Ennis Bluebonnets 2019

I struggled to find the right time to drive down to Ennis and shoot pictures of the bluebonnets this year. Between rainy weather and other commitments, it seemed like I might not make it at all.  Then things came together last Sunday, and I once again found myself on the road at 5:30 in the morning headed south on I-45. :)

I had a new sunrise spot in mind based on some social media posts I'd seen -- Andrew's Road east of town.  Unfortunately, heavy rains had flooded the road I planned on taking to get to it.  Fortunately, thanks to an early departure time and Google Maps I was able to find an alternate route that was not as flooded, and I was able to get my Prius through the one spot of standing water and reach my destination in the nick of time.

I'm not used to finding vistas this devoid of any sign of the hand of man in North Texas.  It was a welcome sight.

The bluebonnets were indeed plentiful here, and the trees, stream, light clouds, and rising sun all worked to pull the composition together.

The sun seemed to rise slowly, giving me plenty of time to move around and still get "sunrise" shots.

I found an interesting decoration on a metal gate farther down the road.

Some longhorns were just starting their day on Union Hill Road.

Getting up seemed to be quite an effort for this fellow.  But there was a lot of him to get up.

As time ran out in golden hour, I found some isolated blooms for close-ups.

The paintbrush actually seemed to be having a better spring than the bluebonnets in the Ennis area this year.

Sugar Hill Road wasn't bursting with wildflowers like it had been on my first visit back in 2015.  But it did provide some nice opportunities for backlit shots of both paintbrush ...

... and bluebonnets.

After passing a small group of guineafowl along the side of FM 1181, I had to turn the car around to come back and try and get some pictures.  Slowing down my car seemed to spook them, as they stopped their grazing and took off in a run towards a spot to get back on the "safe" side of the fence.

Speaking of FM 1181, I also made a return visit to the spot where I'd shot sunrise the past two years.  Again, the field wasn't blanketed like it had been in the past.  But I was still able to find a picturesque spot.

I meandered around for a few hours, never seeing another field as robust as where I'd been for sunrise.  I'm not sure if I was too early or if it's just a down year in the Ennis area.  But either way, there was still plenty of beauty to see!