We went to the South Padre Island Birding Center yesterday and what a lovely day it was. Temp
about 77, sunny, just gorgeous. We stopped at Palo Alto Battleground National Park first which is just north of Brownsville. Palo Alto is where the first battle between Mexico and the US over the Texas territory was and started the Mexican/US war in 1845. Interesting, alot of history. Traveled to South Padre from there, about 15 miles north of Palo Alto and on the Gulf of Mexico and spent almost 4 hours walking the boardwalk looking and taking pictures of all the birds and fauna. We are astonished that we have seen birds that most people haven't is an understatement. Birds like Skimmers that fly with their mouth open skimming the water for bugs and small aquatic life, ghost crabs, fiddler crabs, American Bittern, Purple Gallinule, Long-
Billed Curlew, Reddish Egret, Tri-colored Herons, and of course, the American Alligator. So many other kinds of birds just too many to mention - Dave has lots of pictures and will send on - just truly amazing. This picture above is from the observation deck of the birding center, and it gives a
flavor of the boardwalk that winds in and out of the marshes and waters. If you have never been to South Padre Island, I think of it as Fort Lauderdale on a smaller scale. Tall condominiums and hotels, lots of touristy things to see and buy, alot of restaurants, and deep sea and dolphin watch tour boats. We are going on a bout tour here on SPI on the 14th with some folks here at the campground and then lunch at one of the restaurants overlooking the water. This is a beautiful place where you don't have to leave the US to get to a tropical destination. Beaches are sandy white, access to the beaches are everywhere. This picture is of a Brown Pelican jumping after many of the mullets (fish that look like catfish) and they were about 8 inches long, but you can see the high rises in the background. For the next couple of days we are going to sit tight - the storm you all are getting, we are getting but very high winds, temperatures dropping dramaticaly, sunny but cold - freeze warnings out for all crops for the next couple of nights (28 is predicted). We definitely know we don't want to experience a Northern Ohio winter ever again. Warmth it is!
about 77, sunny, just gorgeous. We stopped at Palo Alto Battleground National Park first which is just north of Brownsville. Palo Alto is where the first battle between Mexico and the US over the Texas territory was and started the Mexican/US war in 1845. Interesting, alot of history. Traveled to South Padre from there, about 15 miles north of Palo Alto and on the Gulf of Mexico and spent almost 4 hours walking the boardwalk looking and taking pictures of all the birds and fauna. We are astonished that we have seen birds that most people haven't is an understatement. Birds like Skimmers that fly with their mouth open skimming the water for bugs and small aquatic life, ghost crabs, fiddler crabs, American Bittern, Purple Gallinule, Long-Billed Curlew, Reddish Egret, Tri-colored Herons, and of course, the American Alligator. So many other kinds of birds just too many to mention - Dave has lots of pictures and will send on - just truly amazing. This picture above is from the observation deck of the birding center, and it gives a 
flavor of the boardwalk that winds in and out of the marshes and waters. If you have never been to South Padre Island, I think of it as Fort Lauderdale on a smaller scale. Tall condominiums and hotels, lots of touristy things to see and buy, alot of restaurants, and deep sea and dolphin watch tour boats. We are going on a bout tour here on SPI on the 14th with some folks here at the campground and then lunch at one of the restaurants overlooking the water. This is a beautiful place where you don't have to leave the US to get to a tropical destination. Beaches are sandy white, access to the beaches are everywhere. This picture is of a Brown Pelican jumping after many of the mullets (fish that look like catfish) and they were about 8 inches long, but you can see the high rises in the background. For the next couple of days we are going to sit tight - the storm you all are getting, we are getting but very high winds, temperatures dropping dramaticaly, sunny but cold - freeze warnings out for all crops for the next couple of nights (28 is predicted). We definitely know we don't want to experience a Northern Ohio winter ever again. Warmth it is!
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