Wednesday, June 23, 2021

Carr Peak with Zeke and Hansel

Weather for today looked promising:  a high of "only 89F with increased clouds.  Chance of precipitation increased from 16 to 23 to 50 percent for later in the afternoon.  What better weather to hike a peak for the month.

I went alone, with the intent of bagging the peak quickly and getting back home before any rain fell.  Steve and I had our beer meet at BoneDry at 3pm, so I just needed to be showered and refreshed by 2pm.


I finally left the house at 0630.  Carr Canyon Road was quiet, but two vehicles were off the road, just past the lower parking area, and both at precarious angles.  As if they were rammed off the road.  Neither vehicle was able to pull back safely on the road. The older green pickup hit an oak tree with enough force  uproot one of its main trunks.  The white Toyota sedan further uphill had a broken front right headlight and a cracked rear signal.  What had happened?  A failed human smuggling event?  Drag racing down the mountain road?  A passing attempt gone wrong? No other damage to either vehicle was visible.  There were no people inside either car.  Both vehicles were gone by noon when I drove back down the road.


I began my hike at 0705 from the Old Sawmill trailhead, my preferred trail as the Sawmill Springs is a half-mile up the trail.  Sadly, there was NO WATER in the bathtub!  Even the dogs were surprised.  Luckily I had 3/4 gallon of water for the

I was the only vehicle in the parking lot.  I didn't see anyone until I got to the trail intersection with the Carr Peak connector trail at the 3/4-mile mark, a young man and his dog Rush whom I met again on the peak.  He turned out to be a 2018 Buena High School graduate who recognized me.


The trail, as expected, was dry, but despite the drought there were the seasonal flowers: firecracker penstemon, yellow sunflowers, and the tall common mullein stalks and the white flowers which bees like so much.  While there weren't many flowers, seeing some color finally brought some good news. Too many of the young pines growing post Monument Fire 2011, however, are dying from the drought.  And many of the oaks are dropping their leaves.


Both dogs did well on this hike.  They were at their best behavior.  I stopped twice to give them water. Hansel darted off a few times to chase deer, but didn't run far.  Unlike Gretel, he likes to stay nearby to keep an eye on me.  


The horizon in all directions was hazy from the area brushfires, but I didn't see any

fireline north of me when on Carr Peak.

The young man and his dog caught up with me and together we chatted a good 30 minutes on top of Carr.  He knew the man who was shot dead in town Monday night (I knew him, too, and wasn't surprised at his fate).  Caiden now works for UPS but is also active hiking and rock climbing and mountain biking.  We talked about long-distance hiking, the John Muir Trail and other backpacking adventures.  Oh, to be young again!  I just don't know how much longer my back will hold out. I'm just grateful I can still walk.

Clouds were beginning to form over the southern horizon and the breeze cooled down as I returned to the car.  I met another couple but returned to my lonely Honda in the parking area.  Not too many people camp or hike mid-week, but I was glad to have done a peak for the month of June and still have most of the day ahead of me.


I showered, put on fresh clothes and then met SteveT for our usual beer met, this time at BoneDry.  It's the only time I drink beer now, avoiding the brew due to the heat. It rained briefly while we were inside, enough to flood the streets, but nothing fell over our neighborhood.

At 6pm I was back at the dog park with Hansel, Sahne and Wolfie.  I now have ads for them on Facebook, but no one came by to meet them. The rain had cooled the late afternoon and clouds remained over the mountains. I hope we get more rain moving forward.  I'm tired of seeing brown mountainsides.


https://www.myheraldreview.com/news/crime/argument-between-two-men-leads-to-fatal-shooting-police-say/article_4fe0177c-d38f-11eb-8903-cf2d3c9b7412.html

***

Global cases: 180,810, 186

Global deaths: 3,926,634

US cases: 34,450,133 (+2461)

US deaths: 618,337 (+76)

AZ cases: 891,023 

AZ deaths 17,868

IN cases 752,108 

IN deaths 13,816

MO cases: 612,528 (a hotspot right now)

MO deaths: 9846


Monday, June 21, 2021

Arizona is burning

 We have had 18 fires burn across the state now for several days.  Smoke causes hazy sun rises and sun sets.  But today was the first day I was up early and tasted the ash in the air.  The sun rose as a red ball diffused by clouds.  This fire is closeby, near Benson and close to Texas Canyon and is called the Walnut Fire.  The interstate east of Benson at Dragoon Road is closed all the way to US181 because the fire jumped the highway.

We desperately need rain, but no rain is forecasted until next week, although Wednesday may bring some showers.



Friday, June 18, 2021

Miller Creek Trail (3.4 m)

I overslept for a sunrise walk but that's ok.  Even super heroes need a break. 

Today's early hike was a last-minute decision by me to lead for the local MeetUp.  We gathered at the Lower Miller Canyon parking lot at 0600 and took off for this short but shady walk.  We were seven people and four dogs (I took Sheba for more leash training).  HollyW, BonnyM, Celeste F and her dog Halo with her friend Belinda and her dog Yukon, SteveT and his dog Trace, and new member Chris from Fort Wayne made up today's group. It was a pleasant 73F at the start.

The Miller Creek trail was my choice for dog walking Sara and Sammy over ten years ago, our first two dogs.  Back then this trail was also popular with horses, but now mountain bikers have taken over that trail.  We didn't see anyone on this trail until we got a mile up and came up to the dispersed campsites.  An elderly couple was sitting by the trickling creek as we came by.

I started up a conversation with Chris, who hails from Fort Wayne, IN.  Another Hoosier!  He also graduated from Indiana University, like me,  but in 1990.  He now works for the military installation as a clinical counselor for active-duty personnel and their family members.  He was able to join us because today is a new federal holiday: Juneteenth, commemorating the official end of slavery in 1865 in the US. (But we all know that slavery and the discrimination that comes with it in its rawest form never really ended until the 1960s).  He has been here for a year.  His wife is still in Indiana but is moving to join him now that the youngest daughter has graduated from high school last week.

We walked at a steady pace.  The dogs had enough water to keep hydrated.  Little Sheba did great on her leash and only pulled whenever Trace would fly on by, much to the chagrin of Chris who told me "that dog needs to be on a leash!" Trace is a good dog, and I don't mind him around me when it's just Steve and me on a trail, but he is hyper and jumps up on people.  Some people do not appreciate dogs jumping up on them. Steve put Trace on a leash at this point.

We took a break at the old picnic area at the upper Miller canyon parking area, then walked back the way we came.  Now the trail was busier, with more dog walkers getting in a few miles before the heat began at 8am.  By then we were already done.

We got back to our cars at 7:40am.  Everyone departed, but I took Chris on an extended 1.2-miles  (r/t) to the hidden falls area.   He had never been there.This is an exposed section and I could tell that Sheba was feeling the heat. We turned around at the start of the dry rock slabs and then returned to our cars by 8am.

The official hike was 3.6 miles, but Chris and I did another 1.2 miles for a total of 4.8 miles.  We definitely felt the heat by the time we left the area.

First dog Champ has died.  The news came early via NPR as I got ready for the hike. The German Shepherd Dog was 13 years old.  President Biden got him in 2008 after getting elected Vice President.  I know Sadie doesn't have much time left on Earth, either, but she's still holding strong.  She only has trouble walking with her rear legs as he rear right foot curls in now when she walks. a sign of muscular weakness.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/06/19/politics/champ-biden-german-shepherd-dog-dies/index.html




***

Global cases: 178,615,348

Global deaths: 3,875.806

US cases 34,378,896 (+3247)

 US deaths 616,491 (+69)

AZ cases 888,337 

AZ deaths 17,809


Thursday, June 17, 2021

San Pedro House Trails

This walk was Susan's idea.  She wanted to see the water levels of the San Pedro River here.  We hadn't done this stretch yet in all of our SP river walks.

We met at the San Pedro House (SPH), a former ranch house,  at 0640 and immediately went southeast toward the river.  We were the only people there.  Normally this is a popular place for birders and walkers, but the rising heat--it was already 77F when we started--most likely kept people away. 

I don't normally walk this area because I don't want to annoy birders with any dogs.  Birders are a serious genre who demand absolute silence.  We came across no one in the entire 4.8 miles.

I brought three of the pups: Sahne, Sheba and Wolfie.  "You've been holding on to them too long" said Susan, referring to me still having them.  I admit I am stalling on finding them new homes, but I know I must. 

The pups were at first hard to contain, being excited about being outside, but they soon got into the rhythm of walking onleash.  Susan held Sahne and I had the other two pups. I brought the pups instead of Hansel and Gretel because the pups are easier to walk onleash and don't yet have the urge to chase big animals.

