I haven't checked out all the trails at Stratton Brook park yet but I'm finding new things every time I go there. The first thing to note is that I MUCH prefer to take one dog at a time. And if the absolute truth be known....I prefer that dog to be Bell. (But don't tell either of them. They both think they are my favorite!) Nicki is fast developing a bad habit of jumping/barking/spinning and general mayhem (I should have called her Mayhem actually) whenever she encounters another dog. It used to be only when she had Bell with her and I noticed that Bell was starting to join in with the bad behavior when they are together. Now Nicki seems to think it's ok even on her own but Bell is a doll by herself.
Well I'm no muscle bound chick (wimpy arm syndrome) and when both dogs are with me and they explode at other dogs approaching them...well I've resorted to winding myself around the nearest tree (with the leashes in hand) to prevent me losing them all together. It's not a solution at all and in fact it's embarrassing to me to have to admit I can't handle my dogs together. So I've decided to contact the nice lady we went to puppy training with and ask for her assistance with this. I had thought about taking them to a dog park separately but I've heard of so many horror stories at dog parks that I've decided they are off limits unless/until I have complete control of my dogs under various stimulus. (yeah, right....like THAT will ever happen!) Ok, I'll settle for having good control under most circumstances.
Back to the park. As I was saying I find something new every time I'm there and I'm just beginning to discover the various trails there. In fact I'm going to see if I can get a map of the trails because I suspect there is even more to see there than I've seen.
The trees have cool things on them, both organic (various forms of fungi) and non-organic (someone was feeling creative with yellow paint) and the trails seem to be well marked. There are paths that are almost invisible until you are on them; wide flat lanes capable of accommodating lots of people and their dogs; winding trails that will show you hidden pools of stagnant water (a haven for frogs by the way); gentle rambling trails that seem to just go on forever; narrow paths that will find you tumbling into a stream if you misplace a foot; and trails that seem to lead ever upward making you feel tired but curious enough to keep pushing on. We've met interesting people and stopped to talk for long periods of time. We've met tons of dogs,..some friendly, some not...and once a horse. Nick's reaction to the horse was to treat it like a big dog and jump at it as it passed by her. She got the disappointment of her life when that "huge dog" simply glanced at her and snorted with disgust as she walked by. Oh yeah...Nick's got a lot to learn.
As with all the woods in this area of the world there is a lot of evidence of the storm this past October. Although it's sometimes interesting to see the damage it's also sad to know it's going to take a long time for it to fade or be cleaned up. A lot of volunteers have been working on different areas throughout our state parks. But I suspect it's going to take literally years to get close to looking normal again. At this point we have to settle for being able to walk the trails at all....noticing the whole time the massive uprooted trees; water ways clogged with tree debris and stacked debris on the edge of most of the trails that been cleared from the paths. It's a sad reminder of a tough time for most of us.
