More from the Game Cam

We have continued to run the Game Cam in our "backyard" every evening, and some days we let it run into the morning as well.

'Tis the season for fawns, and with the large number of deer around here we've seen plenty!  This mom brought her twins by for a drink of water this morning.

The bucks are also starting the grow their antlers. This one is starting to fork and you can see that they are covered with the fuzzy "velvet" that grows the antlers. It will dry up and they'll rub it off when their antlers stop growing in late summer/early fall. 

Here is a picture from about a week ago of a smaller buck in the daylight. 

This opossum has decided to act like a raccoon and walk around in the bird bath. 

Otherwise, life goes on.  As my Mom says, we are having "rerun days".  Good description!

Mark

The Hill Country - Part 2

Several people have asked to see pictures of our "home base" here in the Hill Country.  This will give you a little glimpse of our place.

There are many beautiful wildflowers and cactus blooming.

Cactus and Rosemary - about the only plants deer won't eat.

Prickly Pear Cactus

Cholla Cactus

Twisted Yucca

Rosemary

There are a lot of options for your site.  Some folks just back in their RV and they’re finished.

Some people build enormous covers over their RV’s.  In the Texas heat a cover is almost mandatory! 

Some people go all out with outbuildings and decking.  Any improvements must be approved by the management.

There is a little yard art on some sites.

There are a lot of deer!

We bought our place in December 2010.  It is a 400 square foot park model home with a 400 square foot deck with a small building that Mark uses as an office.  We can park our RV right next to the deck, with full hookups.

When we bought our place, we thought it would be a place to stay a couple of weeks a year.  We would drop off winter clothes and pick up summer clothes.  Drop off bird books from one area of the country and pick up bird books for another area.  It has turned out to be a perfect place.  It's small but very comfortable.

Hope you have enjoyed our little tour.  

We have heard that some people have not been able to leave comments.  Mark has looked into this and discovered it might be a privacy setting on certain cell phones.  You can always e-mail if there is a comment you would like to make.

Teri

This Is Why We Call It The Hill Country

When I was young, I thought the hills of Austin were mountains.  It wasn’t until I left Texas for the first time in 1980, when Mark and I went to the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, that I realized what a mountain really looks like.  So, even though we don’t have mountains we do have hills - a lot of hills.

Mark and I started walking a few months ago around our RV resort.  This is a nice area on about 75 acres with very few RV sites.

We have a couple of routes picked out that Mark has GPS’s so that we walk 3 - 3 1/2 miles.  Typically, we don’t walk together.

One of my favorite walks is “up the hill” to the water tower.  We’re having to get up earlier and earlier to get out before the brutal heat and humidity make it almost impossible to be outside.  Right now, we start walking about 6:15.

We have beautiful sunrises (and sunsets too). 

Sunrise off our front deck.

I leave the house and walk down the road toward the entrance to our resort.

 

Someone spent a lot of time outlining this 

flowerbed in the shape of Texas.

Along the way there are plenty of flowers and even a fig tree to look at. 

Little figs just getting started.

Vervain (Verbina)

Mexican Hat

The gate opens at 7:30 but can be opened manually if you know where the hidden button is, or opens automatically if a car drives up to it.

I turn around at the gate and keep going.  Past the office/clubhouse. 

There are critters to see. 

After passing the pool and exercise building, the road starts heading up.

 

It’s a little steep but not too bad.  After a little while the road turns right and goes up a little more steeply. 

Up to the Inn on the Hill.

 

The Inn is a beautiful house that the past owners built.  Their plan was to have a cooking school.  Their plans fell through and the house was never used for that purpose.  There is an apartment on one end, a huge open area with a large kitchen and living room in the middle and two private bedrooms with baths on the other end.  Both bedrooms are very large.  There is another kitchen on this end also.

The only way to get a reservation at the Inn is if you are a family member or friend of someone who lives here. 

A little way past the Inn the road makes a sharp left and gets even steeper.

 

Finally, with the water tower in sight you know the up-hill struggle is almost over. 

The water tower is in the upper right hand corner.

You turn around to start back down and the view will take your breath away.

Unfortunately, my little camera doesn’t really capture how beautiful the Hill Country is.

See that house on the next hill?  If you’re interested, it’s for sale for $1.7 million. 

The house is on the right side of the hill.

After enjoying the view, while catching my breath, I start back down.  

Going down is a lot easier on the heart but a lot harder on the knees!  That little red dot is Mark going up the last leg to the water tower. 

There are 52 RV lots.  There are no RV sites up the hill.  All the sites are in the lower, flat area.

I walk back to the gate, turn around, then have a decision to make.  Back up the hill or around the RV resort?

I make my decision next time.

The Fruits of Our Labor

We spent the last two summers volunteering at Green Lake National Fish Hatchery in Ellsworth, Maine.  Both years were wonderful experiences.  The staff is the best we’ve ever worked with, we had a variety of jobs to work on, the area is beautiful and our RV site was very nice and secluded.

Fred was the biologist we worked with the most and he had a lot of ideas of things he wanted us to do.

We have kept in touch with Fred and this morning he sent some pictures.

Last summer we made 12 bluebird houses, attached them to poles, and set them in the ground in two different areas of the hatchery.  (See Blog Post June 24,2019 - If You Build It Will They Come?)

Fred wrote that Bluebirds have set up housekeeping in one of the houses and Tree Swallows are staking out another house.  It’s great to see that they have found the houses the first summer available!

We spent two summers putting in pollinator gardens (two the first year and two the second year). (See Blog Post August 28, 2018- Pollinator Garden)

Our first completed garden.

Due to the bitterly cold winter in between years, our first gardens had quite a bit of plant loss.  We replanted the first 2 beds and got the 2 additional beds dug-out and planted in time for a very successful summer.  (See Blog Posts August 7, 2019 - OurPollinator Garden and September 20, 2019 - Monarch Success).

Fred sent pictures showing the gardens are popping out and ready for bees and butterflies.

2020.  Picture by Fred.

Our first summer we resurfaced one raceway but didn’t have time to get to the others (See Blog Post September 27, 2018 - Offto the Race(way)s!).  One of our last projects last summer was to resurface 3 raceways.  (See Blog Post August 16, 2019 - Off to the Race(way)s - DejaVue).

 Before resurface.

After resurface. 

Fred sent pictures from this Spring showing the raceways in use.  They look great!

 With fish.  Picture by Fred.

So many times, we leave a volunteer position and never get back to that area.  We often wonder if all our hard labor was useful or just a waste of time. 

We appreciate Fred taking the time to show us that the fruits of our labor have been successful!

Teri