Mammoth Takes to the Bats, Day 2

Wed 12 July

Horny Toad!  Or, to be precise, Texas Horned Lizard. Just outside our door, in between campsites 8 and 9.  He was very active for a while but I couldn't figure out what he was hunting for. There weren't any big red ants for him, at least not in the grassy area.

Hopefully he found enough. We went for a drive and he was not in evidence when we returned. His camouflage is so good I could have walked right over him and never noticed him. But the spot was in full sun when we returned and the temperature was rapidly approaching 100, so I wouldn't blame him if he retired to the shade.

We drove over to the "swimming area" and then the lake, and took a little trail up to the overlook. I don't think we went the whole way, but by that time it was after 10:00 and not a pleasant place to be. Other than the silence, the solitude, and the utter lack of things that annoy. That part was exceedingly pleasant.

 

 

 

 

On the previous night the stars weren't as brilliant as I'd hoped for--possibly it was a little hazy? but I could see all the stars in the little dipper, which you can't do at home.  Also, of course, all of Scorpio's tail.

We're at about the same latitude as our house but the trees block Scorpio back home--it's to the south. Maybe if I walked all the way down the driveway and looked out across our front field, I could see it all.

It started to cloud up in the afternoon, so the motorhome was a pleasant temperature when it came time for supper. A welcome change. I took Molly for her long walk after supper, from about 7:45 to sundown at 8:45-ish. First we took the little trail at the edge of the campground. It went down the hill a little ways and then ended at an "amphitheater" (chunks of logs in a semicircle) overlooking the lake below.

When I tried to keep on going, the trail dissolved into a bunch of game tracks that didn't seem to lead anywhere. I couldn't have gotten lost, with the road on one side and the lake on the other, but I could definitely have ended up wandering around in thorny underbrush that I didn't care to go in.  So I turned back.

                Lake from the amphitheater:

After that we just took the same walk as the day before, down to the defunct swimming area and the remainder of the lake. Molly took a short dip, and we returned to a very pretty sunset.

Last night for here.