Once we got to the low water of the river, I let the pups offleash.  And oh my, all three pups went right for the water, splashing around as if they were in the water trough in the back yard.  They love the water!  They didn't play so much with Allie like Hansel and Gretel do, though.  They were in their own world and yet stayed close-by whenever we continued our walk.  All the pups are good at recall.  

While there is the official San Pedro Trail and Nature Loop that starts at the San Pedro House, there are now many more unmarked trails that follow the river. Most likely these are the trails created by migrants crossing the border.  We stayed on these unmarked trails and hiked south, past the dried-up duck pond and looped around at the big rock piles.  Had these rocks always been here?  They looked to have been placed here by humans, either as a flood defense, or as rock debris from developing the trails.: 

I was on the lockout for snakes.  They like to hide in and around rocks and crevices.  Luckily we didn't see any.  We saw more lizards and ants but no snakes.

We stayed in the waning shade on our walk back, following the tree line to keep the dogs cool. We followed the Nature Trail back to the parking lot. I didn't put the dogs back onleash until we were a quarter mile from the SPH.

I know I'm repeating myself, but we desperately need rain.  Our hillsides are now a dull brown from dead and dying trees. The entire Southwest needs rain, as wildfires are flaring up all over Cochise County.  The biggest fire is south of Globe, the Telegraph Fire (currently at 171,242 acres and the 6th-largest in AZ history), but smoke is causing a haze I see at sunrise and sunset. This heat wave will die out next week, when clouds will return and chances of rain increase midweek.  The monsoon can't come soon enough.

It hit 103F for the high, making the house very hot and all the dogs tired by late morning.  I didn't do much at all until it was time to head out to the dog park.  I took Hansel, Gretel and Sahne and it worked out very well.  All three had fun, socialized with other dogs (even Gretel walked around and sniffed people).  All three also walked well onleash afterward for two full laps.

***

Global cases: 177,240,725

Global deaths: 3,841,345

US cases: 34,332,365 (+3124)

US deaths: 615,220 (+49)

India cases: 29,560,800 (+62,571)

India deaths: 377,014 (+2771)

AZ cases: 887,146 (+394)

AZ deaths: 17,768

IN cases: 749,532 (+435)

IN deaths: 13,746 (+1)

Monday, June 14, 2021

Extreme heat advisory and the dog park

Today is the fourth day of extreme heat, with temperatures in the 100s.  If I don't get up early to walk the dogs by sunrise, it's already too late by 8am.  That sun is brutal!   The monsoon season officially starts tomorrow and some clouds are already forming over the mountains, but not cooling us off. 


Even the dogs are tuckered out and seek the shade and then the cool house.  I have the kiddie pool filled with water so that even Minnie can walk into it and cool off her paws.  (If she sits down in the water, though, she empties half the pool!) Wet paws, however, result in muddy floors and even wet sheets.

I've been taking Hansel and two pups to the city dog park in the evenings.  Yesterday I took a break and stayed home to start cleaning out the Honda.  The pups are learning to socialize with unknown dogs.  Hansel loves the dog park, and even Wolfie, Sheba and Sahne are liking it, too.  Only Fritzi is showing dog aggression so I will have to work on that.  


I like the dog park.  It's my new social activity.  I get there around 6pm and I stay around 90 minutes to two hours and have gotten to get to know some of the regulars.  There's John and his GSD Jackie.  There's Mike and his GSD Kako (rhymes with Taco).  There's mother-daughter Sharee and Zena and their two fat boxer-bassett houndXs Maggie and Dorothy.  We wave at each other with familiarity, smile, and then let the dogs do the sniffing and licking and running around. Afterward I walk a few laps around the fitness loop with the dogs.  The pups are learning their leash manners.  It cools into the 70s when I leave the park at around 8:30pm.


Gretchen is the only dog so far that shows no interest in leaving the back yard, but even she will need to be socialized very soon.  I took her outside and put the leash on her yesterday.  She's getting used to the leash, but after a few steps she is ready to go back to the yard.  At least that's progres


***

Global cases 177,132,333

Global deaths: 3,838,880

USA cases: 34,323,924 (+3124)

USA deaths: 65, 101 (+49) 

AZ cases: 886,752  

AZ deaths: 17,768

IN cases: 749,097

IN deaths: 13,745


Thursday, June 10, 2021

Hunter Canyon Trail over to Miller Creek

Distance: 5.7 miles

Elevation gain: 1059'

Significance: old mining road

Today's 0630 hike was with the Huachuca Hiking Club (HHC).  Or at least that is why I hiked this trail, because I read the trail description wrong and started in Hunter Canyon instead of Lower Miller Canyon. 

Fritzi was my canine partner this morning.  I wanted to see how well he'd do on a trail.   He did very well!  He's such a smart little dog, always watching me .

The Hunter Canyon trail is a nice connector trail that takes one above the Beatty Ranch and down into Miller Creek.  One caní9 continue up Miller Peak on the Miller Canyon trail.

This is a little-used trail these days.  When Sara and Sammy were still around, this was my go-to place for solitude. Now it's a drought-stricken canyon with charred and bullet-holed dead treì⁹9es thanks to careless target shooters that shot up burned and living trees after the 2011Monument Fire.

I parked at the official trailhead one mile west of SR92.  There were a few other cars parked in dispersed parking areas, but I didn't see anyone except for a lone woman and her two healers.  It was 0615 when I started, walking 0.8-miles east along the connector trail hoping to see the HHC hikers.  It didn't take long for that sun to get hot!


I turned around, then began the official trail into the canyon.  This part is exposed and I was walking in sunlight the entire time.  Fritzi wore a wet neck bandana to keep cool, but I stopped at a turkey trough for him to drink out of.  His dark fur was getting hot fast.


Fritzi did so well on this hike.  He was off-leash but stayed by my side.  Just like Sadie did years ago, he'd run slightly ahead of me, stop, and turn around to make sure I was following him.  Typical shepherd behavior!


Hunter Canyon is suffering badly in this drought.  So many bare oaks now have dropped their leaves to conserve water.  There were no flowers along the way, and I was quite shocked to see a dry creek bed.  There was no water in Miller Creek!

I gave ourselves a 6-mile limit.  I didn't want to exhaust Fritzi, who stayed by my side the entire time.  We rested in the shade, on a cool rock, and had our early lunch and water.  Several women nearby were speaking loud Korean and then took off.


Where were the HHC hikers?  I figured I'd run into them by now.  I rested by the dry creek for 30 minutes, but knew I had to get on the return hike or else face intense heat.

I stopped at the mine, took a few photos, and resumed my hike back to the car.  A sign warns people not to enter this shaft, which drops dangerously deep into a dark abyss.


It was in this final mile that I ran into four HHC hikers: Ward, SteveS, JohnS, RodC and all looked sun kissed.  What fools hike on a day with temperatures predicted to reach in the upper 90s?!?! Well, I'm one of those fools.  Looks like my day hikes will be on hold during this heat wave.  It's getting even hotter next week.


We chatted for a bit.  Fritzi never barked. SteveS told me the hike began in Lower Miller canyon.  I had totally misread the directions.  Maybe next time I'll get the instructions down correctly! I'd like to know what path they took from the Lower Miller Canyon parking lot.


I was on this trail for 3:24 hours.  I was back at the Honda by 10am.  I was glad to be out of the sun, but the Honda didn't cool down until I got back home.



Tuesday, June 8, 2021

Garden Canyon with Fritzi and Sahne

I finally joined the SV Hikers today for a walk up Garden Canyon.  It has been a while since I hiked with this group, since school kept me busy all year.

I took Fritzi and Sahne this morning.  Zeke insisted on coming as well (by pushing himself out the front door) so I let him join us.  At least he'd act as a stabilizer, as Steve's dog Trace is too hyper for good trail side manners.


I let the group know that I was starting early with Steve.  We took off at 7:05am.  Everyone else wasn't expected to start until 8am, which is too late for me as temperatures rise fast once the sun's up.


The puppies proved to be hyper this morning. Fritzi and Sahne jumped out of the Honda and immediately began barking at Trace.  They wouldn't stop barking, either, so I'm glad it was just us two at the start.  Were the dogs barking to protect me, or was it fear barking?  Trace took off running and the pups followed in hot pursuit.  And this lasted for most of the two miles to our turn-around spot!  Only Zeke stayed by my side. 


DavidB caught up to us within the first mile.  Holly had texted him saying she and Bonnie were not coming this morning and let him know at the last minute.  "If I had known that she wasn't coming, I would have started with you two!" he said.  Steve fell back and let David and I walk on ahead.  He and I then waited at our usual turn-around point for Steve and then walked back together.


Fritzi and Sahne were calmer on the way back, chasing Trace through the water and along the road.  The pups were clearly enjoying themselves.  They never showed any signs of exhaustion like Hansel and Gretel did the first time they did Garden Canyon at five months old.  I'm thinking they were in better shape because I took them out on neighborhood walks at an earlier age, disregarding their lack of full vaccine immunity.  They barked at other dogs but not other people.

