As I mentioned in my last post, Ann and I went to Wimberley, Texas for a visit with some friends. Initially we had planned on going to the Hornsby Bend Bird Observatory in Austin, and also visiting the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center in nearby San Antonio. As it turned out, Hornsby Bend was closed because of a fire a few days ago, and Mitchell Lake turned out to be open only on weekends.
So what to do if you are served lemons, well as they say, you make lemonade. We were only a few miles from the Pedernales Falls State Park. We decided to check out the bird blinds there that I heard about from a friend. It turned out to be two blinds, each one facing the opposite direction. For photography, that was excellent, giving that the light was so that you could have your choice of sun direction.
We made two trips there, on consecutive days. I came home with 860 images of several different species. Out of those, I hope to cull out maybe a dozen or so keepers. For this post, I have picked out a few images of a Western Scrub-jay, (Aphelocoma.californica).
Western Scrub-jay
Western Scrub-jay
Western Scrub-jay
I hope you enjoyed the photos, as much as I enjoyed our little trip to get them. Incidentally, if you want to visit a picturesque little village in the hill country of Central Texas, this is the place to go. For my own taste, I still love our wide open spaces at home in San Angelo, Texas. But Wimberley has much to offer, great scenery, certainly more trees than I am used to, great little restaurants, and is closed to the attractions of Austin and San Antonio.
Click on any image to see an enlargement.
Texas Tweeties by Bob Zeller 
As always, your photos are amazing!
Thanks, Mavie, I appreciate it.
I love Scrub Jays. Thanks so much, Bob, for the great shots. Glad you had such perfect weather and photo conditions. 🙂
You are welcome, Lisa, and thank your for the nice comment. 🙂
These are beautiful Bob!
Thank you very much, Mia.
I visited a cousin near Wimberley last year and felt closed in by a monoculture-looking landscape of small oaks. I, too, love the open views. For bluebonnets, go to Brenham and the area around Chappell Hill, Washington-on-the-Brazos State Park, etc. It’s got the Hill Country beat by a mile.
Yes, Wimberley is too crowded for me, people, trees, hills, etc.
Sounds like a great trip, and I love your jay photos. The blue plumage is just unreal. We always love going through our photos after a few days away! Looking forward to seeing some more.
Thanks so much, Jo. Always nice to hear from you from the UK. I appreciate your compliments, and I will have some more in a few days. 🙂
Glad that you and Ann found a spot and love the colour of the scrub jays as well as their surroundings. The country side sounds very appealing as does the village and restaurants.
Thanks, Jane. I think you would enjoy it.
Looking forward to seeing the rest of your photos from the trip!
Thanks, Jerry. I always appreciate your comments.
Glad you got to make something out of the trip to my neck of the woods afterall. I hope to visit Pedernales before the month is finished.
Thanks, Jason, and I really owe it all to you. I probably wouldn’t have discovered Pedernales Falls SP otherwise.
way to see you out and about!! 🙂
Thanks, Derrick. Next month we’re heading back to the Big Bend again. 🙂
Good to know you and Ann had fun and I can tell by the number of photos you took, you had a great time!! Look forward to more stunning photos like this jay….love the color. hugs
Thanks, Beth. It’s nice to get out and travel again.
Thanks for posting these, Bob. I especially liked the third pic. Sounds like an interesting place. Looking forward to seeing more pics from your trip.
Thanks, Dave. I have a few more to post in coming days.
Amazing photos! Great job of turning lemons into lemonade! Have never seen one “in the feather;” we have Florida Scrub Jays which are somewhat different but I love the coloring. Thanks for the share!
Thank you whoever you are. ?? (sevenof9fl). I appreciate your comment. Please write again.
Gorgeous images
Thanks, Bella.
Bob, Sorry to hear Mitchell Lake was closed. ARRRGH! Definitely worth a weekend trip, though. Pedernales Falls is where I saw my first Painted Buntings. Still can’t get over them! (A friend says they look like sparrows dressed up for Mardi Gras.) Love these photos. Can’t wait to see more! Cheers, Denise
Thanks so much for writing, Denise. I appreciate what you have to say, and I hope to have more pics in the next few days. 🙂
The blinds at Pedernales Falls SP are outstanding. I always seem to be there in the morning so I’m shooting out of the full glassed in one, but I’ve seen folks pull out some nice shots out of the old blind as well. Can’t wait to see the rest. Well shot on this WESJ.
Thanks, Jim. Yes, I really enjoyed those blinds. Especially the newer one. I think that later in the day the light would be really great in the old one. I think I got a few images there, but the sun was still pretty much overhead then.
Well you certainly turned lemons into lemonade..great photos. We had scrub jay last summer at our feeders..he was a real opportunist and not at all people shy..They are really a neat colored bird. Glad you are back and sounds like a fun trip.
Thank you, Syl. We ended up with a great time over-all. The weather was phenomenal, no wind, perfect temps, and good birds.