearby Rockport. Even before we reached Rockport we saw huge piles of detritus, like a whole pile of a collapsed house. There were many houses with tarps on roofs and other houses with brand new roofs. Down one road, all the big hydro poles were snapped half-way and the top half was missing. Fences for miles held lots of stuff washed up, vines, leaves and twigs. Obviously they had been submerged and caught whatever the tidal surge had carried. Once we got to Rockport, we could see demolished homes, parts of walls of a house still standing, with a house next to it with the lights on. There was lots of devastation around and really sad to see how destructive nature can be.
From here we returned in the drizzle to Sinton with a couple of stops for tidal ponds/marshes with lots of shorebirds and ducks on them. There were Northern Shovelers and Blue-winged Teal and many many American Coots. Far off we could tell without a scope that there were Roseate Spoonbills and Whimbrels rooting in the mud. It is times like this that we miss having a scope with us on the birding holiday.
Now we are doing exciting stuff like laundry right now. With the extreme heat that last five days, light tops have all been used up. We had full and long days, so it is nice just to chill out with the rain.
Tomorrow we take the little ferry over to Port Aransas and the Whooping Crane Festival starts on Thursday. For that we are hoping for good weather.
We left Laredo this morning and tried to bird around the Rio Grande banks but either we could not find the exact trail or the neighbourhood was too rundown and had a weird vibe. We really did not have to though as yesterday we had a wide swath of Rio Grande all to ourselves and we maximized on the opportunity. When we stopped for the Border Control checkpoint, the officers asked to see our passports. Then they asked about birds and the male officer was telling us about the trails that were literally underneath the bridges to Mexico. Like I said it is all kind of weird. I am pretty sure he was there as Border Control officer rather than a birder.
The weather forecast today was for rain later and there was a weather alert on this and knowing how a simple rainfall can turn out badly in Texas we figured that we should start our drive while it was not raining. We took a highway that was pretty quiet with no traffic or hardly anyone else on the road. We laughed and called it Caracara Highway as the Crested Caracara were the dominant birds at mature and juvenile stages. We must have seen about 20 of them along this stretch. There were also Red-tailed Hawks and Harris' Hawks along with many Kestrel's on poles and lines. We decided to stay in Sinton which is between Rockport and Aransas. We thought we would try birding in a nearby park recommended by the audubon organization tomorrow morning if there was no rain. There is also a stop we discovered that has many ducks, wading birds and shorebirds in wading ponds on a Farm to Market roadway.
The rain started about 15 minutes outside Sinton and it was a drizzle. We checked into a highway motel and then went out to get some victuals. With our shopping done, we decided to head to nearby Rockport. Even before we reached Rockport we saw huge piles of detritus, like a whole pile of a collapsed house. There were many houses with tarps on roofs and other houses with brand new roofs. Down one road, all the big hydro poles were snapped half-way and the top half was missing. Fences for miles held lots of stuff washed up, vines, leaves and twigs. Obviously they had been submerged and caught whatever the tidal surge had carried. Once we got to Rockport, we could see demolished homes, parts of walls of a house still standing, with a house next to it with the lights on. There was lots of devastation around and really sad to see how destructive nature can be.
From here we returned in the drizzle to Sinton with a couple of stops for tidal ponds/marshes with lots of shorebirds and ducks on them. There were Northern Shovelers and Blue-winged Teal and many many American Coots. Far off we could tell without a scope that there were Roseate Spoonbills and Whimbrels rooting in the mud. It is times like this that we miss having a scope with us on the birding holiday.
Now we are doing exciting stuff like laundry right now. With the extreme heat that last five days, light tops have all been used up. We had full and long days, so it is nice just to chill out with the rain.
Tomorrow we take the little ferry over to Port Aransas and the Whooping Crane Festival starts on Thursday. For that we are hoping for good weather.
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