Steppin' Out with Sadie

I've been getting cabin fever, keeping so close to home on account of Lackadaisical Lucy. Today I could stand it no longer - the sun was shining, the air was crisp, and the recent cold nights have turned the leaves to gold. Since Lucy didn't seem to be thinking about having pups, Sadie and I headed out to Chemainus Lake Park - a very lightly developed 40 acre offleash park with a 2.5 km loop trail around the lake through second growth and some old growth forest.

It has been a while since we went there - Charley has difficulty walking now, even the short distance to the beach, and I seldom take one dog out without the other. I wasn't sure Sadie could manage it either, but it is a fairly easy trail with just a few minor climbs which provide nice views of the lake.



There are also lots of benches enroute, affording an opportunity to rest a bit, breathe in the damp forest smells, and listen to the birds and squirrels gathering seeds for winter.



Mushrooms pop up in every colour :







And small flowers offer splashes of colour amid the still-green bushes:




Slivers of sun shone through the trees in places, highlighting the yellow-gold foliage,



While in other places the moss hung thick on the boughs.



I love the diverse colours and shapes of old rotting stumps. This one, with holes on either side and hollow in the middle, has so many hues of rust and orange and brown:



And this one has become a 'nurse tree', giving life to another that grows on top, its roots creeping down the stump like tentacles in some old science fiction movie:



Sadie was happy to plod along, up hill and down, sniffing at all the interesting smells and periodically checking in with me to make sure I hadn't strayed too far.






It was a much-needed outing for both of us - fresh air, nature, gentle exercise, a beautiful setting all to ourselves.



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