San Pedro House North

 It's my first day of Christmas break. I slept in, got on my email and got a note from SteveT saying he is getting blasted with an arctic cold snap for the next two days.  (This storm, officially Winter Storm Elliott, will hit Chicago by Friday)

The dogs were eager to get out.  I took all four dogs :Gretel, Gretchen, Sweetie and Wolfie, with me first for a quick drive-thru at McD's and  to the trail head parking north of the San Pedro House at 9:30am.  It was a cool 56F at the start 

I hadn't hiked this section of the river trail since March 2017.  I remember accidentally getting off the trail and being surrounded by thorny brush, making this a very unpleasant experience I vowed never to repeat. I took four dogs on that hike: Sadie, Zeke, Minnie and Sweetie.  Now the only dog still alive is Sweetie, and she did well today.  She does well as long as there are no obstacles she has to jump over.

I noticed on shorter walks earlier this week that the Bureau of Land Management has mowed this trail, making it wider (for horses) and easier to follow.  I had no trouble following the trail today.

This is a dull section.  The best part right now is the expansive view of the snow-capped mountains.  The flora along the trail is dead wildflowers, thorny brush, and creosote.

I made the Murray Springs my turn-around, allowing the dogs to refresh in the water for a it before turning around, then cutting over to the river and the cottonwoods for that last mile back.  This was a pleasant 5.6-mile walk, a good distance for the dogs.

The dogs stayed near me.  Gretchen didn't take off to explore until the very end of the hike, where she kept me waiting for a good 10 minutes before she sauntered to the truck and hopped right in.

I stopped at Walmart on my way home.  I needed new charging cables again.  The store was packed!  An hour later I was back with the dogs in the truck and enjoyed the warmth of the vehicle.  I could tell the dogs liked it, too.

I stopped at Fry's as well for food, then went home.  All four dogs were willing to rest and I obliged.