Some Recent Hikes

A few days ago I was able to get in a hike with my good friend SL, and her dog, Cheetah.  

Always enjoy the views of the mountains from her property as we hike.

Annie was excited to be on the hike, and we could hardly contain her.  She was so anxious to smell everything along the trail!

Annie and Cheetah are both wonderful friends and enjoy sniffing all the smells on the trail together.

As we were hiking along, we say lots of coyote "poo" that was very fresh.  In fact, my friend told me that she had seen a pack of coyotes in her yard earlier in the morning.  As we hiked along, the dogs became increasingly alert and finally at one point, we were able to see what they were seeing.  We spotted a couple of coyotes a long way off on top of a ridge.  The two of them were just standing watching us.  They were quite big, and looked like full grown dogs, perhaps even bigger than Annie.  It was hard to tell at that distance.  I was going to try to get a picture of them, but realized it would be in vain, because they blended in so well with the terrain, and were so far off that I would not be able to get a decent picture.  At any rate, we stood with the dogs and hollered at them.  Finally they meandered off in a different direction than we were headed.  We did not see them again, but it certainly was a neat experience to see them.

The trail we were on was mushy and soft as we have been having above-freezing temperatures.

We think the coyotes were probably not too far off from us at various points in our hike, as the dogs would stop and with their ears up just stare off into the trees.  We never saw them again, but no doubt the dogs did.

We came upon this moss covered tree, and it was incredible to see how the moss had completely covered the entire tree.  I have never seen this before.  Usually the moss will grown in one or two small areas, but this tree was entirely covered in moss.

Annie couldn't understand why I was stopping to take pictures of a moss-covered tree, when there were more exciting things to sniff out, lol!  She was quite impatient with me as I attempted to get a picture of the tree.

Cheetah is allowed to freely roam around because she comes back on command.  Annie, on the other hand, once she has a certain smell on her nose, will not come back when called. We still have to work with her on her attitude.  She doesn't understand why Cheetah gets to roam around and she doesn't.  Lol!

I was really intrigued with the moss covered tree, but Annie was quite frustrated with me, and kept tugging.  I think this picture is a little fuzzy because Annie was anxious to get on with the hike!

We finished up this hike with a lovely visit in my friend's home.  I enjoyed a nice cup of hot tea while she had her protein shake, and we shared with each other the many things the Lord was doing in each of our lives.  We always have such sweet fellowship together!

A few days later, I took Annie for another hike through the woods just by our house.  I let her off the leash with some hesitation. I am trying to train her to be obedient and return when called.  She comes back 98% of the time, but I know that if a deer happens to be on the trail with us, that 2% of the time she is not going to return.  However, since we were just right by our house, I let her off the leash for a few minutes to work with her.

It has been very mild here this December with no snow. It will lightly freeze at night, and thaw during the day.  So the hiking through the trails is very mushy, slow going.

Lots of mud puddles to avoid!

My favorite part of this trail is where the trees form an archway over the trail.  It is so peaceful and beautiful to walk through here.

Annie back on the leash - and none too happy about it!

I am always wishing that dogs could speak our language - oh the things they would be able to tell us!

It was a lovely hike, as always.  We are blessed to live in such a beautiful area where such beauty lies all around us! When hiking, the presence of the Lord is always around me, as I enjoy the beauty that He created for us to enjoy, and it is always a joy to know that we can enjoy His incredible creation.  It is my prayer that the Lord bless YOU today, as you look at the world around you and give Him thanks for His many blessings!