We met Anthony and his sister Terry on the walk back, and then Steve with his dog Morgan.  They started at 8am because they don't like getting up early.

In the late afternoon I took Fritzi and Sheba to the dog park for an hour.  This was Fritzi's second visit and again he was a barker, along with Sheba.  It took them a good half-hour to calm down, not quieting until around 7pm when there were at least 15 dogs running around and most of them being GSDs.  I will continue to take at least two pups every night to this dog park to get them used to other dogs and people.



Saturday, June 5, 2021

Up Sheelite Canyon and back down via the Sawmill Trail

Distance: 10.24 miles

Elevation: 5497' - 8359'

Elevation gain: 3489'

Significance: Bragging rights to one tough uphill hike in the Huachucas.  During a normal monsoon season, this canyon is brimming with birds and other wildlife.

Hiking up Sheelite Canyon and down via the Sawmill trail was Ellen's idea this time. She asked me Thursday evening and I said yes.  It's been since 2016 since I was up this canyon.

We started our hike at 6:42am at the Sheelite parking area on Garden Canyon Road.  I was 45 minutes late because I forgot about the closure of the BST gate entrance.   We got started at the same time as a group of young soldiers, most of whom were not geared up to hike long distance, took off for the same canyon.  We let them get a head start so that Hansel and Gretel, who never were on leash today, could get a head start.  that group didn't go very far, though.  We passed them at the mile-mark and never saw them again.

We both kept a steady pace.  Once again I felt energized. never once feeling winded while hiking up this shady and narrow canyon.  Ellen led the way.  The trail was easy to follow for the first two miles, as it gradually increased the grade up the dry waterfall at the 2-mile mark.  Luckily we found several pools of water for the dogs to frolic in as I only brought two quarts for them to cover seven miles.


So many of the oaks are now showing stress from the drought.  The hillsides are brown and grey from dead and dying trees.  Granted, many of the trees were killed in the 2011 fire that dessimated the upper canyon, but many more younger trees have also perished in this drought.

The canyon is home to many birds and bears.  We only saw one pile of dried bear scat early on.  More disturbing were the four dead coatimundi we saw along a quarter-mile after we climbed the waterfall.  What had killed them?  They all looked juvenile.  


The dogs and I were happy to come across several pools of water as we climbed along the otherwise dry waterfall at the two-mile mark.  They dived into the water.  This helped my water supply for them.  They were energized by the cool water for that last big push to the high point.

The last mile to the Crest Trail was the hardest to follow.  The first three miles were mostly easy to follow, with cairns marking the way.  But it was the upper canyon that got burned and over the last ten years the burned trees have been blown down the hillsides, blocking or totally wiping out the trail.  Red tape replaced cairns as we meandered up this part.  

That big donut I picked up in Tucson last night was accidentally left behind at one rest stop we made to orient ourselves to the GPS track.  Hopefully that donut will make one hungry bear very happy. I was very upset to learn at our lunch break that I had left it behind at a rest stop only because I had to remove the donut box from the top of my backpack to get to the water.  I had wanted to share that donut with Ellen.


We took our lunch break on the high point on the Crest Trail, on some boulders that gave a view of the northern mountains.  We could see Mount Wrightson to the northwest and Huachuca Peak to our northeast.  The dogs had their can of food each.  Gretel cuddled with Ellen and Hansel cuddled with me.  Both dogs were on their best behavior today.


Once we continued our hike from here, it was all downhill, through dried or dying oaks and stressed pines.  The overcast clouds kept us protected until we got to the lower Sawmill trail, which was nothing more than an old forest road.


We encountered two men down this section, who stayed a safe distance from us because of the dogs.  They finally passed as when we took a water break at the intersection of the Sawmill and Garden Canyon roads.  The dogs were thirsty here, finishing up their water bottle.  I needn't have worried because there was more water that followed us back down to the cars within a quarter mile of getting back on the main road. 


It was 90F when we got back to our cars in the early afternoon.

