Celebrating "While on a Walk's" First Anniversary

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

Today marks the first anniversary of While on a Walk. I feel I should be able to write some sort of profound reflection on the past year, but I rarely have as much time as I would like for such meditation these days, much less time to write about it.

It has been quite a year. I have only missed five or six walks. However, I have managed to find something to post even on those days. I don't have a specific count on the number of photos I have posted. My best guess is around 4,000, give or take a few hundred.

I had considered posting ten or twenty of my favorite photos from the past year to celebrate this anniversary, but the task of doing that edit proved to be overwhelming. So, in keeping with my friend's admonition that in a pinch "all you have to do is post one photo and write something," here is one photo that for me is as emblematic as any of all that underlies this blog:

As I have become more comfortable on the trails over the past year, the photographs have improved, both in terms of production quality and with my ability to be aware of my surroundings. To celebrate the past year with me, I recommend you spend a few minutes scrolling down a page of the blog, then click on the "older posts" link at the bottom of each page. If you have the time, you will eventually reach the first post from May 15, 2011.

The Blogger stats indicate I have an international audience with a substantial number of page views especially from Russia. It has been a great pleasure to share the beauty and diversity of Bexar County's wildlife with such a widespread audience.

I am also well aware that posting comments on blogs powered by Blogger isn't very easy. I really do welcome comments via email. Feedback is important.

For the coming year, there are still trails I haven't walked; some that I just haven't gotten to and some that have opened in the past few months. All the trails I have previously walked I will walk again as they are constantly in a dynamic flux. Such is life.

The walks and the production of While on a Walk have been a labor of love; a source of great joy and excitement for me. I have learned a lot through the year. I can see where posting may become a bit erratic at times over the coming year. Among other things, I am planning on taking the Texas Parks and Wildlife, Certified Master Naturalist training this fall. But, with as much regularity as I can manage, the blog will continue.

An Enchanted Afternoon, Part 1

Monday, May 14, 2012

The San Antonio River, Park Segment

Today's photos:

All I can say is something truly mystical occurred while on my walk today.

A Friday Frolic Along The River, Part 1

Friday, May 11, 2012

San Antonio River, Mission Reach, Concepcíon Park Trailhead

Today's photos:

With all the rain this past week, the San Antonio River is running a bit high and very swift. Perhaps I was just projecting my own mood onto the scene, but a certain playfulness seemed to be evident in the wildlife today.

As always there was much to see and photograph. This is part one of a two part series.

A Celebration of Rain on a Day Between Storms, Part 3

Thursday, May 10, 2012

This is the conclusion of the three part series that began with my walk Monday, May 7. The forecast for rain this week has been quite accurate. This month will likely be the fifth of the past six months with above average rainfall.

As I have pointed out in previous posts, South Texas weather is characterized by perpetual drought periodically broken by torrential rain. The ecosystem here is particularly well adapted to that pattern. This series of posts illustrates the resilience of the wildlife. In many respects it is similar to a desert ecosystem in that when the rain returns, wildlife rapidly flourishes: