Day 76: 100 degrees, but a really wonderful day.....the last one in the RGV.

Yep.......we sat the alarm for 6:15 and by 7:30, we had done the morning rituals, had tea and Fr. Roast coffee, and a bite of breakfast. Then.....we drove the 2-3 miles over to Estero Llano Grande State Park.....the World Birding Center. We parked, walked into the park, and then wandered around the Visitor Center, checked out the small pond/lake, and began to see lots and lots of birds!

At 8:30 we joined about a dozen others and went with a guide and birder from the Visitor Center who took us around two various pathways......and he not only pointed out various birds, but also identified the many bird calls/songs that we could hear, but not see. The second pathway took us to the Alligator Pond.....and we watched a couple of mature alligators sunning themselves in the increasingly hot sun beside the pond. There we also saw many more birds and by 10:30 we returned to the Visitor Center, hot and dehydrated as our water had run out. It was a great experience and one that we want to re-do next year, as well as visit other birding areas here in the RGV. Today we saw FIFTY species!!!!!!

Then we made a quick trip to the Post Office in Weslaco, stopped at WalMart for some necessary items, and then returned to TheHowserHouse by noon. From that point on, we worked on get TheHowserHouse ready to roll in the morning. I have a few things to do in the morning.....dismantle the bikes a bit, dump the holding tanks, and the 1st Lady will finish storing the pictures, etc., inside that have to be secured safely.

We plan to leave around 9:30 with Doug and Diane leading the way with their large motorhome......hopefully breaking the wind for us. Winds are supposed to be coming from the east, southeast tomorrow so that might not be too bad. We'll see..................??? It is only a 177 miles from here to Port Aransas, so not too far to travel tomorrow.

At 5pm we went over to Doug and Diane's coach for a Happy Hour with many, many others.....various groups of friends of ours and theirs who all came together for the final time before the four of us leave Llano Grande. It was fun.....I spilled my drink on my shirt....haha....but, it quickly dried in the winds of the 100 degree afternoon. Then most of jumped in our trucks and cars and drove the 2 miles over to Fat Daddy's.......OMG....it was soooooooo good tonight!!!!! The 1st Lady and I both had the 1/2 rack of ribs, potato salad, coleslaw, onion....and a beer. The meat was simply falling off of the ribs.......juicy, smoky, and soooo damn tender.........WONDERFUL!!!!!! The entire plate dinner was one of the best I have had down here in the past 2 1/2 months!!!! IF you have not been there and are still here in the RGV......get your body over there NOW!!!!

Returning to the resort, we biked over to the Library to return some books. This afternoon I had already checked out, paid my electric bill, returned the modem(hope this can post on WIFI), and returned various key cars and the mailbox key. They are not open in the morning, so it had to be done this afternoon......AND, the electricity we are using for the A/C is now free, since the meter has already been read!

Another wonderful day......new experiences of birding, great Happy Hour with sooo many friends, and a wonderful dinner!! WHAT A PLACE THIS IS!!!!!!! There can't be a better place to spend the winter........in an RV!!!!

LIFE IS JUST REALLY, REALLY GREAT!!!!!!......And, I hope it is for all of you, also!!!!!