Day 5 We start birding

It seems like we have our footing here in Kemah TX and the day centered around getting the "lay of the land" and doing some birding at some nearby spots of interest.

We did get Propane (for those who may have wondered) nearby , and after that made our plans for the afternoon. Getting some local maps helped with street names even though we use the Texas Atlas (in the DeLorme series) for most routes. Those are excelent maps as they detail all the main cities.

All the sites we visited were across the N/S bridge between Kemah and Seabrook. (Clear River and Clear Lake) They were small spots for the most part, a few parks, one donated by a birder, a garden that used to be a nursery but now fully grown, but all of them showing something even though we birded in the afternoon (Not the birders favorite tiem ofthe day). The Herons, Egrets, Spoonbills and Gulls were numerous and active. A soaring Osprey gave us a great view of it's black and white markings as it sailed past us headed for the water in the Bay. A few pictures of some birds are included . The White Pelicans were stretching and yawning for Ruth as she snapped away.

It is still warm but the north wind (cold front) keeps the air with a bit of chill. No shorts today, but the sweatshirt went off an on all day.

Along Todville road we could view the many ships that ply back and forth to Houston. They say there are 50 ships a day on the average. It is steady stream.

We met a biker (Ed) on the trail and as a retired resident he was filled with good information about the area and environment. He also plies the Barrier Islands in the summer in a sailboat. There is a Seabrook Environmental group,here, that has a done a great job protecting against damage and eroding of the environment. It demands constant vigilance as the new building activity is ongoing.

Sorry that the weather in Michigan and WI has been so bad, but can spring be far away.?

Tomorrow we head across Galveston Pass on the Ferry to visit Bolivar Flats one of the most filled (with birds) birding sites in the world.

See you next time. Jim and Ruth