Chapter 1 - Wolf Lake State Park

On the last full day of my sister's visit, I wanted to take another hike. My ankles were painful, but I nevertheless suggested the Wolf Lake State Forest Loop. We left PeeWee at home, sleeping, and drove down to Edwards, New York:

The trail began gently uphill, but became increasingly rocky:

The dogs enjoyed the rocks, giving them something to climb and play on. For me, however, they were potential ankle twisters and I had to be very careful:

We climbed down a rocky hill, crossed a bridge made of a log sawed in half lengthwise, then across a field of rocks beside a beaver pond. The dogs were having the time of their lives even though I insisted they stay close to me, even putting them on leashes at times:

There were so many beaver ponds that I lost count, but they were lovely. This one had a large beaver lodge in its center:

And the evidence of beaver activity was easy to find:

I picked up one of the wood chunks at the base of the tree in the previous photo. It showed every tooth mark:

And then we continued on:

We came to another beaver dam, this one easily ten feet high. It was impressive and beautiful until I suggested imaging what it would be like if it suddenly gave way while we were standing below it. I guess I'm always the life of the party with such pleasant thoughts:

The beaver pond above the ten foot high dam was spectacular. Daphne walked over to take a look:

We walked along the rocky shores of more beaver ponds. The dogs ran and played and waded in the water:

I momentarily thought I saw cranberries, but a closer look (and also the habitat) informed me that I was seeing Teaberry. But we'd only just begun and had a lot of hiking ahead of us. I'll post Part 2 tomorrow: