Judy Kestner Endures "Death March" and Survives

Your 'umble editor recently made a five-day birding trip with three other women to Big Bend National Park on the Rio Grande in West Texas to add some western U.S. birds to her life-list.  Of the 23 potential new species, she came home with nine checked off, bringing her to 437 of the 914 North American birds that are accepted by the American Birding Association.  Here's the story:

The trip began with an overnight stay in San Antonio at the lovely 1910-era home of one of the foursome and the next morning we set off very early for our first stop:  the South Llano River State Park in Junction.  A local birder met us there and led us to a couple of target birds (Golden-cheeked Warbler and Black-capped Vireo) and after a couple hours we hit the road again and arrived for late lunch at the Bien Venidos Restaurant (really good Mexican food!) in Ft. Stockton.  Half an hour west of there was the next (birding) hot-spot we visited, Lake Balmorhea, and lifer number one: Clark's Grebe - hooray!

We piled back into the car and headed for Big Bend, passing through this area in the photo.  (Does anyone know what it means?  We had to look it up, too!).  Just north of the park we stopped at a prairie dog town and found one Burrowing Owl there, a lifer for our overnight hostess.  These birds live in abandoned prairie dog holes and are cuter than pie.

This part of the Lone Star State is wildly beautiful and we were awestruck by the rugged landscapes, mountain formations and the unique flora and fauna. 

On to the very remote Chisos Mountain Lodge but uh-oh!  After the climb up the mountains there was smoke coming out from under the car's hood.  Luckily the lodge had a mechanic on duty so we left word for him to take a look at the motor the next day, checked in, clinked a beer bottle toast or two and went to bed.

At 5:30 a.m. it was raining, so we postponed our hike up the Laguna Meadows Trail for an hour.  Then we were off.  (This trail was labeled "strenuous," a fact I discovered the next day, after it was 'way too late.)

We watched the mountains turning color as the sun came up and garnered another couple of lifers for my list, as well as great views of other birds not native to my neck of the woods.

Mexican Jay - another lifer!

After two hours, the other three went on ahead of me and I continued slowly, stopping to sit on my folding stool (a life-saver if ever there was one) every 20 minutes or so. I made a friend (see pic at left) and had a lovely time, though I think the high high altitude (~6,000 feet) sapped me of energy as I had a harder and harder time putting one foot in front of the other.




In my mind, I thought that the entire hike would be about four hours, until a man hiking with his son (Dan and Alex) stopped where I was having a snack and showed me a map and told me there were about 8.5 miles to go.  "Oh no there aren't," sez I, and asked them to relay the message to my buddies at the top that I was turning back.  My decision was a good one, as evidenced in the photo on the right.  Can you spot the lodge's red roofs to the right of the cone-shaped mound? 

The way down was easier (thank you, gravity!!) but even so I didn't get back to the lodge until 1:45 in the afternoon.  Cold washcloth, stat!  Take off slacks, hiking boots and socks (120-degree feet!), stat!  Turn up A/C and take a nap, stat!

My friend Teri knocked on the door around 4:00 and announced that Susan had suffered heat exhaustion and had to lie down on the trail and Teresa had twisted her knee and was in tears and that she, Teri, had run down the last couple of miles of trail to get help.  Thank heavens one of us was in good health!

All turned out fine.  The car's transmission fluid had expanded in the heat and the excess was what was burning; someone gave Susan a PowerAde and Jell-O with fruit and she did not, after all, have to be carried down the mountain on horseback or a stretcher; Teresa's knee was fine; and, when we got to the restaurant for dinner, EVERYONE knew us.  "Judy, you made it back!"  "Susan, you look fine!"

The next two days were spent driving to other destinations and walking just a little.  Getting into and out of the car there was usually a chorus of "Ouch, ow, oh, ugh, yikes," as we stretched our aching muscles.

It was a trip to remember and to repeat (though the new "Code Red" at the lodge is now "A-10 B-4" - our room numbers!  I suspect they were happy to see us go.)  I'll see if I can convince my friends to go back next year!

Farewell to the Lodge!