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Choke Canyon Camping
Date: January 26 - 27, 2001 Weather: Mostly cloudy, becoming sunny & windy; high, 60 with near 100% rain chance Jan. 27 Activities: Camping, birding, photography, hiking Submitted by: Shannon Moore This outing marked our first camping trip of 2001, with roughly one trip planned for each month from here on out. We left our home aroung 10 AM and proceeded on IH-37 from San Antonio to the park. During the drive, we observed crested caracara, great egret, American white pelican, numerous turkey & black vultures and various species of hawk. Patchy morning fog gave way to a partly sunny conditions, with weather reports predicting a near 100% chance of rain Saturday, January 27, and a lessening rain chance on Sunday. Diamond Shamrock's large Three Rivers Refinery is located within the vicinity of the park, its large smokestakes seemingly out of place 70 miles from the coast! Natural scenery returns just past the park's South Shore Unit entrance, where you are treated to a brief but impressive view of Choke Canyon's lake on your right; the lake waters were a deep blue when we observed them. Shortly before noon, we entered the park and selected campsite #217 on the shore of 40 Acre Lake. We also renewed our Texas Conservation Passports. The weather was gorgeous, albeit with strong, gusty winds.
After setting up camp in the 15-20 mph wind gusts, we spent the afternoon exploring the park and its myriad photography opportunities. Choke Canyon's wildlife is exceedingly tame and accustomed to vehicles, but visitors should drive cautiously -- it's quite possible to find white-tailed deer, wild turkey and javelina all feeding in the roadway simultaneously! Experience the wildlife yourself by taking a photo tour (slideshow) of the various wildlife we observed during this trip! Several dozen American coots were an ever-present fixture of 40 Acre Lake's shoreline during our stay, particularly near the fish cleaning station. Great blue heron would occasionally roost on the submerged trees in the lake, as well. At dusk, we began hearing great horned owls and I walked down the lake's concrete fishing pier to investigate. As I sat on the park bench at the end of the pier, I observed a single great horned owl emerge from the trees on the far side of the lake. Noiselessly, the owl took flight, gliding low and easily to the middle of the lake where it perched on the tallest of the submerged trees. A minute later, a second great horned owl joined the first and perched in a nearby tree, the two owls exchanging hoots. Observing the owls in my Swift binoculars was a rare treat, particularly as they rotated their heads and exchanged calls; with each throaty hoot, the owls' neck feathers would fan and their chests would puff out just slightly. They're truly beautiful creatures, and I watched them until the light was so poor I could no longer see them. After the owls departed and the wind subsided, I returned to the mosquito-proof confines of our tent for the evening. The owls were vocal during the evening and perched in the woods near our tent for some time; a pack of coyotes added to the symphony, yipping in the distance before moving on. The rains began around 5:15 AM, light and occasional, and returned periodically throughout the day. We got up around 7:15-7:30 AM to the sounds of Northern cardinal and Northern mockingbird. While hiking the trail along 40 Acre Lake, we observed a stunning male vermilion flycatcher, as well as Harris's hawk and crested caracara. Driving around the park before it opened to day use visitors, we found the rains had not deterred the wildlife in the least -- songbirds, woodpeckers, javelina and white-tailed deer were all out in force. After thoroughly exploring the Calliham Unit where we were staying, we drove to the South Shore Unit. We have noted in the past that the Calliham Unit offers more wildlife viewing opportunities than the South Shore, but there are some attractive day use and overnight campsites available there. The South Shore Unit also offers access to the Choke Canyon Dam and spillway.
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