Catherineville State Forest - Part 1

It was Sunday, the day before I was to get my ankle braces and the warmest, loveliest day so far this spring. I decided to drive back to Santamont Road and check out the Catherineville State Forest. I noticed that the sign had an "S" in Catherineville and checked the internet when I got home. Most sources omitted the "S:"

I parked the car and let the dogs out, then quickly returned to leave my jacket in the car. It was warmer than I'd expected:

I stopped to investigate an abundance of cones on the ground and decided that these were from the many Black Spruce which were growing all around me:

It was a fine day for a romp in the forest and the dogs were excited to be outdoors:

There were lots of wet spots and I attempted to keep the dogs from drinking out of them, though I let them play and splash to their hearts' content:

These tiny beauties were, I believe, Northern White Violets:

The dogs and I continued on our way down the trail. I kept calling the pooches back when they got too far ahead of me:

I believe that this trail was once a woods road, perhaps to someone's camp or a logging operation. These days, it's a fine way to see the forest and smooth enough for someone like me with bad ankles:

There weren't many flowers in bloom of any kind yet, but I knew that these Spring Beauties would be among the first. Our spring is 3 to 4 weeks later than normal this year. In another week or two, the forest floor would be carpeted with beauty:

Fergus looked like a little lamb in the woods. I decided that it's time for both Fergus and Seamus to get haircuts. But we had more to see on this unmarked trail, so I'll post Part 2 tomorrow: