To the top of Mt. Evans early this morning. We weren’t the only ones enjoying the view:

And because young mountain goats are just so cute:

As for other wildlife sightings, we saw a few yellow-bellied marmots, and an American Pipit.

The juvenile Cooper’s Hawks were calling for their breakfast first thing this morning in the Bear Creek Green Belt:

Down to the Bear Creek Greenbelt early this morning:

This morning my better half and I, along with the dog, went down into the Bear Creek Greenbelt to see what the juvenile Cooper’s Hawks were up to. We spotted four of them and they were all calling for breakfast delivery. Here are three in a dead bramble:

Portraits of hungry chicks:

Looking testy, intense, hungry:

House Wrens and Gray Catbirds were quite vocal. And–a special treat–we saw a Black-chinned Hummingbird.

I spent this morning visiting a friend who lives probably a couple of thousand feet higher than I do, in Morrison. Now I know where my Broad-tailed Hummingbirds and White-breasted Nuthatches have absconded to! Hummingbirds kept the place, well, humming. On her property she also had nesting Mountain Chickadees and House Wrens. I saw a Western Tanager on her suet feeder, and Steller’s Jays below. Down in her driveway I saw a golden-mantled ground squirrel with a bobbed tail. She also had Hairy Woodpeckers and Black-headed Grosbeaks:

Today while walking the dog in the Bear Creek Greenbelt, we saw several an American Kestrel, a dozen Mallards, a couple of Common Mergansers, a Belted Kingfisher, and four juvenile Cooper’s Hawks.

Here are two:

Here’s a portrait of one:

The season of ducklings in the Bear Creek Greenbelt continues:

This morning on a jog at dawn–sans camera–in the Bear Creek Greenbelt I saw a Black-crowned Night Heron standing on a small log in the creek. A little farther west, I saw an adult Cooper’s Hawk, bathed in golden light. On my way back, a cyclist on the side of the path called me over. He had a couple of bright spots of blood on his face and his bike was lying on the dirt. He asked me how bad his split lip looked. “It’s just a little blood,” I said. “You’ll be fine.” He’d crashed just coming off one of the bridges. He said he’d smacked his head on the concrete, and pointed to his helmet. “Thank goodness I was wearing a helmet.”

Later this morning when my better half and I took the dog for a walk, low clouds covered the sky. The Cooper’s Hawk chicks were stirring in the nest, but the light wasn’t good. On days like this, you just have to take what you can get:

At the Bear Creek Greenbelt mid-day we saw three Common Mergansers sunbathing on a log. Here are two:

Later in the afternoon we saw all three again, and they look to be females (as opposed to juveniles):

Near the Cooper’s Hawk nest, this adult was calling to another soaring above:

On the way to see the Cooper’s Hawk chicks in the greenbelt we heard a Song Sparrow singing sweetly in a marshy area. The chicks continue to branch out:

On the way back home we saw a female Common Merganser, several Mallards, and a Double-crested Cormorant drying its wings.