Sunday January 22nd 2023

Saturday’s rain continued last night. I woke up a few times overnight to additional noise on the roof. Possible it was debris from the trees falling on the roof that caused me to wake up. When I woke up this morning it was dark and cloudy. The darkness was very similar to Saturday, but the similarity ended there. The temperature climbed to near eighty despite the cloud cover. Saturday peaked in the fifties.

The campground really emptied out this morning. By the 1PM checkout time there were only a handful of sites still occupied. As the afternoon progressed the empty sites were all filled. I will be among the departed tomorrow. This was my last full day at Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park for this visit. I’ll be moving north another forty miles for a few days. My next state park reservation doesn’t start until Thursday.

Today was a two walk and one drive day. The walks were to the day use area along Lake Wauberg. The wind off the lake was very strong out of the southwest. Finding the birds was a challenge. The change in wind direction changed the birds hiding places. My search was also complicated by trying to keep my hat on my head. The wind was real challenge. Walking through the woods I had to dodge falling debris all the way. Spanish moss, small branches and palm fronds were among the items I needed to dodge.

The drive park of the day was to the visitors center on the side of the prairie. The climb up the observation tower revealed the wild horses in a new place. They were grazing off to the right on the southeast side of the prairie. They still weren’t close enough to be easily visible, but I could count nine horses. The bison were still nowhere to be found.

When I got back to my RV home, I loaded the bicycle onto the car for tomorrows travel day. Most of my outside tasks are completed, so I can take my time tomorrow morning. Checkout time is at 1PM, so I will have plenty of time. It should be a cooler day tomorrow. As I’m finishing up this blog entry a thunderstorm is passing through the area. The sound of rain on the roof has completely blocked hearing the TV.