Part 2 - Hays Brook Equestrian Trail

I was hiking the Hays Brook horse trail with my five youngest dogs and the wintry beauty of the Debar Mountain Wild Forest was wonderful. The snowy trail, however, was becoming difficult for me to walk because of the torn tendons in my ankles. We walked in a narrow path left behind by cross-country skiers:

But the dogs were happy, the scenery lovely:

And I'd long wanted to take this trail to its conclusion. It is ignored in books of hiking trails and I wanted to know where it leads:

The pooches played, sniffed and investigated. This photo caught Fergus leaping through the snow:

The dogs smelled something quite fascinating and collected in one spot to check it out. I didn't see whatever it was, though:

And little Madeline investigated under a Balsam bough:

This is why such scenes are often referred to as cathedrals:

My two happy, loving, poodle buddies, Seamus and Fergus:

Lichens brought color and texture to the winter scenery. It would be a shame to walk a trail such as this and miss the small miracles all around:

The Beech trees were still holding on to their leaves, providing a contrast in color and texture. We turned around and began making our way back to the car, but I'll post about that tomorrow: