Broad-billed Hummingbird

I got up to Madera Canyon and stayed for about 90 minutes.  It was 14° cooler up there than when I left the valley.  Not a lot of people, either. The few who came and went were all staying in cabins for the weekend.  I would so love to do that sometime. 

Before I left, the guy who takes care of the area came by and asked me if I had seen any bears.  I was stunned that he was asking as a serious question since the only ones I have ever heard spotted have been waaay up off of the Old Baldy Trail, 2000-3000 feet higher in elevation than the Lodge. He told me that a female black bear with two cubs has been spotted several times, as has at least one larger male at elevations even lower than the 5000' from where we were.  It's the drought: so dry higher up that they can't find any food.  

This afternoon it was really quiet, except for the hummingbirds and a few white-breasted nuthatches.  I didn't even see any Mexican Jays or Acorn woodpeckers which usually overwhelm the place.  It was nice to see so many of these colorful Broad-billed hummers (they are 9-10 cm long and weigh 3-4 g).  On the way home, I bought some sunscreen because, well, it's summer in Arizona and even though it was cooler in the mountains I still got sunburned.

Last night, Mom and I watched the movie Boyhood (which was filmed over 12 years)  and had Subway subs.  I don't have a DVD/Blu-ray player and hers is so old it can also play VHS tapes.  It took me a while to figure it out but you know I'm brilliant *cough* so it wasn't too bad.