Christmas Scenery Along The Rutland Trail, Part 2

We didn't actually walk very far, the dogs and I, but we made it to Allen Brook and enjoyed the scenery. Then we turned around and began making our way back toward the car:

Clover continued to run too far ahead. Then I'd call her back and she'd return at full speed and full of joy. These dogs sure do have fun:

And the silly sisters did a bit of wrestling in the middle of the trail. I guess we'd have to call that "Christmas Wrestling:"

Rutland Trail is a former railroad bed and therefore straight, flat and incredibly easy walking. Both sides of it, however, were posted as private property. Well, never mind, looking at the scenery doesn't require trespassing:

Every so often we'd come to a place where the snow was gone and the fallen leaves exposed. The dogs found the smells there to be fascinating and I guessed that deer had bedded down there the previous night:

But mostly we proceeded slowly and enjoyed the scenery:

The woods were silent, muffled in snow, and the skies were overcast:

Big ol' Seamus was a happy boy as he led the smaller dogs along the trail. I also like it when he walks alongside me as he's just the right height for petting as we proceed:

We once again passed by the fallen pine bough which had drawn so much interest the first time. This time, the dogs ignored it:

But they kept a wary eye out for woodland boogeymen. A dog's job as watchman and guardian never ends, and they take it seriously:

When I knew we were almost back to the car, I called the dogs closer to me and had them "heel" for a bit. Then I released them but continued to insist they stay close:

And soon we were back at the car. The dogs jumped in with as much joy as they'd had jumping out when we arrived. Five miles back home and it would be their dinnertime, another occasion for great doggy joy:

Christmas Scenery Along The Rutland Trail, Part 1

Merry Christmas! I thought a blog post from a recent wintry hike would be appropriate. I drove 5 miles to one of the starting points for the Rutland Trail, parked and let the pooches out. I don't suppose I need to tell you that they were very happy:

And the scenery was both wintry and Christmas-y. The walking was easy because it was an old railroad bed:

The dogs were not perfectly behaved, but were slightly better than usual, so I didn't have to spoil it with too much hollering. They sure loved to stop and sniff things:

And I think they liked the smooth, level, straight, easy-to-walk trail as much as I did. That way, they could focus on other things:

Daphne and Clover repeatedly ventured off the trail to investigate the ditch on the side and the woods just beyond. Then they'd propel themselves up out of the snowy ditch like dogs from a canon:

We had a few instances of running too far ahead, but no one else was anywhere on the trail so it wasn't a problem:

In fact, the dogs seemed to delight in running ahead, getting called back and then returning to me at full speed. Just look at Fergus' ears and face as he does his best Greyhound imitation:

A fallen pine bough on the trail drew a lot of interest:

When we arrived at the bridge over Allen Brook, the dogs all stopped to look over the edge:

And then proceeded carefully across. The bridge is a steel mesh whose openings are so big that dog paws would fall right through. But there are two rows of planks on the bridge and they understood instinctively to stay on the planks:

When I caught up to the dogs, I too stopped on the bridge to admire the snowy beauty. This was Allen Brook, looking north:

And Allen Brook, looking south. This had been a very nice, short hike but we were only half way. I'll post Part 2 tomorrow: