Hummingbirds and summertime

I savored another breakfast on the deck with the Duo and the Runner. The Broad-tailed hummingbirds zipped and zoomed over our heads. A female...

And a male...

Our hummingbirds arrived about two weeks late this spring, probably because our flowering plants have also lagged behind their normal schedule. However, as the hummingbirds are becoming numerous with the humming sound of their wings as a constant song in the background, one of their favorite flowers is blossoming - the red currant (Ribes cereum). Hummingbirds love to drink nectar from these flowers.

Despite K's health travails, we still took a short mountain bike ride this morning. In the warm summer sun, she galloped over the top of Hug Hill, full of joy. I love mountain biking with K. For some reason, sharing my rides with her is one of my favorite things on Earth.

I talked with my vet about agility and whether K should do it despite her toe amputation. The vet's answer was that it would be risky - because agility requires jumping and sudden direction changes that stress the paw. Her advice was not to do agility if I wanted to keep K capable of running with me when I mountain bike. I'm okay with that. We'll figure out new games to play together.

After my short ride with K, I almost always head out for a ride solo, rejoicing in springtime. Today, a pair of velvet-antlered bucks watched me pedal by them. Velvet antlers are such a sign of spring-summer!

I love riding hard, pushing myself to my limits, and I reserve that kind of mountain biking for when K isn't with me. However, I still stop sometimes to look at flowers or other wonders of nature. I found the flowers in the next photo below a cliff in a basin of shade and moisture. I've never seen them before now, and I can't figure what these subtle beauties are! Does anyone know?

I finished the day with a mellow sunset hike with the Duo yesterday evening. R is allowed to hike on easy trails but has to stay on leash due to his toenail surgery, much to his displeasure. Just as the sun dropped below the Continental Divide, it bathed the forest in a warm light.

The Duo sat with me, enjoying the magic moment as the forest was transformed.

Then, we watched the sunset show. It's much better than any movie that I've ever seen.

No more news on Socks... To answer one question, both male and female bears mark trees so tree-marking doesn't give us a hint as to Socks' gender. I agree with all of you - it's tough watching any young adult try to find their way in the world. I've read that many yearling cubs go up in trees after their mothers leave them and don't come down for days. At least Socks is moving around a bit. I predict that this yearling cub will find his/her way in this big goofy world. The hard part is that we'll see only glimpses of Socks' life, when this bear happens to walk in front of one of my cameras. I wish that we could know more.