H and I drove up to Mike Lake Trail today as part of my twice weekly workouts required by the learn to run clinic that I joined recently. H is also preparing to run a half marathon in February, so it was a good workout for us both. The trail goes up all the way, but at a gentle grade (hence its name, Mike Lake Incline). We set off at a brisk walking pace and that got my heart pumping good. After about 50 minutes of walking the Incline Trail we took the Fire Access Trail, and that took the better part of an hour to negotiate. At first it was quite easy walking, the ground was springy and soft with fallen leaves. Then there were small gullies, easily negotiated. But after a short time we saw that there had been several minor landslides that virtually erased the hiking path in places -- no wonder there was an "ongoing ground stabilization" notice at the entrance to the trail. We had to pick our way gingerly on the sloping ground to avoid falling off; in places the drop was 10 meters, maybe more. Too late to retrace our route; we decided to go on, though I was quaking. Heights have never been my thing. Anyway, we made it through safely and the path widened again.
All this time the dogs were having a grand time, sniffing and bounding away and chasing each other. Occasionally Patsy would stop and look up at me, as if asking "What's taking you so long? What's so hard about this trail? Look how easy it is for me." Cheeky monkey.
The trail itself was quiet, we didn't meet a soul. The trees made a tall green canopy, and with the wind pretty high they made a soothing soughing sound. The air smelled fresh and ozonic.
H "communing" with Patsy.
Maggie had boundless energy.
2 comments:
hope i can find a place to let my dog off the leash for long nice walks in alaska too :-) your dogs are so cool
I hope you and Marly get to enjoy the beautiful trails in Alaska too, Ruth. I've heard plenty of good things about the place.
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