Hi Friends. This story for Nature Friday is from a walk we took the first Sunday in December. The days leading up to it were very rainy and dreary, and no one would take us for a good walk. OK, so we got to go for a short neighborhood walk one day, but there was no one else out to say hi! Slowly, the weather started to warm up from the 30’s to the 50’s F (-10’s to 10’s C) and then Sunday the sky was a clear blue with temperatures in the mid 70’sF (24’sC). Mom helped me with the temperature conversion with a new app she downloaded ’cause her old app disappeared when her old phone got dropped in the t…. Oops, Mom is making the cutting motion across her throat so you can just use your imagination as to why she had to break the bank to get a new phone.
Anyhow, that’s why we finally get to participate again in Nature Friday hosted by Rosy at LLB in Our Backyard
Mom had been complaining nicely telling Dad that he needed to spend more time with her, so when she asked him to go with us for exercise a nice walk at the greenway, Dad –being the smart man he is — said, “Let’s go!” It’s at the same place as the dog park, so I knew right where we were. Most of the leaves were off the trees and provided a soft walkway for our feet. The trail smelled so good, like squirrels and other dogs!
The trail ran right along South Chickamauga Creek. The creek is usually small enough to wade across (not that Mom ever has let us do that) but that Sunday — after all the hard rain — it looked more like a river.You can see the creek behind us. It was flowing pretty fast, so we stayed on the trail (mostly). There were ginormous puddles on the trail, too, from last week’s rains, and Mom and Xena kept exploring other ways around the trails while Dad plodded along the edge with me.There were some really beautiful areas — at least from Mom’s perspective. Me and Xena mostly had our noses down. Xena and Mom were following me and Dad, trying to keep up, and Xena kept pulling on her leash. Me and Dad knew this because we walked to a chorus of “Xena, walk pretty,” and “Xena, walk with me,” and “Xena!!” I told Dad we should just lose them so we didn’t have to listen to it, but he said that wouldn’t be nice,” and “Try to be patient.”
We found an old, abandoned two-room cabin with a tin roof, and Mom sat a spell on one of the big wooden rockers on the porch facing the raging creek. There were only two “rooms” with an outdoors area to cook, all very rugged. The “windows” looked like they had been cut out later with no sign of any way to insert glass or screening, and the only door was gone. Mom had decided to take a picture on our way back by, not knowing we would end up at the end of a loop and not need to retrace our steps. Dad walked around evaluating the structure, trying to figure out when it was built. He found modern nails and things called 2 by 4’s that made him decide it was built probably around 1960 and left to ruin when the previous owner of the land donated it all for the South Chickamauga Greenway.
The temperature had risen by about 10 degrees and Mom and Dad were wearing their jackets tied around their waists as we walked back into civilization at the end of a sock-shaped trail. Can you believe it was in the mid-70’s (20’s C) in December?!
We had walked for over an hour and Xena and I, after getting our paws thoroughly wiped, were very quiet in the back seat of the car on the way home. As soon as we got out of the car Mom threw Xena in the groom tub and washed the dirt and mud off of her until the water ran clear. Between the exercise and the warmth of the sun, we were all sleepy and and jumped – or fell – into the big bed and took a good afternoon nap.
Love and wiggles, Lucy.
What a fun adventure you all had!
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That’s the trouble with clothing that has all those fingers and can just stroll away and nobody knows where they went. Patzy
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How much fun (chaos) we would have had with River and Pocket walking with us, too!
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My Mommy had to buy new gloves this year. They seems to be like socks – who knows where the second one went. Xena
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My mommy hasn’t found her gloves yet. They might be in the old car or ?? She’s been very unorganized these last couple of years. Things are looking up though. Hugz, Patzy!
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What a fantastic walk. The way you described it I felt like I was with you every step of the way, we could hear the leaves snap and smell the air. It was perfect.
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Our folks are wimps, Patzy. They’ve got coats and hats and glove things to stick their hands in, and they still won’t go walking outside. *pout* Lucy
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What a wonderful walk you got. It’s too cold today for mommy to take me out. It’s only 36F which is kinda normal for Oregon.
