A theme in my life over the past few years has been learning to see the beauty even when I'm scared by a storm. I'm sorry for being so inconsistent here but I've needed time. I'm finding my way but I'm not there yet. Perhaps I'll never be but I sure have learned a lot in the journey.
There's no place in the world that I'd rather be. The wildflowers are popping and the birds are singing.
As I rode my bike in the desert, I scanned the landscape. This bunch of paintbrush flowers stunned me. I saw it from a long distance, parked my bike, and headed onto the desert floor to see them closer. The red against the white sand was brilliant. It was a testament to how being present in the moment sometimes shows you the beauty in the world around you.
I've been following the biggest black bear I've seen, who I dubbed "Tiny", for years. I spotted him with a cam near my old home in April. Then, he disappeared from that area. He's an older bear so I began to suspect the worst.
I said to the Runner that I was so sad because I thought that Tiny might be gone. When I said "gone", I meant dead. Young and hulking male bears have moved into his territory near our old home. They could have fought him and killed him or simply driven him out.
Then, I said the key thing - "Isn't it odd that a bear who marks trees while sitting down, just like Tiny, has recently arrived near Lab Valley?". Bells went off in my head. Maybe the bear near Lab Valley was Tiny. I thought that the probability of that was SO low that I didn't even start comparing their images until a full day later.
At sunset in the desert, there's a hidden expanse of slickrock where we love to relax. In the distance, we can see K's Rock - which looks like a series of red rock castles from this angle. Sights like this one take my breath away.
A big male bear lumbered in front of my camera. I assumed that he was scent marking and would be on his way soon as I watched the first few seconds of video. Wrong! Next, he dug a day bed in the thick carpet of pine needles. Finally, he lay down to sleep. He spent six and a half hours snoozing restlessly.
Check out the very condensed video!
A tenacious little tree. I wonder how long it's been fighting for its life atop this wind-swept cliff. The only dirt it has is a bit of sand in a crack between the rocks.
Amazing.
We are in the midst of a May winter storm cycle. We had cement-like snow fall to the tune of about 10". It was 15°F this morning. A hummingbird in torpor appears to be frozen to the side of the house next to our hummingbird feeder. We're watching to see if he survives when he thaws. It's supposed to snow more this week amidst below freezing temperatures.
Our pups love it much more than the hummingbirds do!
I am getting stronger all the time. However, the very act of pushing the limits in terms of my shoulder and wrists exhausts the muscles. I am so happy to be in the phase of getting stronger even with the muscle fatigue exercise can cause. I have at least an hour and a half of rehab exercises to do daily.
This winter was so hard in so many ways that it's left me in an introspective mood. I meditate daily as a way of grounding my spirit. I'm feeling more calm with each passing day. That is good.
A serene moment of life with a mother mountain lion and her kitten.
Last week, I made my way to a trail camera that sits next to a seasonal stream. I was shocked to see that it was not running. Last year, it ran from when the snow melted until September. This year is different. Water is going to be of paramount importance to our wildlife. I hope that some sources keep flowing.
The animals kept flowing along their trail throughout the winter. It's a trail that is dominated by bears when they are not in dens. In the winter, it is owned by mountain lions. Many different lions walked this trail over the winter.
Check out the video to see them all.
PS I'm going to take a little blog break. Typing has recently become harder again. I'm not sure why.
I am thankful for the joyful play that our pups love. It snowed this past weekend, and the dogs were ready to romp as soon as it stopped. Shyla has cultivated this playful friendship with Hachi since he was a young pup. Their happy play fills our hearts with joy.
