Since I am back in Columbia, Missouri, for a week, I decided to visit Eagle Bluffs Conservation Area, hoping that the floodwaters had receded; alas, a sign on the entry road indicated a road closure ahead and, since I was driving our VW Beetle, I was forced to turn around within a few hundred yards. A bald eagle, a few crows and a couple dozen horned larks were all that I encountered.
Returning to Route K, I decided to try the Buck and Katy Lakes portion of Eagle Bluffs, just south of McBaine. There I was greeted by a lone scissor-tailed flycatcher on the power line and was pleased to find that the graveled roads were passable. Killdeer, great egrets and red-winged blackbirds dominated the scene, joined by a few turkey vultures, great blue herons, tree swallows and spotted sandpipers. Within a half-hour, I was back on the road.
No doubt, the severe flooding along the Missouri River will be slow to resolve, especially since heavy rains have fallen across its upper watershed in the past few days. We could use some of that rain here in Central Missouri and expect thunderstorms this afternoon.
Returning to Route K, I decided to try the Buck and Katy Lakes portion of Eagle Bluffs, just south of McBaine. There I was greeted by a lone scissor-tailed flycatcher on the power line and was pleased to find that the graveled roads were passable. Killdeer, great egrets and red-winged blackbirds dominated the scene, joined by a few turkey vultures, great blue herons, tree swallows and spotted sandpipers. Within a half-hour, I was back on the road.
No doubt, the severe flooding along the Missouri River will be slow to resolve, especially since heavy rains have fallen across its upper watershed in the past few days. We could use some of that rain here in Central Missouri and expect thunderstorms this afternoon.
