Day 5: Frontera Audubon Center

A beautiful day. It was born a cool morning and grew up into a clear sunshiny day. We took a break from birding for a while and went to the Don-Wes flea market. We only bought essentials; Lorna picked up a deep bag for her yoga mat and I bought a vintage Pabst Blue Ribbon bottle opener.

An open note to Pence: I miss you, man. I wish you were down here. It ain't the same without you. 

After lunch we went to the Frontera Audubon Center in Weslaco. It's a small refuge, an old estate in the middle of town. There wasn't much there except a hundred Turkey Vultures, but it was a gorgeous day to be out. I am still a little puzzled how that many large birds finds enough dead things to eat. In town. If I was an old dog I wouldn't spent too much time laying in the sun.

Shortly before we left the center we joined a cluster of birders who were looking at a small mixed flock of warblers - Wilson's Warbler, a Black and White, a Black-Throated Green (a new one for me) and a Blue-gray Gnatcatcher. I can take pictures of things that stand up (or swim) out front and don't move too much. Nervous, twitchy little bits of feather fluff hiding a twiggy bushes are generally beyond my skillset. So, here's some trees. The sound of the wind rustle in high palms is just magic. Look at the pictures and squeeze your ears real tight and you can probably hear it.

Gungle

After we returned to Alamo, I sat out in the sun and smoked a spicy maduro torpedo. Later a neighbor joined me and we test fired the new bottle opener on a handful of assorted Minnesota brewed IPAs. It seemed to work pretty well.