Contemplating Clouds, The Other Side of Isaac; A Sunday Special Edition

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Contemplating Clouds,
The Other Side of Isaac

This past Wednesday, August 29, Hurricane Isaac was all but stalled south of New Orleans, dropping torrential rain on much of the central Gulf Coast. Meanwhile, here in South Texas, the day was gorgeous. It was a bit hot with temperatures in the upper 90s (F) by mid-afternoon, but a brisk north wind of 15 to 20 mph offset the heat. Our weather here, like that across the central Gulf Coast, was also the product of the very tenacious Isaac, except we were on the dry, sinking air side of the storm.

These cloud photos were taken on my walk along the Leon Creek Greenway on August 29. They are some of the high altitude cirrus outflow clouds from the storm. One of the many ironies of nature: a hurricane can produce both terrifying torrential rain and wind on one side at the same time it produces hot, dry weather with wispy cirrus clouds on the other side.

Tadpoles, An Intriguing Snag* and More Woodland Wonders

Thursday, August 30, 2012

This is the second set of photos from my walk yesterday through Bamberger Park and along Leon Creek. When I walked this same area this time last year, the extended pool in the creek was much smaller, barely extending beyond the tree on the left side of the photo below.

* A snag is a dead tree. They are important in an ecosystem in that they provide shelter and food for numerous creatures. The one pictured above with the ball moss growing around the top reminds me of Big Bird from Sesame Street.

Gayfeather and Other Woodland Wonders

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Leon Creek Greenway, Bamberger Nature Park Trailhead
from Babcock Rd north to the pedestrian bridge
and numerous natural surface trails in between

Today's photos:

It was hot on my walk through Bamberger Nature Park and along the Leon Creek Greenway today, but the air was crystal clear. It was a beautiful day to be on the trail. It has been a couple weeks since it has rained, but compared to a year ago, the woodland along the creek is especially vibrant now. 

Gayfeather (the purple flowers in the first five photos in this series) grow profusely in the rocky limestone soil along Leon Creek. They begin blooming in late summer and continue well into early winter.

Bamberger Nature Park, Of Rocks and Shallow Washes

Friday, January 14, 2012

Today's Photos:

Once again, I stayed primarily on the dirt trails that wind through this beautiful, wooded landscape. While I was walking across and through the numerous shallow washes in the park, a quote from Joy Harjo's preface to the book, Secrets from the Center of the World, kept coming to mind:

"All landscapes have a history, much the same as people exist within cultures, even tribes. There are distinct voices, languages that belong to particular areas. There are voices inside rocks, shallow washes, shifting skies; they are not silent. And there is movement, not always the violent motion of earthquakes associated with the earth's motion or the steady unseen swirl through the heavens, but other motion, subtle unseen, like breathing. A motion, a sound, that if you allow your inner workings to stop long enough, moves into the place inside you that mirrors a similar landscape; you too can see it, feel it, hear it, know it."

As a side note, this entry is being posted on Saturday afternoon due to a glitch in the internet system upgrade. The glitch has now been resolved. The walks and posting should be back to normal on Monday, at least as normal as life can be at this point.