Five Overexcited Dogs In The Wild Forest - Part 2

The dogs and I were hiking the Indian Rock Waterway Access trail (see also Part 1, posted yesterday) and the dogs were beside themselves with joy:

The pooches ran ahead, then I'd call them back, then they'd run ahead again:

Most of the dead trees were covered with Usnea, or Old Man's Beard, a lichen which grows in forests where the air is clean. They grow on dead or dying trees because the lack of foliage allows them more sun:

There were patches of Shining Clubmoss along the path. That's Clover's snout in the lower right of the photo. She likes to be right in the middle of things:

Daphne and Fergus ran too far ahead, then returned to me when called. They were happy and smiling:

And onward we proceeded, headed for a bend in the St. Regis River:

And everybody was busy sniffing the interesting smells. As for me, I was sniffing the aromas of Balsam, Pine, Spruce and Fir which filled the air:

The trail narrowed toward the end:

I spotted this, the largest patch of Indian Pipe (a parasitic flowering plant without chlorophyll) I've ever seen, along the way:

And then we walked out into a clearing. The dogs took off as if shot from canons, for they knew there was water ahead:

By the time I'd caught up with them, they were already enjoying the waters of the wild St. Regis River:

It wasn't a hot day, but these pooches have learned to love the water:

Seamus came down to join his little buddies. I'll post Part 3 tomorrow:

St. Regis Canoe Carry Trail - Part 3

We'd hiked the short distance to the St. Regis River and then decided to follow the shoreline through the forest, a bit of exploration:

It was a glorious day and I was happy:

But there wasn't much else to see, so we cut back to the main trail and began our journey back to the parked car:

This was a lovely forest and an easy trail, just what I needed with my new ankle braces:

And the dogs were well behaved. They finally seemed to have some understanding of not running too far ahead. They were pretty darn good about sticking close to me:

Through the forest we traveled:

And through the wet spots. You can see the earnestness on the faces of Daphne and Fergus. As for Clover, she was once again trying to keep her tootsies dry:

The pines gave way to balsams, and the air was again filled with their aroma:

Old Man's Beard, or Usnea - a lichen which hangs from tree branches:

We were almost back to the car:

We passed by the unnamed pond once again just before we arrived at the car. It had been a wonderful short hike and a great day to be alive and experiencing the wild forest. I hope that I was able to convey the joy of it to you in these posts:

Chapter 3, Cathedral Rock Fire Tower

We were on our way back down the trail from the Cathedral Rock fire tower on a beautifully perfect day in the Cranberry Lake Wild Forest. I was happy and the dogs were happy. Fergus trotted down the trail:

The wild blackberries would be ripe soon and it looked to me like there would be a bumper crop:

The wild raspberries were already ripe and I helped myself:

Happy dogs, perfect weather, idyllic forest scenery. Life was good:

Usnea, also known as Old Man's Beard or Treemoss, hung from dead branches along the trail:

There were lots of Tamaracks along the trail, a tree which is a favorite of mine but which I don't often see:

We continued happily along the smooth trail through a canyon of trees:

We never saw another person the whole time we were there, but I insisted the dogs stick close to me in an effort to improve their "trail manners:"

Clover and Daphne were especially keen explorers, investigating everything:

We arrived back at the wetlands area where I noticed the same white flowers which had been blooming back at my place. I still suspect they were Elderberries:

When we got to the water, Seamus walked right in:

The Papillons and I followed him, but Fergus was nervous about the unsteady footing. He was wise to be cautious as I slipped and got my feet soaked. But our car was just ahead and our hike to the Cathedral Rock fire tower was over. But the day was young and there were several hamlets I wanted to explore before driving home. I'll post more about them in days to come: