Planes, Floods, and Vinegaroons

Well, this day started off nicely. I was sitting at home working on some old family photos in Photoshop, when I heard a plane buzz the trailer. I ran outside and saw this Cessna 180 from the nearby Stovall Ranch breezing in with half flaps and landing on the dirt airstrip at the Stillwell RV Park. I didn't even know where it was, but I sure do now. I grabbed my camera and off I went to document this beautiful, new visitor.

The main item on this day's agenda was lunch and a swim with my friends, Jennifer and Romaldo in Terlingua. Having made good time getting to town, I decided to bop on down the River Road (FM170) through Lajitas to see what the October flood did to the Contrabando movie set, I was amazed to find most of this "stone" corral missing. The rest of it is in the floodpath, but seems to have held up by some sort of miracle. Nothing the boys in Hollywood can't fix. You can see that from here all the way over to the tree line on the other side is where the river was coursing through during the flood. That's a lot of water.

Peeking into one of the set's buildings, I found the dirt floor still awash with mud from the recent rains. This was not part of the flood damage; just runoff from the hill out back.

Well, I can certainly see a difference already, as this hill is a lot more pronounced than it was the last time I was through here, plus these plants weren't here, either. Looks like some invasive species has set up house. That's the set's church we're headed for down below.

Well, you can certainly see where the high-water mark was here. All the paint and most of the plaster has been eroded off in the current. At least the building's still standing, as again it's nothing that can't be fixed.

Take a look at all the junk the river put up in the top of the doorway. Lots of current action going on in here.

A quick look inside shows all the interior baffle walls have been knocked out. They use them to block the camera's view of the interior so the actors can move around inside without being filmed.

Here's a good indication of the power of the river. This well used to be sitting up on a hill overlooking the river, but is now falling down the new hill created by it. That's a little too much action, folks. CUT!!!

And last but not least, we have yet another denizen of the desert -- the Vinegaroon, or Whip-tailed Scorpion. This nasty-looking little critter isn't nearly as harmful as some of its brethren, as its pincers are the only thing to be aware of. The whip on the end of the tail is just for show, but it can give off a blast of scent from the base when annoyed which smells like vinegar, hence the name. This guy lives under my car-top carrier in front of my trailer.

Well, I guess that just about does it for this installment. Thanks for tuning in.

Clouds, Critters, and Colorful Things

Hello again, everyone. Well's it's been a while since my last entry, so I thought I'd entertain you with a few more shots from around the place. When last I wrote, we were getting kicked around pretty good by some thunderstorms, and it hasn't let up too much lately. While sitting at the computer one evening, I noticed a warm, golden glow coming in from the window behind the computer and looked out to see this billowing thunderhead looming off to the south, bathed in the warm rays of the sunset. I kept looking at it and looking at it, sure I'd seen it somewhere before but couldn't remember where. Then, the other day I was watching a movie put out by Columbia Tri-Star and there it was! It's the cloud in the background behind the woman. I knew I'd seen it!

And on the heels of that were these odd-looking clouds -- our old friends the mammutus clouds. Remember, I told you they were associated with violent weather? Well, these didn't have any teeth to them this time around, as they don't look too well-formed, but it definitely could've happened. We got hit pretty good, anyway, so someone else might've gotten hammered.

Moving on to the critter portion of our show, here's somebody I ran across as I opened the Open/Closed sign the other morning. Found himself a real cozy spot to sleep the night, he did. He was very agreeable to sit still while I ran in and got my camera and took a few shots of him.

He did, however, have some doubts as I attempted to add something in the shot for scale -- my finger. After I got through taking this shot, I thought I'd poke him and get him to raise up. (I ain't the sharpest tool in the shed sometimes.) All he did at that point was drop off the sign and scurry off into the bushes. Oh, well. Better than a poke in the finger with a stinger. I mean, really, Doug!

Here's another nasty-looking critter I came across the other day on a hike -- an Assassin Beetle, or Chinch Bug as my Grandpa used to call them. I'm not sure if they're really as nasty as they look, but I've never given them the opportunity to teach me, either. They do stink when squashed, I know that.

And here we have a couple of bugs doing it, right there in broad daylight. I don't know what kind of bugs these are, so I just call them Boinkin' Bugs. As I prepared to shoot another picture, they suddenly became self-conscious and disengaged and flew off. Well, if you're going to indulge in that kind of activity in public, you have to expect the paparazzi to show up some time or another. Just ask anyone in Hollywood.

All the rain we've been getting from these thunderstorm has really greened up the desert nicely these days. All the ocotillo -- which normally look dead and lifeless and very thorny -- have got leaves out all over the place. Once the rain stops and things begin to dry out again, they'll drop their leaves to conserve water.

Never having been out here in the desert in the summer before (okay, sometimes I am fairly sharp), I'd never seen the sotol blooms opened up. What a curious little cluster of what I can only assume are stamen used in pollenation. Very interesting. They remind me of eggs under the tail of a female lobster.

And here we have our last entry of this post -- the cenizo in bloom. They really are quite delicate and beautiful, a perfect match for their velvety leaves. The colors go well together, don't you think?

Okay, I guess that'll just about catch us up for now. As always, thanks for tuning in.

Texas Weather

Welcome to my first Texas summer in ages, and all that that entails -- namely thunderstorms. Here's a thundercloud out to the east, possibly over Lake Amistad, although I can't be certain of that. I've since found out that you don't have to be near a large body of water to get the crap kicked out of you. One of these storms came rolling in the other day and I thought my trailer was going to get blown over. What a ride! Why I didn't catch the effect on video is beyond me. Dang!

And here's another big bruiser, this one a little closer but still in the same general direction. This one is shaping up nicely.

The same stormcloud, just a little later on in my drive. Boy, this thing is blossoming out beautifully. Just look at the flow of those clouds. This one would prove to be a harbinger of things to come this evening, though not as severe or prolonged as the previous storm. It still gave us cause for pause, though.

And here she comes! Now, this isn't the same cloud that we saw just now, but another cloud in the whole system of buttkickers. One of the guys here said he saw a funnel touch down, but I never saw one and the National Weather Service didn't, either. Sure looks like the kind of cloud you'd expect one in, though, especially that area just above and to the right of the trees.

These are called mammatus clouds and are always associated with very severe storms, possibly tornadic in nature. (Did you ever see the movie Twister?) Right after this shot, the blow started and we began to get pelted with rain, but it didn't last long. The last time a storm like this hit the area, 40 power poles were knocked down by a tornado somewhere between the Black Gap Wildllife Management Area -- right next door -- and Marathon, some 40 miles away. Not so this time, thank goodness. Whew! Once is enough, thank you very much.


So, moving on to things a little less threatening, here we have a video of a curious little creature I ran across the other day -- a millipede (Latin for "thousand feet"). I've seen their bleached white husks here and there, but this is the first time I've seen one alive and moving. Very smooth. This guy's about five inches long, which is larger than any I've ever seen before. In reading up on them in Wikipedia, I found out that there are 10,000 species of millipede throughout the world, the largest of which is the African Giant Black Millipede, which can grow to over 15 inches long! That's one big bug, folks.


Ending this blog entry on a humorous note, here we have a video of Pancho, our resident "Paisano" (roadrunner), having it out with himself in the mirrored front door to the Visitor Center. Roadrunners were called Paisanos -- or "Little Friends" -- by the early native Mexican inhabitants in the Big Bend area due to their habit of following the cattle herds and eating the insects stirred up by the cattle's hooves. I'd say Pancho looks pretty stirred up himself right now. What a hoot!

Movie Time

Well, since some friends of mine had such good luck uploading videos onto this website, I thought I might try my hand at it, too. I've collected a number of videos over time, but I'll only put up a few to try this out. The first two were taken on slides in the City Museum in St Louis, which is great fun. Roll 'em!!!

This one is called the Monstroslide and is very, very long. It reminded me of the old slide in the school playground in Lometa, Texas -- or at least how it seemed to a youngster. I actually did this one twice.



I'm not sure what this one was officially called, but it looks like you're crawling into a bedpan to me, so I called it the Bedpan Slide. That'll teach them not to name their slide. (FYI, "sharp turn" is a warning, not the name of the slide. You'll see.)



And here's one I did just for fun when I got my new digital camera. This one is called Zoomin' Around The House, because . . . well, that's what we're doing. It's pretty simple, folks.



Here's one I took a while back in the Trails Shop at Adadia National Park in Maine. This is Jeff Chapin's dog, Hank (a.k.a. "Hank the Tank") and he's just begging for someone to play fetch with him. How dogs make that high-pitched whistling sound is beyond me.



Well, speaking of dogs, I guess we might as well end this with a couple of videos I took during a "hunt" in Star, Texas, over my birthday. The only hunters were the dogs, and the hunted -- a couple of rabbits -- never had anything to fear. They always loped by us about 5 minutes before the dogs arrived. Still it was fun. So, why don't we open up the boxes and let 'em run? Watch quickly, because it doesn't take long. The first group to be let loose are Joe's dogs.



Next up, we have Joe's cousin, Pete, and his dogs. Again, watch quickly as they're gone as soon as they hit the ground.



Okay, that'll do it for now, I guess. I hope you enjoyed the show(s). Stay tuned for Coming Attractions in the near future. Ciao, baby!

A Day In The Life

Not every morning starts this way but, with any luck, sometimes they do. I just couldn't believe the sights and smells of this desert morning. That jaggedy mountain to the left of the sunrise is Dove Mountain.

By now, most of you are aware of my transfer into the Persimmon Gap Visitor Center for our summer operations, as the budget wouldn't allow for two places to be open at the same time -- plus the Entrance Station turns into quite an effective oven during the summer months. This view (a historical view at that) is taken on the hillside across the road. You can see the new apartments off in the distance, just sitting there now due to the contractors being given the heave-ho for taking their own sweet time and not doing a decent job while they were doing it.

Down off the hill now, here's a little shot of the moon caught between the tall yucca and the front of the building. It adds a nice graphic touch, doesn't it?

One more image of plantlife before heading in -- the false pitaya in full bloom in the flowerbed to the right of the door. I promised you some photos of desert blooms, didn't I? Unfortunately, they're few and far between out here this year.

And here we are, inside the Visitor Center and looking at my new duty station. It's kind of fun getting to sit and chat with the visitors, for the most part, but when they pile in all at once, it loses some of its charm. Oh, well. (Obviously, this shot was taken out of sequence, as you can see the flag still folded on the counter.)

This is one of our display areas, picked for a couple of reasons: 1) It's got the most information for the display in the picture and, 2) It's just the best photo of all I took. This particular display deals with being on the river and showing what you should take with you when you go. I want that hat!

This is by far one of the most appealing aspects of working in the VC -- the picture window. This photo is a rough approximation of the actual view, as all the displays blocked me from getting a good shot of it. You get the general idea, though. No back ends of Exxon stations for Doug anymore.

Well, the day is done and it's time to kick back at home with a "beer-and-a-bump" as Garrison Keillor put it in A Prairie Home Companion. I was on my way back for another bump to accompany my beer when I caught this ray of light illuminating my Route 66 shotglass I got when I was at the Meramec Caverns in Missouri. I was just stunned by the lighting, so of course I had to grab the camera. I really like this shot.

And so, friends and nieghbors, that will close not only my day at work, but this blog entry, as well. Thanks for tuning in to our show. Till next time . . .

Pepe vs. Deer

And welcome to the Wild West, folks, where if you're not careful -- and sometimes even if you are -- this sort of thing can happen to you. I was headed to work on Tuesday morning early and shortly after I turned onto Highway 385, a 6-point buck came charging out of the bushes at me with his head down. I stomped the brakes and turned away from him, but he was on me in nothing flat and BOOM!, down he went. In looking back, he was in an out-and-out charge, as I've never seen a deer run across the road with his head down like that. After I got out and went back to check him out and move him off the road, a doe ran out of the same bushes and across the road, so he was definitely in his protective mode.

And here's another angle to show the impact area where his body hit. Fortunately, he didn't knock out the headlight, but it does point down at the ground and is virtually useless for night driving and I can't get it adjusted out. Looks like a job for an auto body shop. Dang! Well, at least Pepe's still drivable.

Oh, well. That ought to just about catch you up on big events around here for now. Next weekend I'm going out on a wildflower photo safari throughout the park, so stay tuned!

WE GOT RAIN!!!

Hallelujah, brothers and sisters! Last evening a miracle happened. I was sitting in the trailer watching Disc 2 of Comanche Moon when the wind kicked up, the air got very fragrant, and the pitter-patter of little rain droplets could be heard pelting the trailer's windows. I dashed outside to find this scene off to the northwest. I did a little dance, gave a couple of whoops, and dashed back inside to get my camera. I wasn't about to miss this.

Then, looking a little further off toward the west, I beheld this sight, where the mountains were completely obscured by a curtain of rain. Hallelujah, indeed! As the wind was coming from that general direction, I knew it was only a matter of time before we got ours. I didn't have long to wait.

In about 20-30 minutes, the wind began to howl, the pelting rain began in earnest, and the windows were cranked shut as the rain was coming in from all of them, no matter what side of the trailer they were on. Woo hoo!!! We're gettin' it now! This picture was taken through the doorknob access panel on the screen door. I'll tell you, after a winter of virtually no precipitation to speak of -- the last measurable amount occurring back in October -- this was truly a blessing. Since they're forecasting a 70% chance of more of this stuff coming our way today (it's raining even as I type), and 60% chance of more coming tonight, we might just have a showing of wildflowers around here this Spring, after all. Stay tuned for further updates as they occur.