Magnus Goes Caving, Finally! Day 3

Friday 14 March

In the morning we went to Pedernales Falls State Park. I'd been there before, many years ago on a camping trip with Greg and Anne, Bob and T. But that was long ago and I had little memory of it.

Since this was spring break week for some of the colleges, it turned out to be very crowded--we had to wait in a six car line to get in. Then Ed waited in line for the bathroom while I stayed with Molly and looked at the map. The line--for a single stall bathroom outside the visitor center--took forever. I decided to hold my business until we got to another restroom in the camping area.

We probably weren't supposed to be in the camping area--signage suggested "registered campers only". But we're old!  Who's going to turn out an decrepit, aged old woman at the restroom?  There was no one around to object, anyway.

There we found a parking spot and took a walk to an overlook. The walk was gorgeous and we only met a few people here and there, but there were no birds. So we went on to the Falls Overlook trail, which was so crowded with people it might have been utterly miserable...but...

there was a...

 Golden

Cheeked

Warbler
!!!!!!!

He was in trees right beside the trail, doing the warbler thing while singing over and over his wheezhy call!  I recognized it as something interesting, and maybe warbler, then Merlin IDed it right off.  It took a good bit of binocular work to get him in sight but finally, finally I got him!  Lovely!  New bird for me! 

 I didn't get a picture, though. Shortly after I got the good look at him, he gave up showing off for the crowd and disappeared somewhere. But I couldn't be disappointed, because as warblers typically do, I got an exceptionally good opportunity with this one, It's almost as if mother nature decided to give me a special break and once she was sure I got it, enough.

That was pretty much the highlight for Pedernales Falls. The water level is low, but the view--with people climbing all over it--is great.

 

In the afternoon Bob and T came to our campground and hung out for a short while, then took us to eat at a new steak house near Wimberly. I thought the food was okay, but the water they provided to drink was not cold. I guess I could have asked for ice.  I had a salad which turned out to be cold noodles with a little lettuce and some other toppings. Tasty, but not exactly what I has in the mood for. And I shared appetizers--yummy stuff but I don't remember what, exactly--and a bowl of charro beans.  They were really good.

Sadly, after eating I came down with the worst case of indigestion I've ever suffered.  Tried to go walk around Wimberly a little, but all I could do was lie on a bench and suffer. Went home and took a one-hour nap before Molly's bedtime walk. That fixed me.