Journal Notes

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SNOW GEESE TAKING FLIGHT AT SUNRISE<br />
<br />
Dec 12th – Bosque – Still very cold. The campground’s water lines have frozen so our pump would not work until 5PM when the sun finally thawed it out. We had to use a jug of Gatorade to clear the toilet! <br />
<br />
Dec.19th – Bosque – This morning we had the largest “Fly-out” so far. It seems that the very instant the sun just peeks over the hills to the East the flocks of thousands of Snow Geese, that have all just been softly muttering to each other, are all triggered to rise simultaneously into the air from the ponds. The ‘take-off’ starts with an ear-splitting cacophony of loud calls that can be heard a mile away and a startling whoosh! of the wind created by the thousands of wing-beats can almost knock one over! It’s as though one is standing in a TUNNEL of SNOW GEESE - and then, as quickly and noisily as they rise, they are all overhead and flying off to the cornfields on the north side of the refuge with only a distant echo of their calls remaining.

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SNOW GEESE TAKING FLIGHT AT SUNRISE

Dec 12th – Bosque – Still very cold. The campground’s water lines have frozen so our pump would not work until 5PM when the sun finally thawed it out. We had to use a jug of Gatorade to clear the toilet!

Dec.19th – Bosque – This morning we had the largest “Fly-out” so far. It seems that the very instant the sun just peeks over the hills to the East the flocks of thousands of Snow Geese, that have all just been softly muttering to each other, are all triggered to rise simultaneously into the air from the ponds. The ‘take-off’ starts with an ear-splitting cacophony of loud calls that can be heard a mile away and a startling whoosh! of the wind created by the thousands of wing-beats can almost knock one over! It’s as though one is standing in a TUNNEL of SNOW GEESE - and then, as quickly and noisily as they rise, they are all overhead and flying off to the cornfields on the north side of the refuge with only a distant echo of their calls remaining.

Snow Geese flocks snow geese taking flight