Category Archives: Nature Notes
Phoenix, Organ Stop Pizza and Casa Grande Ruins
February 25 – March 8, 2019 We had several friends hanging out in Phoenix for part of the winter so we wandered over that way. We didn’t have reservations and February/March make up a good chunk of extreme snowbird season … Continue reading
Big Bend West Side, Cottonwood Campground, Study Butte/Terlinqua and Beyond
February 18, 2019 Cottonwood Campground – No Generators Allowed. You don’t know how nice that is until you spend a week with this roaring noise for twelve hours each day. Luckily we were out hiking most of the time but … Continue reading
Dinosaur National Park – BUT NOT!
February 16, 2019 Fossil Discovery Exhibit An excellent ranger-led tour really got us excited about this fascinating exhibit. It was an excellent program at an excellent interpretive center. We learned that Big Bend encompasses a longer geologic timescale than any … Continue reading
Chisos Basin
February 14, 2019 We spent Valentine’s Day in an ancient volcanic caldera. How cool is that? While much of Big Bend appears to be relatively flat you can’t help but notice the Chisos Mountains, the southernmost mountain range in the … Continue reading
Big Bend East Side / Rio Grande Village
February 9-17, 2019 Big Bend National Park is BIG! We quickly learned to leave at least an hour to drive to anywhere. We started on the East Side of the park and toured that area plus the central Chisos Mountains … Continue reading
Whoopers!
January 28-31, 2019 Whoopers… aka Whooping Cranes. These are the largest birds in North America. They are on the Federal Endangered list. At one point only 15 birds were located at their southern migration point at Aransas National Wildlife Refuge. … Continue reading
New Orleans… Again
January 14-23, 2019 For our second visit to New Orleans we stayed at Bayou Segnette State Park. This is a very nice park in Westwego, which is south of New Orleans. They honor the NPS Senior Pass so our camping … Continue reading
Jefferson Island & Rip Van Winkle Gardens
November 29, 2018 When we arrived we were greeted by the resident peacocks. One even posed for us on the roof of the welcome sign. Given the time of year (late November) we were not surprised that few plants were … Continue reading
Ruth and Paul Henning Conservation Area
October 24, 2018 Not far from Branson, Missouri is a nice little natural gem called the Ruth and Paul Henning Conservation Area. If you’re old enough, like I am, you the name Henning might sound familiar. That’s because Paul Henning … Continue reading
Shepherd of the Hills Fish Hatchery
October 23, 2018 As on many of our travels, we often come across something to do that wasn’t on our agenda. The Shepherd of the Hills Fish Hatchery was one of them. This is the largest trout-rearing fish hatchery in … Continue reading
Spirit of the Woods 