***

Global cases: 173,954,115

Global deaths: 3,751,310

US cases: 34,203,895 (+12,149)

US deaths: 612,621 (+421) fatality rate 1.79%

India cases  28,799,705 (+114,438)

India deaths 346,746 (+2681) 

AZ cases: 883,314 (+277)

AZ deaths: 17,698 (+25)

CA cases: 3,795,066 (+1062)

CA deaths : 63,425 (+34)

IN cases 746,554 (+419)

IN deaths: 13,685 (+24)

PA cases 1,209,894 (+402)

PA deaths 27,460 (+26)


  


Friday, June 4, 2021

Fritzi in the city

 It was another hot day today.  I had walked Hansel, Gretel and four of the puppies in the early morning, getting over seven miles in the first two hours.  The overcast skies helped me along.  

I could have gotten Zeke and Sweetie walked as well, but I had a 10am appointment at Dr Geiger's veterinarian office to get all the puppies updated on their shots.  They all got the last of the 1-5 shot and got their rabies.  Thankfully Susan came to help manage the five hyper pups.

All the pups got weighed.  Fritzi is the biggest at 47 pounds.  Sahne is the smallest at 30 pounds.  All the others are in the mid 30s.

Susan invited me to take the puppies to her place to let them romp around.  The vaccines tired them out and made a few of them barf in the back of the Honda (luckily it was hardened dog kibble that was projected), but for 90 minutes we both sat outside on her patio watching the pups play.    I left at 1:30pm because I had to get to Tucson for a Yelp event at the new Donut Bar in the downtown area.c

I finally left with a car loaded with cardboard and tincans and one nervous pup in the back.  I chose to take Fritzi along, to see how he would handle city noises like street cars, honking cars, and speeding cyclists.  Outside temperature read 99F for the entire drive there.  I had the AC on high but the pup panted all throughout the drive.

Fritzi didn't want to get out of the car when I got to my destination.  I had to coax him out.  But once he was on the ground at 6:30pm, he did quite well on leash.  People were gawking at him and praising him as he galloped right next to me.  The only thing that made him nervous were other big dogs passing us by.  He never got startled by any of the noises.


I picked up my huge donut, saving it for tomorrow's hike, then ordered a large cheese pizza from Empire Pizza while I sat outside on the dog-friendly patio of 1055 Brewing company, sipping two 10-ounce beers while Fritzi calmed down by my side with some water.  This was the same place I took Gretel to when she got her first introduction to city noises.


It felt so good to be back in an open city, with people walking around mask-free.  I know we aren't out of the woods yet, but our covid numbers are declining.  Restaurants in town are open again for inside dining.


I picked up the pizza and then dropped it off in the Honda while Fritzi and I walked another two miles up and down 4th Avenue.  This is the hip part of town, but tonight it had a college vibe to it, with crowds of young people hanging out in bars enjoying their alcohol.  I didn't stop anyway.  Even the new Dillinger brewing was out of my favorite hefeweizen.  That was fine with me as I still had to drive home and I didn't leave Tucson until 9:45pm, getting home at 12:15am because I had to pull over twice to nap for 20 minutes.  Little Fritzi not once complained.  What a wonderful puppy he is.  He's stolen my heart. 

Wednesday, June 2, 2021

Sunrise walk around Brown Canyon ranch

The build-up of clouds yesterday afternoon predicted a 20% chance of rain today or tomorrow.  Early morning clouds mean a dramatic sunrise, so I got up early to take Zeke on a walk around the area.  I knew if I don't walk early, the heat later on will just tire me out too much. It was 67F when I started at 5:05am.



I was the first one in the parking lot.  Another elderly couple was already ahead of me, walking toward the ranch on the main road.  I veered off the main road to continue my walk on the signed Brown Canyon Ranch trail.  This trail takes me away from car traffic and offers ample views around me.  No one else crossed my path until I was back near the parking lot. 


I've done this loop many times now with Susan and wanted to recon it myself to see what kind of elevation this walk would have if I ever led it as a sunrise walk.  I made it to the duck pond (1.3 m) but then took a deer trail around the pond and back to the Nature Loop.  Somewhere along here I lost my way and never made it to the perimeter trail, cutting off a half-mile.  I did get to the turkey trough at 1.9 m, then just continued up the overlook hill before descending and getting back to the parking lot.  An older woman with long white hair ahead of me yelled back at me to put Zeke on his leash, but Zeke was right by my side and not bothering anyone.  It was her own unruly Akita that needed to be on his leash.


I stopped in town to have a hazelnut cappuccino at the new Nirvana's Cup of Joe coffee shop, where dogs are allowed on the patio.  I had just posted a review on Yelp when an off-duty employee sat down at my table and treated me to a shop-baked cinnamon roll.