Sunday, November 4, 2007

A Myriad of Color









A







Myriad of Color

The Daniel F. Sullivan Carriage House was built in 1896. This Is located on the property now known as the Botanical Gardens. It was built in the European Gothic style with a huge archway to allow carriages to enter. It has several stables and the upstairs area was the hayloft. The structure shows a rhythm in the repetition of the side by side stables and symmetry in the peaks angled in the roof. There is a balance evident in the two side off setting the main archway entrance. It was built behind the Sullivan house on Broadway and Fourth Avenue.

In the 1960’s the house and carriage were split and sold separately. The Hurst Corporation bought the Carriage House and donated it to the San Antonio museum association with the option for improvements. They in turn offered it to the Botanical Society.

In 1988 the Carriage House was moved by skilled stone masons who disassembled it . They cleaned and marked each limestone block and painstakingly reassembled it on its present site. Through much funding of trusts, organizations, societies, donations, and through funding of many private individuals, it was finally completed and opened in early summer of 1995.

The Botanical Gardens has a vast array of display gardens each distinctive in arrangement but each one blending in with the next. The gardens have so many aromas intermingling.
My favorite exhibit was the Lucille Halsell Conservatory. The orchids have such vivid colors. The exhibit has a myriad of strange plants. I felt like I was in a tropical rainforest. The Carriage House was a beautiful addition to the Botanical Gardens and has a steady stream of visitors, many of which are tourists visiting our city of San Antonio.

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Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Renovated Leeper House

Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Mitchell lake and company

Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Bird Pond

Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Amphitheatre and Toyota crew

Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Beautiful flowers and butterflies

Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Audubon Society Center

Port of Call, Calling All Birds

Port of Call, Calling All Birds
Mitchell Lake Wetlands
Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.

Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.

The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while..
MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.

In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.

Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.

There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.

When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.


Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.
Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.
The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while..
MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.
In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.
Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.
There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.
When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.

Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.
Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.
The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while..
MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.
In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.
Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.
There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.
When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.

Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.
Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.
The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while..
MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.
In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.
Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.
There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.
When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.

Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.
Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.
The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while..
MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.
In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.
Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.
There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.
When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.

Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.
Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.
The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while..
MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.
In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.
Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.
There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.
When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.


Port of Call, Calling all Birds

Port of Call, Calling all Birds

I went to visit the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center this weekend. It was a breezy and sunny day. Today, October 27, 2007, is National Public Lands Day. The Toyota company had 150 plus team members volunteering to do brush clearing, mulching , weeding, gardening, excavating and building benches to place at different locations on the trails at this center. Since there was such a huge group out there working, there were not any tours today.

Ms Betty Walters is a fountain of information and a member of the Audubon Society. According to Ms Walters, In the early 1900’s Asa Mitchell, a colonist soldier
and planter, purchased 14,000 acres, including the Mitchell lake acreage, that was later used as a sewage treatment center. This area was later an abandoned sewage lagoon. It was designated as a wildlife refuge for shorebirds and waterfowl.

The Mitchell Lake area was given by San Antonio in 1973 to the Audubon Society. In 1997 San Antonio Water System (SAWS) was formed and Mitchell Lake fell under their ownership. Since the society was unable to afford insurance for the site, they got together with the SAWS and through a grandfather clause, got around this issue. SAWS has a 25 year lease so the society is covered for a while.

MS Walters said that the Leeper House built in 1910 is the original farmhouse of the McNay Art Institute on New Braunfels. It was moved on the Mitchell Lake property in 2003 and the Audubon Society helped with the restoration.

In 2004 SAWS contracted with the National Audubon Society to Manage the site now known as the Mitchell Lake Audubon Center. They manage this site in partnership with SAWS. The entire area of 1,200 acres includes Mitchell Lake, wetlands and ponds. There are 250 oil wells on the property. KB homes has constructed an impressive amphitheatre for classes and water-workshops.

Ms Walters loaned me a pair of binoculars and mapped out a route to take on my self- directed tour. Even with all the work crew in the area, there was an undisturbed quietness to the place. I saw many geese and ducks at the Bird Pond but I was disappointed that they were at a distance and I couldn’t get close up pictures. There was a funny looking contraption in the pond but I failed to ask about it.

There were a lot of different type of butterflies all around me. The vegetation was lush with lots of greenery. At one of the basins I saw what appeared to be a group of ducks perched on a log but when I looked through the binoculars, I saw it was a line of huge turtles with heads weaving in and out of their shells at times.

When I finally reached Mitchell Lake clearing, I saw a long line of huge birds, Geese I think all in a line on a type of pipe in the lake. It did not smell bad, Ms Walters said that the lake smelled sometimes and people mistake it for a sewer smell but she said that it is the blue-green algae. I had a very pleasant and informative afternoon.