Apr 28 (Day 118) - Heading towards Austin, Lark sparrow at #334, need to drop weight.....

I decided to bypass the Attwater's prairie chickens for several reasons. First, I would have only moved 40 miles today if I had tried for them, and some of that would have been to the south - away from Austin. Second, the wind today was lighter than expected, so I could cover a decent distance towards Austin instead.  Third, the wind the next 2 days is going to be very strong from the northwest, and this would make the long, 2-day northwest ride into the wind from the prairie chicken spot to Austin very difficult. From where I am now it should only take 1 long day of riding into/across this wind to reach Austin. Fourth, my bike is showing some significant signs of wear and tear, and I want to get it Austin as soon as possible. I have scheduled a bike tune-up in Austin for Wednesday midday. So, in effect, I am trading the chickens for a day of time and a smoothly running bike. Fifth, I am going to save my next big bird finding battles for the Golden-cheeked warbler and the Black-capped vireo. The riding the next 3 weeks is going to be incredible difficult, and a detour right now only postpones the inevitable. Procrastination is not my style.

Today's ride ~75 miles

The prairie chicken scenario that I skipped

I did make one minor detour today to the Blue Bell Creamery in Brenham, TX. I was introduced to this ice cream a few weeks back, and I have been totally addicted ever since. I consumed a full pint each night I was in High Island! As today was very hot, I felt justified in a "quick" stop to sample a few flavors. I walked in with $20, and I walked out with much less. Scoops were only $1 each, so you can tell I did some real damage. Today's performance was not quite as epic as the 2013 Scooper Bowl  debacle in Boston, but it was close. 

At the creamery

Round 1 of ?

Looking a bit sick at Scooper Bowl 2013 in Boston!

Today, I encountered the first real hills that I have seen in months. These hills are only going to get more challenging as I move west in Texas this month and north into Colorado during subsequent months. I am definitely going to dump my tripod and telescope in Austin. This should save around 8-9 lbs. I should not need the scope much during my time in AZ, NM, CO, WY, ID, and OR. I will send it in to be serviced for these months and get it back when I reach California in September. I have also made the incredibly difficult decision to dump my camera for the summer months. This would save another 4.5lbs. I would love to have it with me, but if I am going to tote the laptop, them something else has got to go. A blog with no bird photos is better than no blog at all. Ditching the field guide will save another pound. Since it is a very old NGS book that is due for an upgrade anyway, I am going to tear out the flycatcher pages and bring those with me. I think I am pretty good on most other families. The bottom line is the weight is going to be EVERYTHING in the next few months, so I have to drop as much of it as possible. Today's stop at Blue Bell did nothing to help the weight reduction agenda. 

Today's ride became more scenic the farther I got from Houston. By the end of it, I was riding through rolling, grassy terrain that was dotted with oaks. I did manage to add Lark sparrow along the side of the road right at the end of the ride. It was a nice reward for a very hot 75 miles today (it was 92F).

OK, early to bed so I can get up early to start riding before it gets hot tomorrow. The north wind should keep it a bit cooler than today (~81F), so I've got that going for me!