Day 39 - Southward to Amado

We were up early to try to avoid the heat. After getting Speedy ready and stowing everything, we left the Bog Springs campground and drove down to the Proctor Road parking lot and trails.

There had been reports of a nesting pair of Black-capped Gnatcatchers (a small bird) along the trail. This was a bird we haven't seen. We've seen Blue-gray and Black-tailed Gnatcatchers in the past and they all look nearly alike in shape. The Blue-gray have gray heads, the Black-tailed have a Black cap and are a little larger and the Black-capped also have a black cap, but a bit bigger cap and a bit smaller. They are all within a quarter inch of each other...I can't discern a quarter inch on a four inch long bird.

We looked and looked and, needless to say, never found the nest. We only saw 16 species in two hours. We did run into the fellow from Michigan who pointed out the trogons in Ramsey Canyon. He seemed a much more experienced birder and he didn't find the gnatcatchers either.

After Proctor Road, we drove back up the canyon to the end of the road and the Mt. Wrightson Picnic Area. There were supposed to be some good birds there and on the Carrie Nation Trail. It was getting quite warm by the time we got up there and the trail looked very open and in the sun. After our experience in Big Bend, we decided to punt and only looked around the picnic area for a bit. We did see Yellow-eyed Juncos though.

It was time to bid Madera Canyon farewell and drove down to the Green Valley/ Sahuarita area, stopping at Posada Java in the La Posada development for coffee and lunch (good iced latte). After a stop at the Sahuarita Sprout's (a market somewhere between the Fruit Center and Whole Foods) for some provisions. We didn't get much as the refrigerator was still warm, but we did get 10 pounds of ice to try to keep some things cool in the bottom of the fridge.

We were now on our way south to Amado. We stopped at the DeAnza RV Resort, which is a bit pricey for us, but has electricity and showers. The temperature was now about 99°. We hope to go birding in the Tumacacori-Tubac area for some pretty rare birds, particularly a Sinaloa Wren, hardly ever seen in the US.

But that is for tomorrow. We settled into our site, plugged in and turned on the air conditioner, making the interior of Speedy bearable. Aside from taking needed showers, we rested indoors for the rest of the day and evening.