Spring Break at the Lake

Of course I'm warm. Why do you ask?

Since all the students that I tutor are on spring break, it was also time off for me. So we took the RV and headed to Lake Conroe and some time in the boat. 

There has been precious little boating this winter with the weather we've had. I know. I know. Your weather has been much worse, and you feel no pain for us. I understand. But we expect to be able to go out on the boat over the Christmas holidays, so, for us, it has been a bad winter.


Of course when we got to Conroe, the forecasted good weather didn't show up (pretty much like the rest of winter), but we still managed to get in some good boat time. It was overcast and rainy most of the week, and Friday it was so foggy I actually turned on the running lights when we put out.

But the final two days gave us beautiful skies and reasonable temperatures. And we did see some pretty neat birds. So, all-in-all, we had a great time on our Spring Break at the Lake. 

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Cormorants Everywhere

We've been going to Lake Conroe for 8 years now. There are always cormorants around. But Sunday we saw more cormorants than I think we have seen total up until now. They flew by in huge waves. First they flew up the lake and spent some time doing whatever cormorants do wherever cormorants do it. Then suddenly they were flying back down the lake. 

Pelicans and Eagles and Osprey. Oh My!

No matter what the weather, the birding was good. There were loads of white pelicans. These were a real treat as there are years we see them and years we don't see them.

Along with the cormorants and pellies, we saw several osprey and eagles who obligingly posed for photos.

We thrill when we see an eagle at the lake. While we know there are a few breeding pairs in the national forest, we frequently do not see them. When we do see an eagle it is generally pretty far away and for a fleeting moment.

This week the eagles were far more obliging. One was rather close and I was able to take my best eagle pix ever. Another, while further away, just let us watch for 10 minutes or so. Along with these two very accommodating adults, we also saw a juvenile whose head feathers were still in transition from brown to white.

White Pelicans on Patrol

On His Way

Away from the water there were also some nice bird sitings, including a red-belled woodpecker, and a yellow-bellied sapsucker just outside our RV.

Below is a small gallery of selected photos. Click on any one to enlarge them and see them as slides.

These are the best bird photos I have ever taken. Sharp with great detail - even in-flight shots. The phoebe was somewhat far away so that photo is a bit iffy, and with the woodpecker it seems I focused more on the tree bark than bird. But they are neat birds, so I included them anyway.

Enjoy the photos, and thanks for visiting. As always, we enjoy your comments and emails.