Jan 10 2011
Weekend Walks
Today’s sunrise
I woke up this morning to the comforting sound of the propane heater downstairs. I set it for 52 degrees before I went to bed, so I knew it would be a chilly morning. But for the moment, I luxuriated in the warmth of my bed and the fact that the kittens were snuggled up to me, purring. Audrey hadn’t even asked to go out yet. It was about 6:00 when I checked the Moonbeam clock on my bedside table, so she was running late.
She scampered out into the darkness as I put on the outside lights and made coffee. Six in the morning does a very good imitation of midnight at this time of year. But when the sun comes up, it’s dressed to the nines. Or even the tens (see above).
We made the most of the sunny weather this weekend. We’re slated to get another front of storms starting tomorrow, so we’ll have more rain to join the 30.38 inches we’ve already accumulated. But in the meantime, it was great dog walking weather.
On Saturday, we took Star and Schatzi to Navarro Point. I had reckoned without the windiness by the ocean, and regretted not wearing a hat, though Megan’s kept getting blown off. It was a good test of the expensive sneakers, which strode jauntily through the mud and streams, leaving my feet warm and dry.
I loved the look of the wintery blackberry hedges in the foreground. They are such a beautiful reddish brown and look like something out of a fairy tale. Maybe surrounding a wicked witch’s house:
Here I liked the windswept look of both the sea and sky:
We were glad to get back to the car. Well, not the dogs.
On Sunday, we met Lu and her two dogs at Big River. It was another beautiful day, so there were lots of other people and their dogs, cyclists, and people riding horses. I am proud to say that Star behaved herself almost perfectly, not barking at strangers or horses. Megan did a lot of work with her on heeling, sitting, and staying. Schatzi, as usual, was off doing her own thing, stopping to sniff long enough that I could take pictures of the river, here:
And here, through the winter trees:
We walked them for about two hours. So far, I think I’ve done a pretty good job keeping my “walk dogs more” resolution. Talk about a fun resolution to keep!