Joy On The Rutland Nature Trail - Part 2

The dogs and I had hiked only as far as the bridge and then turned around and began heading back to our car (see Part 1, yesterday):

By now the excessive running had slowed down and the side excursions to sniff for wildlife had begun. Fergus and Clover sped down a bank into the forest to explore:

Jack, who apparently considers himself a hunting dog, wanted to follow them but was restrained by the leash. That, of course, is exactly why he was on a leash:

We continued on our way. The trail, being an old railroad bed, was flat and straight:

And everyone was happy. Little Daphne had a big smile on her face:

There was more exploring off the trail, down the banks and into the forest - wherever they could smell some animal had been. But they didn't go far:

By this time, Jack had come to understand some basic rules, like keeping reasonably near me and coming when called. He's a fast learner:

Getting their second wind, Clover and Fergus began running again - not always in the same direction. They just love to run:

The moment the dogs spotted the road and our car ahead of them, they got excited and wanted to run all the way to it. I had to holler, "Stop!" quite a few times, but they obeyed:

True happiness:

Even Seamus was smiling, though it's a little more difficult to see his smile, buried beneath all that black wool. He went to the groomer the very next day:

We stopped again at the dead calf for a sniff, and then I had the dogs heel the rest of the way to the car. This had not been much of an outing, but it was fun and a sign of better weather just around the corner: