Out for a hike

This weekend's adventures took us a bit Southwest to the small town of Augusta, Michigan.  This is just one of the many small towns across Michigan that are home to a portion of the North Country Trail.  For the third year in a a row, the girls and I are planning to complete the Hike 100 challenge on the trail.  We have learned so much about this beautiful state we live in and about ourselves during our time on the trail and it's a great way to get out to explore nature any day of the week. Plus it's so much better than going to the gym!  So after a relaxing Saturday morning, we were off to explore.

It was a beautiful sunny 55 mile drive through the backroads of Michigan's countryside to get to our destination. With a little sunshine and a cool late winter's breeze in the air, we reached the trailhead parking lot, got the girls harnessed and me bundled up and we were off to explore this new area. 

What I love about the North Country Trail, especially the section of trail that is closest to home, is that you never know what to expect.  This trail is full of sections of farmland, fields, and forests.  There are also sections through small towns, like Lowell, Albion, and Marshall, and through small cities, like Battle Creek.  There are portions that are road hikes, some on sidewalks through neighborhoods, some that are paved or boardwalks.  There are flatlands and hills and places which are a good mixture of both.  There really is something for everyone!  And we have taken advantage of them all. 

This portion of the trail started along the edge of an empty cornfield.  And the girls loved it; their noses were to the ground taking in all of the smells. This trail was a Shorthair's dream trail with fields and fence rows to sniff.  It became very clear to me during this hike that Peaches was used as a hunter because she was in and out of the brush, sniffing and weaving, searching for the elusive scent of some upland game bird.  She even went on point a couple of times and it took everything in my power to pull her off, but boy was she happy!

After about 3/4 of a mile along the field, we reached the woods.  This is where Imke is always happiest.  Searching around trees, old rotting tree stumps, and fallen trees, she is always on the search for some small, furry four-legged critter.  Many times she has chased chipmunks, mice and ground squirrels out of these exact places and when she finds a scent her first instinct is to start to dig.  No critters were found today, but the real fun is in the hunt, so she was a happy old girl.

I think because it was such a nice day, we ran into many other people along the trail this day.  That's actually pretty unusual for us, but it is nice seeing other people out taking advantage of the great weather and the beautiful trail system.   Early in the hike, Peaches would lunge forward, paws high in the air, to greet our fellow hikers.  She is very people oriented, she just thinks people are awesome and she wants to say hello to them all!  It's a blessing in a way to have her with us because for some reason, people are drawn to my girls...I think people are just drawn to dogs in general, but literally anywhere we go, I get asked if someone can pet my dogs or take pictures of them.  And anyone who has met Maddie and Imke will tell you that for the most part, when we are out and about, they are much more interested in their surroundings and really don't like to be bothered by attention from any human being.  They are in constant motion, always ready to move on and keep sniffing. Unless, of course, there are treats!  However, over the years, through all of our travels and with their slowing down as the get older, they have gotten better about standing nicely while random strangers give them some love.  I even think Maddie has started to enjoy it.  But for Peaches, she craves the attention and can't get enough!

After a short hike through the woods, less than a 1/4 mile of road hike, and a small section of the trail which runs through private property, we reached the Kellogg Forest.  This section of the forest, part of the MSU Extension system, had wide trails and some informational signs regarding all of the different trees planted in each section.  As we neared the W.K. Kellogg Experimental Forest Center, we started to see even more people.  As luck would have it, we were hiking on the day that they were holding their Maple Syrup Open House.  As we reached a turn in the trail, we saw a crowd of people who, we would later learn, were waiting for a wagon ride tour of the sugar bush.  There were families with young children all around and Peaches was in heaven.  There were rounds of "You've got your hands full", "What kind of dogs are those", many "Are those Springer Spaniels", and of course, our favorites, "Are they friendly" or "Can we pet your dogs".  So we settled in to accept all of the attention that everyone wanted to give as we walked past this crowd of people.  Maddie waiting patiently for each child to snuggle into her soft fur, Peaches pushing forward to give kisses to anyone who would accept them and even a few who were unwilling victims, and Imke standing patiently by my side as everyone asked about "the old one" or gently patted her on the head and called her a sweet old girl.  

We finally made it through the crowds and I thought it would be great to get a picture of the girls with this cute little bridge over Augusta Creek.  As you can see, the girls thought otherwise.

As we headed further down the trail, it began to follow the gravel road of the parking lot and I looked down at the time and distance we had traveled and decided it was time to turn around and head back to the car.  

On the way back, there was a nice spot along the trail to allow the girls to stop and get a drink and explore the creek a bit.  This was by far Maddie's favorite part of the day.  She loves small creeks, streams, and rivers and would wade around in them all day.  

As we headed back through the woods, I couldn't resist stopping at this bench along the trail to try to get a cute picture of the girls all together, but getting them all to cooperate-well I've learned to go with what I can get!

As we reached the field again, the sun returned. It felt so warm shining down on us and I was so grateful to have gotten to spend this time with these girls. When we reached the parking lot, we had hiked 5.5 miles which was short of my goal of 6 miles, but I was happy with our accomplishment.  

We all piled into the Jeep to head home and I was sure soon I would hear the peaceful sounds of snoring shorthairs.  But on this day, Peaches and Imke were still ready for another adventure.  So I decided to make one more quick stop for a hike through Historic Bridges Park just outside of Battle Creek.  

As we started on the trail, I knew this would not be a long hike, but I was glad we made the stop. With Peaches out ahead, Imke right beside me and Maddie trailing along behind, we made a quick loop and added another 1.8 miles for a total of 7.3 for the day.  We exceeded our goal for the day and this time all three girls were happily snoring away in the back of the Jeep before we were out of the parking lot.  A very successful day on the trail for three happy girls and their mom.