Jenkins Mountain Trail, Part 3

The dogs and I had hiked the trail alongside Black Pond and Long Pond, then continued on when we intersected the Jenkins Mountain Trail. My formerly weak legs had been feeling fine until the trail turned steeper and then they began to tire rapidly. I was well past that rocky crag I'd thought was Jenkins Mountain and decided that new mountain just visible through the trees must be our destination:

My legs continued weakening noticeably, and I lay down in the leaves to rest while I enjoyed the views. I immediately noticed that my reclining was presenting me with a new, wonderful look at the local flora like these Trout Lilies:

And my own dogs were thrilled to have me down at their level. Daphne came leaping over a small log, headed directly for my head:

I was resting on a rather steep incline and the dogs kept a watch nearby:

Fergus and Seamus were happy to relax with me:

But Clover and Daphne, AKA "The Silly Sisters," continued their high energy woodland exploration:

I stood up to continue hiking but immediately realized my legs would not go any farther. I reluctantly began returning toward the trail head. The consolation for my disappointment was seeing so many beautiful things I'd missed the first time along the trail. These Spring Beauties, for example:

The dogs stopped at the base of an uprooted tree to sniff:

And that, I presumed, was Jenkins Mountain. I felt sad that I wouldn't get to see the view from its peak, but will surely have other opportunities in years to come:

And we began traversing the trail back the way we'd come, along the tops of the eskers. I'll post more tomorrow: