Blue Goose ~ Day 212

December 25, 2014 ~ Georgetown, TX to Pearsall, TX

Christmas Morning...Was I Blue?  A little, but this is one-time deal; I celebrated the holiday season with memories of Christmases Past...all good.

I was close to Balcones Canyonlands NWR and found it easily about 30 miles southwest of Georgetown, but didn't do more than turn into a small parking area / trailhead in one place and into the entrance / locked main gate down the road.

Balcones Canyonland NWR - TX

Balcones is a relatively new refuge in the hill country of central Texas on what is called the Edwards Plateau and is the breeding grounds of two birds. The protection of habitat for both is one reason this refuge was established: the "endangered" Black-capped Vireo with only three breeding populations in the US, and the "highly endangered" Golden-cheeked Warbler which only breeds in this area.

Balcones is also "...one of 14 dedicated Land Management Research and Demonstration Areas where new habitat management techniques and approaches are developed, implemented and showcased."

 WWW.FWS.GOV

Land Management Research and Demonstration Areas (Demonstration Areas) are managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service on national wildlife refuges and wetland management districts throughout the country.  They serve as institutions of investigation, innovation and instruction in wildlife and habitat management.

The [FWS] Service is uniquely qualified to demonstrate land management techniques that provide healthy, sustainable habitats for fish, wildlife, and plants. Its 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System provides an unequaled backdrop for study and development of new techniques. With its “wildlife first” emphasis, the System is the only Federal network of lands dedicated to wildlife conservation and habitat management. Habitat management research is a tradition on national wildlife refuges. Since the establishment of Pelican Island Refuge in 1903, refuges have continually tested and refined management techniques.  Methods such as wetland restoration, reforestation, and prescribed fire have been used and improved on refuges for more than 100 years.

At each of the 14 Demonstration Areas, a specialized biologist oversees the research, development, and testing of new management techniques. Through wildlife inventories and habitat monitoring, the site becomes a repository of data and information about its featured habitat or management issues. Refuges with similar habitats or issues serve as test sites for identifying site-specific variables that may affect new methods. [bolding mine]

I suspect these quotes are often not the most interesting to read, but they do tell of the mission, direction and future plans of the NWR system with its 95 million acres and counting....

Balcones Canyonland on Christmas Day - TX

Since neither the warbler or the vireo are here in the winter, and because I have been lazy of late as far as moving/walking/hiking, I drove on through the lovely juniper-ash hills and small canyons of the Edwards Plateau which certainly did not fit the mental image I've always had of Texas. Interestingly, I just read that there are "no natural lakes in central Texas, mostly because it was not glaciated," but there are caves and springs, the Edwards Aquifer and reservoirs created by many dams. It is not arid here.

I was surprised at the traffic on this holiday as I moved south through Austin and then San Antonio on Interstate 35. It made me smile to see a vehicle with a Christmas wreath or big red  bow on its front. I found a station of classical Christmas and listened to parts of Handel's Messiah at full volume for an hour. The brilliant afternoon sunshine enhanced the beauty of this lovely music.

I thought Laredo was closer than it was and still had 100 miles to go when I decided to stop and got a dismal motel in Pearsall. I can't figure it: many motels are no more than half full (if that) but I still can't get much a deal. Priceline works occasionally, but usually their deals are discounted because those motels have issues. And once reserved, there is no backing out; one is committed. I drove through Pearsall looking for someplace to eat and settled for a gas station sandwich, either chicken salad or egg salad, or maybe a combination. It was difficult to tell.

The sun set in glory in the southwest, filling the sky with color.