Arriving at the Right Place at Precisely the Right Time

Natural light can be very fickle. The photographer, Ernst Haas, pointed out that a good photographer is like a good poker player who makes the most of whatever cards are dealt. When working with natural light, the photographer must know how to make the most of whatever light is illuminating the subject.

Without realizing it in advance, I had arrived at precisely the right time as I was walking along the edge of the woods towards the pavilion trailhead at the Judson Nature Trails earlier this month. The light illuminating a Virginia Creeper vine growing up a tree trunk with the dark woods in the background was magical. The vine popped out of the surrounding visual chaos:

People seem to get Virginia Creeper confused with Poison Ivy, I suppose because the individual leaflets have a somewhat similar shape, but Poison Ivy has three leaflets per leaf and Virginia Creeper has five leaflets per leaf. Thus the rhyme: "Leaves of three, let it be. Leaves of five, let it thrive."

This set of photographs was taken at the Jack Judson Nature Trails (a.k.a. The Hondodo Creek Trails) in the Olmos Basin in Alamo Heights on Monday, September 9, 2013.

Springing Up in the Basin, Part 2

Thursday, March 28, 2013

This is the remainder of the photos taken on my walk along the Hondondo Creek Trails yesterday (March 27, 2013):

• The first photo is a Dewberry flower. I thought there would be a lot more Dewberry, and there might be, but this is the only one I found.
• The second photo is Greenbriar, also known as "nature's barbed wire." This vine is very common in wooded areas in South Texas. In some locations, it is difficult to walk through a wooded area because this vine has numerous very sharp prickles that have been known to cut through the pant legs of inexperienced (and at times, experienced) hikers. The tender young leaves of this vine make a tea that is very high in vitamin C.
• The third photo is Guayacan, also known as Soapbush. This shrub is more commonly found in the South Texas Plains and Northern Mexico, but grows as far north as Austin. It is called Soapbush because the bark of the roots was frequently used to make soap for washing wool.
• The fourth photo is a close up of the flower buds of the Wafer Ash, also known as Hoptree. The first two names are derived from the shape of the seeds. This shrub is actually in the Citrus family, not the Ash family. It is also sometimes called Skunk Bush because of the odor emitted by its leaves when they are crushed.
• The fifth through seventh photos are close ups of the flowers on a Texas Persimmon tree. The fruit of the Texas Persimmon is edible, but the tree is usually used in landscaping because of its beautiful, very smooth bark. This is an excellent native plant substitute for crepe myrtle. 
• The eighth through tenth photos are a Black-crested Titmouse. This bird remained perched just long enough for a brief portrait session.
• Unfortunately, the titmouse was perched on a very large Ligustrum, also known as Glossy Privet. Ligustrum are, by far, the predominant invasive plant species in the Olmos Basin. They have taken over large areas of woodland, completely crowding out native hardwoods. As can be seen in these photos, this shrub is loaded with berries, many of which are going to continue the rapid proliferation of this plant.

Springing Up in the Basin, Part 1

Wednesday, March 27, 2013

Hondondo Creek Trails (Judson Nature Trails), Olmos Basin in Alamo Heights

Today's photos:

About three years ago, the City of Alamo Heights began consideration of ways to improve and expand the nature trails along Hondondo and Olmos Creeks. These trails have been maintained by the San Antonio Audubon Society as the Jack Judson Nature Trails. The non-profit organization, The Friends of Hondondo Creek Trails was formed soon after Alamo Heights began the planning process. In conjunction with the San Antonio Audubon Society, they have begun initial work on improving the trail system.

• The first photo is a Huisache tree in full bloom near the entrance to the trail system.
• The second through fourth photos are close ups of the flowers on a Rough-leaf Dogwood tree.
• The fifth photo is a Honey Bee on a Baby Blue-eyes flower.
• The sixth and seventh photos are a Fox Squirrel that seemed to be as interested in what I was doing as I was interested in photographing it.
• The eighth photo is a Scarlet Sage.
• The ninth photo is of newly set Sugar Hackberry leaves brilliantly illuminated by the sun.
• The tenth photo is a Pearl Crescent butterfly. The two small yellow flowers  are Straggler Daisies. This tiny daisy is a very common native ground cover. They are frequently considered lawn weeds, but actually make an excellent drought and shade tolerant ground cover that rarely require supplemental watering.
• The eleventh through the fourteenth photos are close ups of Mexican Buckeye flowers and newly set leaves.
• The fifteenth and sixteenth photos are Baby Blue-eyes. These native flowers also do very well growing in the shade. They are typically found as ground cover in wooded areas.

This series of photos is continued in part 2.

A Touch of Winter

Monday, December 10, 2012

Jack Judson Nature Trail, Olmos Basin in Alamo Heights

Today's photos:

We get two types of cold fronts in South Texas. Pacific cold fronts come off the Pacific Ocean and over the Rocky Mountains out of the west or northwest. The drop in temperature is usually relatively mild and of short duration. Arctic, or Polar, cold fronts come straight down the Great Plains out of Arctic Canada from the north. The temperature drop is always greater with the arctic cold front.

There is a saying here that the only thing between the North Pole and Texas is a barbed wire fence. And it's missing a strand. There really isn't anything to block the arctic north wind.

Keep in mind that any temperature below 60º F is considered cold in South Texas. Arctic cold fronts drop temperatures into the low 50's or colder for high temperatures and below freezing at night. Last night, the first arctic front of the year blew through Bexar County. We are forecast to have the first freeze of the season tonight and another freezing night tomorrow.

While the calendar beginning of Winter is eleven days from now, climatological winter just arrived. But then, this is South Texas and the forecast highs for this coming weekend are to be back up in the low 70s. 

All that said, I headed to the Judson Nature Trail today knowing the dense tree canopy would provide a fairly good windbreak. The temperature was about 54º F, but without the wind and with a heavy jacket, it was quite pleasant. And the trees in this section of the Olmos Basin are always magnificent.

Cool In The Woods

Friday, July 6, 2012

Jack Judson Nature Trail, Olmos Basin in Alamo Heights

Today's photos:

It was in the low 90s in the shade (if there had been any) in the parking lot at the trailhead at midday today. But it is always cooler in the woods (both literally and figuratively) in the summer. I didn't have a thermometer with me to verify it. I have no doubt, by the time I was only a few paces into the woods, the temperature was 80° (F) or so.