Life

Sharp-shinned hawk hanging out the last few days. Really haven't had a bird of prey opponent for quite a few years. Had a Cooper's hawk for a few weeks that hung around in their customary statue mode without moving for hours and then would snatch anything that walked by. I've had a couple Loggerhead Shrikes in the tree top. Always very top of the highest branch. Mostly white but black wings and black mask around it's eyes. It pretends like it's a songbird and then snatches whatever is closest and eats it. Know for taking it's prey and flipping it onto thorns which hold it while it eats it. Incredibly feared at least by my songbirds. It is the enemy within. Called the Butcher Bird.

In the early days when Linny and I first moved here we didn't take guests. I had roughly 25 to 30 years of almost no days off running the indoor soccer facilities. I was taking days off then. I had somehow got into feeding birds and there was one predator, the sharp-shinned hawk that took a terrible toll on the songbirds. It's strategy was to come in low and chase them into the windows and then snatch one that was dead or injured and fly off with it. If I wasn't here it would eat them and leave the mess on the porch. I began scaring it off, then put walkies out to surprise it talking next, through snowballs at it, and came up with various schemes to chase it away. I learned to track him. Long story. I spent the day at his house so he knew how it feels. Two days later he returned to the lodge and brought me a dead songbird as a peace offering, I petted him for five or six minutes and neither of us every went to the other one's house again. The battle went on for months. I learned a lot. I shall have a large headstart if this sharp-shinned hawk becomes a steady predator.

Jax and I hiked the shortcut 240 trail I sent the runners on through Doug's property up above. I found one glove and one of our headlamps about half mile down the trail. I just went through and counted the finishers. Seems to be around 124. A little over 50% of the runners finished the 240 mile run.

Today looks like the last 80 degree day of the year. Got some 70s, some 60s and even a couple of 50s in the next two weeks. Still nothing in the way of a normal rainy season and that is not breaking my heart. I was going to buy a front end loaded but figured I'd need the money for other stuff and that's how it turned out.

The road out here is sweet. Nice work San Juan County and they are still up there.