LIFE'S BETTER IN THE MOUNTAINS

Friday, May 22, 2009

Fridays are Golden

Many hiking trails ramble through our community. Some provide wonderful mountain views and others provide waterfalls and streams. Our favorite trail provides a wonderful walk in the woods. Because there is no "draw" ticket like a view or waterfall, the Okanowa Trail is not well traveled, making it perfect for letting the dogs run up and down the mountain. [The roads and trails in our community take their names from the Cherokee Nation. According to a key, okanowa means, "warm, or south."]


Here they sit...smiles all around, waiting for the "release" that will send them running.


Lucy grins for the camera.

Ellie is deciding which way she will run when she is free.


Ellie is a scent hound. She smells every little thing.


Lucy is a sight hound. She can see every bird or squirrel in the trees.

When Ellie gets too far ahead, she patiently waits for us to catch up.
Both dogs wait. Lucy is always a bit impatient.
Sometimes they run so hard they are forced to take a break. Once again, Lucy is a bit impatient.



The romp in the woods completed, the Golden Girls head back up the trail. It was a good day.
All of the photographs were taken by my husband.
The days are dwindling for trail runs. We have too many Copperheads to take to the trails in summer. We are fearful of having them bitten so far from the house. Fortunately we have trails and a creek on our property where the girls can run. Should one of them get a snakebite, we will be close to the Benadryl and rest, or medical attention if necessary.
  • Can you believe it is Memorial Day Weekend already? What happened to make the time pass so quickly? I hope it was because you were having some fun in your life!
Have a wonderful weekend. Remember those who have gone before you and those who will follow after you and cherish them all.

33 comments:

Sam said...

I'm glad the girls enjoyed their hike! Looks like it was a lot of fun. I can't believe it's Memorial Day weekend, either.. this year is flying by.

Have a wonderful weekend, and thanks again for another great Golden Friday! (Although in this case, I didn't see the post 'til Saturday morning. :) )

Kim said...

Your golden girls are always such a stress buster for me when I am at work. All I have to do is look at them and I smile. Such cute dogs with the prettiest of eyes.

robin andrea said...

Your golden girls are really so beautiful. They look like the kind of dogs Roger and I enjoy running into on the trails we hike. We always stop to say hello and have a chat with all the friendly pups on the way.

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Sounds like a walk I'd love, Carolyn.. Of course, I agree about snakes and also --when in the Smokies, the black bears. We don't want to tangle with them.

Love your Golden Girls. They are so well-behaved. I told Cicero to talk to you about how to 'raise' her doggie.

It is crazy that it's Memorial Day weekend ALREADY. Time--she is a'flying!!!!

Have a great weekend.
Hugs,
Betsy

D.K. Wall said...

Not familiar with that trail, but I know what you mean about the magic of finding a less traveled trail. We hike a lot of the popular trails in the winter, but aim for some more out of the way trails during the busy summer tourist months.

And, yes, we plan to spend the bulk of this weekend out in the woods with the dogs. Maggie will be crowded with Ghost Town opening (I live on a mountain about Ghost Town).

George said...

It certainly looks as if your girls enjoy their romp along the trails. It's great that you have some alternative areas in which they can get their exercise.

Rae said...

They have amazing personalities and sweet smiles. Such wonderful companions.

Dog_geek said...

Great hike - I always enjoy coming here on Fridays and catching up with the golden girls!

The Birdlady said...

The girls are so much fun to watch via your blog! They are beautiful.

Shelley said...

I can't tell you how much I enjoy seeing the golden girl's smiling faces! They must be so fun to have as companions when you walk down the trail. I didn't even think about the snake danger - that's too bad!!

Jane said...

Great pictures.. the gals look so happy! Have a great weekend,

Jane

Cheryl said...

A beautiful quote and one that is very meaningful at this time, for me.

As always the golden girls have bought a lot of joy to my Friday....I look forward so much to seeing them...I click on your blog first every Friday.

They are such obedient dogs.....and obviously have great respect for their pack leader.....

A pleasure as always.........

KGMom said...

Yikes--snake bites on the trail. I don't like the sound of that.
And you are right--those are definitely grins & smiles.

KB said...

Your golden girls have such a great life! It looks like a nice trail for dog play and running.

It never occurred to me that snakes might keep you close to home. It's amazing how different our parts of the country are.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Barb said...

Goldens have such expressive faces! Ellie and Lucy look like they are enjoying their romp. Have a wonderful weekend.

Carol Murdock said...

Had I thought about it when I was so down, I could have just paid a visit to your Friday archives and gotten an instant lift! The girls ALWAYS make me smile!

Robin's Nesting Place said...

I look forward to your Golden Fridays! Your girls are so beautiful!

Anonymous said...

Now those are happy dogs. Those are one of those moments where you really do wonder if dogs can think. They seem to be experiencing pure joy.

Molly said...

Thank you so much for stopping by my site and leaving comment about Olive Kitteridge. I know I will want to re-read that book in order to fully appreciate the writing style - and the Olive's complex character.

I was in awe when your blog page popped up. We have 3 yellow labs and I have a soft spot in my heart for all canine creatures. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about your hiking adventure, and the pictures were such a bonus feature for me.

Busy Bee Suz said...

Such beautiful goldens...and they are living a good life there. I never thought about snakes getting the dogs...our snakes are mild. I don't worry, but we do take ours to NC in the summer sometimes....I'd better remember those copperheads.

Rudee said...

THey have such beautiful smiles. I never thought about snakebites on the trail. Ouch.

troutbirder said...

What a day. Running free. Our state parks etc require leashed dogs so I too look for places my big boy can romp and play. There are rattlesnakes but quite rare hereabouts.

Anonymous said...

When we moved from NC to Wisconsin in the 70's, one of the first things the taxi driver who picked us up at the airport asked us: "Don't you have snakes EVERYWHERE in NC? We don't have any poisonous snakes in Wisconsin."

Anonymous said...

Have a great weeknd - the girls got you off to a good start!

JeanMac said...

Those dogs are so huggable!

Dawn Fine said...

I hear ya...about the snakes..I suppose you have allot more there in the mountains.
We have come accross allot of ticks lately..
I love the woods..but there sure are hazards.
Love your smily pups.

Allison Walton said...

They've got such happy faces! Have a great memorial day weekend!

Wuv,
Gus and Waldo

100 Thoughts of Love said...

i was in NC for first half of the Holiday weekend and it was GORGEOUS !....and now back home its nothing but rain, rain, rain....blah blah blah

Anonymous said...

That 2nd pic of Lucy... that grin, so so cute. I adore Fridays are Golden. Their expressions and ideas on life ... : -)

Yes indeedy to those poisonous snake precautions (well worth it.) I've been snake paranoid all week after several run-ins with the same water snake (non-poisonous) who has been hanging around the toad-rich areas in the yard. We just had our first "water snake round up and release" of this year (I hope it's the last!)

Stay snake safe, and have a great Memorial Day with your family and those beautiful Golden Gals in those gorgeous mountains.

Cedar ... said...

A week isn't complete without a dose of those golden smiles!

Cicero Sings said...

Absolutely nothing like a romp in the woods. Oh, Copperheads ... none of those around here! All I've seen around our immediate area here are garter snakes

NCmountainwoman said...

Thank you all for your comments. When we first took our girls to the veterinarian here, he told us he has seen several dogs from our community with snake bites. He gave us the first aid for copperhead bites since that is the most common poisonous snake we have. They try not to treat dogs with the anti-venin because of severe side effects, so the single most important thing is the keep the dog as quiet as possible and the next is to give benadryl as soon as you can. Should one of them get bitten out on the trails, it would be half an hour at least before we could get back home. That's why they run on our own trails during summer.

Robin - They are great trail dogs. They stay within sight and run straight to us for their leashes if they see anyone else on the trail.

KB - When you bike near mountain lions, I'm sure a copperhead doesn't seem so bad at all.

Marylee - Funny...the first thing the movers asked us when we moved to Wisconsin was, "weren't you afraid of all those poisonous spiders in North Carolina?"

1000 Goldens said...

That looks like a wonderful trail for your girls!