Short, Snowy Hike On The Rutland Trail

We'd endured so much cold, wind and snow that when the temperature rose to 20 degrees one afternoon, it felt almost like a tropical paradise. So I took the dogs to the Rutland Nature Trail, only a few miles north of the farm, for a romp in the snow:

And romp they certainly did! Just look at Fergus, caught in mid-run. It's harder to see, but Seamus is also galloping full speed behind him:

I let the dogs run only so far and then called them back. They were happy to oblige, as it gave them another opportunity to race:

There were woodlands on one side of the trail and this marsh on the other. I recalled standing in this very spot and recording the Spring Peepers the last time we were here:

The snow had been packed down by snowmobiles, but it was still difficult walking for me because of my injured ankles. The dogs, as you can see, had no such trouble:

Clover waded into some deeper snow and began digging. I walked over to look at what she'd found, but saw nothing:

And then the dog racing resumed. By this time, as you can see, Seamus had given up running:

There were occasional stops to give things the sniff test:

But then we were back on our merry way:

Clover's and Fergus' ears were flapping with joy:

Daphne and Clover, AKA "The Silly Sisters," often wrestle while they are racing. It's one of their specialties:

But this was a very brief hike, perhaps the shortest ever, and we were soon back in the car. But it had been a wonderful respite from the rigors of winter and a reminder that spring would be here soon: