Since the animals were here first, they get right-of-way. This Ursus Horribilius, as some old, old dear friends used to refer laughingly to any bear they encountered, was near the trail head. We scrambled for the cameras when we saw him, but he didn’t want to cooperate by posing.
I love it here. All the conveniences of the city — running water, wifi, — with the reminders that humans are secondary. Or should be, I think.
Tonight the sun sets at 11:41 p.m. The solstice occurs on June 20 this year, and the days will become shorter.
Wikipedia has this to say about the solstice: “Solstices occur twice a year, when the tilt of the Earth’s axis is oriented directly towards or away from the Sun, causing the Sun to reach its northernmost and southernmost extremes. The name is derived from the Latin sol (sun) and sistere (to stand still), because at the solstices, the Sun stands still in declination; that is, its apparent movement north or south comes to a standstill.”
There you have it. The sun stands still.