Bluebonnet Run

The weather was perfect, and we had seen several reports that said the Bluebonnets were blooming early this year, so Thursday Honey and I took our annual trek to look at wildflowers.

From Boggy Thicket we went to Conroe and took Hwy 105 all the way across to Brenham, with one detour between Washington-On-The-Brazos and Independence; a loop that brought us back to 105 just north of Brenham.

We saw our first noticeable patch of Bluebonnets along Loop 336 on the south side of Conroe, and a couple nice patches just west of Lake Conroe, but we didn’t stop for pictures because we were headed for the area that traditionally produces some of the best fields of flowers in the state. 

Our first photo stop was off 105  near the St Paraskevi Greek Orthodox Monastery between Washington and Independence.

Continuing on toward William Penn (Yes, there is a town of William Penn, Texas) we saw several fields of 10 to 20 acres of Bluebonnets.

We pulled off at a ranch road and parked at the locked gate.

While we were stopped, I got this close-up alongside the truck.

The air was totally saturated with a strong, sweet odor, but it wasn’t coming from the Bluebonnets.  Bluebonnets are basically odorless - the perfume was coming from the thick patch of Huisache trees blooming across the road.

 

Of course, not all the fields were blue.

I like the combination of colors in this shot from FM-1155 north of Chappell Hill.

About that time, grazing cattle reminded us that it was time for lunch.

And a few miles down the road, these Texas Longhorns suggested barbecue.

We took the hint and headed for the Waller County Line for some of the best sliced brisket on the planet.

We passed several other fields along the way, but they seemed a little sparse compared to previous years.  Even the area in front of the big rock Welcome to Washington County sign – always a photo stop this time of year – looked thin. 

We might have been a few days early, but I don’t think so.  In several of the places we passed, the grasses were already getting tall enough to hide the blooms.