CKirk

Hello,

My Wife and I visited Cleburne State Park today hoping to catch the water going over the spillways in action since we got around 5" of rain in the last 24 hours. Well, we weren't disappointed, the overflow was maxed out so much that the small stone used to cross over to the overlook were about 1 foot underwater, so we scouted around and came across the top of the dam. It turned out to be pretty neat, because all the next series of wildflowers are just about to bloom. At the end of the dam by the spillway, apparently in the late 1930's the CCA built the series of 3 spillways to help control the overflow of water, so there are step like walls on both sides for about 250yards. I have set my pictures up on our gallery, if you have time I would appreciate your comments or ideas on how to do them better. Also, if you can identify the snake in the picture, I would sure appreciate it, I think that it was just a Brown Water snake, but I didn't take any chances and never took my eyes off him.

http://www.pbase.com/ckirk/cleburne_state_park

Take care,

Craig

Turn Key

Nice view up there, isn't it! Have hiked over the dam a number of times and to the top of the bluff on the far side, when the water wasn't running hard over the dam. Pretty good hike to the top. Map shows that you can get there by approaching from the north side of the lake but have never tried it.

Camp at Cleburne pretty regular. May meet you out there some time .

Happy Camping!

PS: Great shots! Wish I could do as well. No clue about the snake.

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kai

great shots- I don't know about the snake (or any snake, really, expect a few)- but I would guess by its rounded head that its probably not a poisonous one. I don't know that for sure- I assume any snake is poisonous since I can't tell the difference- but someone once told me that the poisonous snakes tend to have a hood and a point head. basically, anything that looks dangerous, probably is- nature's way of saying 'do not touch'. thats not real helpful, I know, but I thought I'd try- maybe it'll help narrow it down for you.

lost_but_found

I left some comments on your pictures. Hope they help. Can't really tell what the snake is without seeing his body.

Looks like a pretty cool place to go, I think I will have to check it out some time.

What kind of camera are you using, if you don't mind my asking? It takes some nice shots - assisted by the operator of course!

CKirk

Howdy Lost but Found,

Thanks for the comments on the pics, after thinking about what you said I agree 100%, this is a learning experience for me, eventhough I have been taking pics for over 35 years.

I have a Sony F717, 5 mp camera, I have really been enjoying it.

Thanks again for your help, Take care,

Craig

OutdoorPhoto.com

Craig,

Nice shots! One of the easiest things to do to improve your photos is to take them earlier or later in the day when the lighting will be less harsh. I tend to do my photography before 10:00am and after about 6-7PM (especially in the summer) - unless there's an overcast sky, in which case you can still shoot at high noon...

That said, I am amazed at the tonal range digital cameras are able to capture...I have some shots at high noon where there is good shadow detail and the highlights are not blown...

Trying to do some research on that snake for you. My initial reaction is "snake, near water = water moccasin"... but I'm not sure that's true in this situation...

OutdoorPhoto.com

Could the snake be a "Plain-bellied water snake?"

http://www.enature.com/fieldguide/sh...&recnum=AR0194

Guys?

ploddinTod

Good detective work, Justin. I believe you have it right but it's hard to be more conclusive without seeing more of the snake's body.

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PloddinTod

vettech2112

My favorite site for identifying an unknown TX herp is from UT-Austin

http://www.zo.utexas.edu/research/txherps/

The pic there doesn't look quite as much like the snake in the pic Justin found but I tend to agree that he's got the right one. Good work!