Birders, Bikers and a Big Bend

Big Bend National Park was a pleasant surprise. First of all, who knew Texas had redeeming qualities! Up until this trip, my understanding of Texas (gathered first and second hand) was thus: 1. DFW Airport is large and confusing. 2. Austin is very, very hot. 3. Our President presided over 152 executions there. 4. The Alamo does NOT have a basement.

But there is so much more! Especially in the lower left corner! Over the course of a week we explored this area on wheels and foot. Here are some pics from the trip...


We hiked to Emory Peak, which is the highest point in the park and the 3rd highest peak in Texas.




Krista stands below Balanced Rock.


The remains of Sam Nail's ranch - he once owned a section of what is now Big Bend NP.


Big Bend is home to over 400 species of birds. The Mexican Jay is one of the greediest of the lot. This one stalked us, begging for trail mix.


Where there are birds, there are herds of bird nerds. This was the over 60 crowd, dressed in full-body khaki. They traveled in white vans and carried binoculars and scopes bigger than them. We enjoyed watching them almost as much as they enjoyed watching birds. In contrast, we also found it interesting to observe the bikers of Big Bend - we're talkin' Harleys here. We watched as one rough looking duo debated the effectiveness of Celebrex versus Ibuprofen (they both had spirited and convincing arguments). They then spiked their Fruit Punch flavored PowerAde with a dose of Jack Daniels, hopped back on their bikes and drove away.