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Mee saw angel Unkell Dharth Henry’ss Sher-paw winter jackit an it iss so nice…LadyMew said mee cuud wear it butt mee not sure mee likes THE feel of clothes ‘on’ mee! Mee stay inn-side an watch it snow outside! 😉
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Thanks, Miss Sandra. Mom said I did an extra-good job on this one. She also promised to take us to walk the same trail again, and then she will take pictures of the cabin to post. 🙂 ~Lucy
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this post is almost as much fun as your walk was for the four of you… I am taking OFF but saw this and ad to comment. Big Boy is waiting on his human brother to get her, so am I. I loved the walk through the woods and enjoyed sitting with mom on the front porch. would love to see the cabin, I have a thing for log cabins, so does Big boys daddy
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😁
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We wanted to jump in puddles too, but got a short leash when we got near them. Funny how that kept happening. Lucy
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What a fun afternoon full of nature sights and smells! Mama says she would have loved to see that cabin, we would have loved to jump in some puddles!
xoxo,
Rosy, Jakey & Arty
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How awesome for YOU!
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Mom used to think it was ridiculous that people could drop their phone in the…well, where she dropped it. (She has been humbled.) XOX Lucy
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It is much colder here now, but at least we got a walkie today with Mom and Dad. If we lived there, I would be wearing my sherpa-lined winter coat I got last year for Christmas. XOX Lucy
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What a furabuluss Autumm walk you tooked Lucy an xena an Miss Amy an PawPaw!It ISS still Autumm til THE 21st rite?? Iss so cold here mee just sit inn front of THE open patio door sniffin THE air an purrtendin mee iss outside!
**purrsss** BellaDharma
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Now that sounds like a lovely and interesting walk! That chorus sounds familiar, and we think we know where your Mom dropped her phone….since that has happened to this Mom more than once!!
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We don’t know Auntie Bellum. this was just a run-down shack that belongs to the county now. Lucy
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It WAS true but now it’s colder and the blue sky ran away under the clouds. Stay warm, Kosmo! Your doggie friend, Lucy
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I didn’t get a bath, so I didn’t really care. Xena’s always having to get baths, BOL. Lucy
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Me and Xena think it was the prettiest day of the whole entire year!! ❤ Lucy
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It’s so true! Xena like to eat the squirrels’ nuts that she can find.She’s a crazy schnauzer girl.
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Dad did real good and didn’t get upset with Mom’s antics. At least we didn’t have to rescue her and Xena from anything! Lucy
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We are back to what is called “seasonal Temperatures” and Mom and Dad don’t want to go out for walkies. 😦 Lucy
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What a pawtastic adventure! Wet leaves always smell better to us too. Can’t imagine 70 degrees in December!
Your fur-iends,
Sam & Elsa 🐾
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Xena and Lucy what a fine day for walking your Dad…looks like he behaved well too (LOL)
Your description made me feel like I was walking too
Hugs Cecilia
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oh that is a wonderful place for walks… this is the time for holding our noses next to the ground… there are many buried treasures there we bet ;O)
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Hari Om
my but that looks like a wonderfurs place to explore! I am always intrigued by abandoned buildings and am impressed that you managed to get such a long walk without getting rained on. Not like here… hugs and wags YAM-aunty xxx
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Sounds like a great walk — sorry about the bath. I guess it’s the price of fun, right?
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Oh deer, what an interesting walk and your weather, is it true you have summer temperatures in December! It is totally dark here, and 1 cm snow. We miss the sun.
Enjoy your “summertime”.
Kosmo,
a cat in faraway Finland.
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I thought you were going to describe an antebellum one.
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The leaves WERE soft and sometimes squishy with the mud under them. Thanks for stopping by, Bertie. ~Lucy
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Hey that was a lovely description of your walk. Thanks for sharing – I could almost feel the soft leaves on my paws.
Toodle pip!
Bertie.
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