corrals

corrals this morning, early. we started out around 7:40. things were frozen, but it was pretty clear that folks have been out when it's soft and wet. you can see that this is mud rather than sand, and the trail is getting rutted and pockmarked already.

the sun was just coming up when we headed out- it was beautiful.

the gates were frozen, so we climbed over the first one, but the dogs couldn't slide around the second so we turned around, backtracked & went up hard guy (had to climb that gate too). got to the bottom of the draw & found water, so we gave up & headed back out.

the trail on the north side was icy and will be soft as the day warms up.

we noticed an opportunity to be good citizens on the way in, so we did some opp patrol on the way out. and there was plenty. what is with people? it just isn't that hard. the trailhead has bags & a trash can. most of this was pretty close to both.

it's an out & back, so it should be pretty damn easy to bag poop up, leave it by the side of the trail (i always leave it on the right side coming back, so i know where to look), pick up on the way out and toss. believe me, it isn't any less disgusting for me to pick up some other dog's leavings than it is for the owner. at least things were frozen this am.

the velopark had some opportunity for tlc too. not sure what it takes to get through to people.

enjoy the rest of the weekend!

eagle velopark

went out to the velopark in eagle for today's hike. we were asked to provide some input on off leash trails. i'd never hiked out there, so it was all new & interesting to me.

i think it's great what IVCPA (Idaho Velodrome & Cycling Park Association) has accomplished. Lots of volunteer hours have gone into building features for bikers who want to jump, jam downhill and otherwise challenge themselves. i believe that these folks need to have an appropriate place to ride the way they want to ride, and this park is growing into what appears to be a nice venue for them.

rabbit run is the one ridge to rivers trail in the area and it connects to big springs, veteran's cemetery and hopefully in the future to avimor and other yet to be developed trails. rabbit run, rei connector and all trails above the cemetery are currently off leash.
it is especially important to follow the rules in this area because failing to do so can cause serious bodily harm- to a dog or to someone on a bike or both. this jump goes over the trail, and any loose dog below would be seriously injured if someone came flying off.

in other areas, dog are supposed to be leashed because bikes can and will be flying around corners, over berms, etc. pretty much not what i would consider a relaxing trail experience if busy.

today was beautiful, tho- broody gray skies and, where it wasn't burned, sagebrush.

views of the valley

happy trails!

monday

happy thanksgiving week! mt parents are here, so posting may be sporadic, but my mom & i will enjoy a daily hike in the reserve.

yesterday my friend the hawk showed up.
and it was a beautiful day. a bit hectic at work again, nice to take a break & clear my brain!
happy trails, have a great week!

interpretive trail

what a beautiful day! we had a great hike on the interpretive trail today. this trail is pedestrian only. it's pretty narrow and goes through some beautiful areas. margie & i both stay away in the summer- it's kind of snaky & has lots of poison ivy by the water, but it is wonderful this time of year. we ran into 4 other folks- all with dogs- on our 5.6 mile hike.

there are signs along the trail. some have interesting (to me) info about the geology, flora & fauna and history of the area. some (less interesting to me) contain poetry. one of the signs has a picture of petroglyphs with a poem about them. i wonder if there are petroglyphs in this area? we couldn't see any, but i don't know why else you'd have a sign like that.

the poop sitch could have been better. margie & i cleaned up the parking area after our hike. there is not a bag dispenser at the trailhead, but there is a trash can. no excuses.

happy trails!

blue skies... and trail conditions

another lovely day. one thing about doing the lunch hour walk is that it's been warm & beautiful.

i see different groups of people too- today it was a leadership group/class. otherwise very quiet.

today, the trail conditions report went live. the new improved format is a joint effort between SWIMBA, Boise Trail DOG and Ridge to Rivers and can be accessed from any of our sites. volunteers report on the trails they hiked/rode/ran, etc. click here to check it out.

if you're interested in helping, let me know- we could use a bit more coverage. and please check the report if you have any question about how things are out there. it's up to all of us to preserve the resource.

happy trails!

more (in)sanity

more craziness yesterday & today. very grateful for the break of being able to walk the dogs in the peace & quiet and beauty of the foothills for some perspective & calm.

clouds looking like hieroglyphics with a secret message yesterday....

beautiful blue sky how bad can it really be day this afternoon....
we were in the reserve around 2:30 this afternoon- i really needed to calm down & clear my head, and it worked like magic. saw a coyote in the marsh on the way out. the dogs didn't even notice him looking at us. nice reminder to slow down and look around.

happy trails!

it's a monday!

it was a monday, through & through! started off with a bang at work, and i knew i needed to get out & walk & chill.... and it was beautiful. trails are dry- red fox is so sandy that it's usually a safe bet....
still icy & snowy on the north side

and dry on top of chickadee.

i suspect that lots of trails got chopped up yesterday- heard reports of heavy use on wet military reserve trails, and as we were coming out of corrals & things were getting soft lots of people were heading in. people like to wait to get out when it warms up, but that's worst on the trails in the winter. better to bundle up & get out when things are still frozen.

boise trail dog, swimba & r2r are working on a trail conditions reporting system for this winter that will provide good coverage & current info for most trails. we are recruiting regular trail users to spend a few minutes when they get home to update a spreadsheet that will be easy for folks to go to & see how things look, which trails might be appropriate, which to stay away from, etc. more to come on that.

it was beautiful- and lots of folks out taking advantage. 8 with dogs, 5 without- this around 10.

on top of chickadee, 2 women in front of us raised their arms and shouted. halle started barking, they turned around & said we're getting the frustration out- we all laughed. sanity in the form of being outside, moving, being in the presence of something bigger....

most owners great with their dogs. we passed several leashed on trail no problem. one woman with a white & black puppy, letting it run ahead of her. i grabbed the dogs, a runner said "it's not my dog"- puppy ahead of the runner, who was ahead of the owner, who made zero effort to get her dog.

so i let go of halle, walked echo by. he made a good show of barking. said owner cluelessly looked on, laughing nervously as halle jumped to play with her pup. i'm sure she thought i wasn't very nice, but i didn't have the patience today to explain that i didn't want to trip the runner, and i didn't want my dogs to say hi to her dog. i just moved them on.

it was a gorgeous morning, and i returned to my desk fortified. :)

have a great week- stay off muddy trails!

friday the 13th

another beautiful morning...... been seeing a lot of these guys around lately. trying to figure out what they are- clearly some sort of hawk, but not a red tail- too small. mystery solved- it's a kestrel or sparrow hawk.

smidge of snow on the hills

and a little bit on the owyhees......

this falls under the category of wtf? been seeing more bags left out in the middle of trails lately- and have heard the same from other folks. i have gotten into the habit of leaving bags going in to see if they're still there when i come out. this one was. right in the middle of the trail. do people think that someone cleans up after them? of course, we do, and it would be worse if we didn't, but this is 50 feet or less from a trash can, i mean come on!
anyway..... thanks to those of you who help us keep it clean. happy trails!

catch up

been a little crazy at the job that pays the bills, so even though i've been out, i missed blogging.

found out what this is all about on wednesday- they're rerouting one of the storm drains to go out on 13th an alleviate some of the flooding that happens when it gets really soggy.

i thought that getting out at around 10- 10:30 would mean fewer people- WRONG! both yesterday and today, at least8 other groups with dogs and 4-5 without.

here's the camel's back parking lot on wednesday around 11.

beautiful & sunny today after it quit raining. red fox draining well, as usual.

we stopped at the top of the hill before heading to the off leash area b/c i saw 2 women coming with a little black dog on a leash. they stopped and called for some other dogs. and called. sounded like the dogs were out of sight and behind them. they got leashed up- a jack russell & i think a black lab- and came up the hill.

when they were a little way past me i heard one of the women say something annoyed about seeing poop on (or along the trail). i was wondering if she thought that her dog, which was clearly behind her and out of sight at least part of their walk, would never do such a thing? maybe she thinks said dog is just going off trail, so it's ok (it isn't).

almost the weekend! happy trails!

sanity

out later again this morning, due to prep for a conference call. i am always surprised at how many other people are out at 10 or 11 am..... there were 7 of us with dogs and another 3 people or groups without.

i thought that this little plant was pretty- like the movement of the leaves and the reminder that sometimes focusing on the small things instead of the wide open is a good thing.

tho the wide open is pretty good too! some color still hanging on.
everyone was polite & following rules.

i was, once again, reminded of how glad i am to have found a trainer that i like & that i have continued to work with the dogs. having fun doing the advanced class with echo, and very proud of his ability to heel through distraction- we did it today on the trail. and since he walks by the other dog, halle does too. it's just a great feeling and i am very proud of what we've accomplished. many thanks to paula for her patience and her passion for dogs and training.

happy trails!

november 9

i took photos friday- it was another lovely morning- but we headed out of town as soon after work as we could, so i didn't post....


took this photo near dollarhide summit- a little bit of snow, a BIG wolf track...they're probably all this big, but never ceases to amaze me.

started working at 5:30 this morning, took a break around 10 to get our walk in. more people out at that time than i would have expected- 5 with, 3 without, following the rules & polite.

the red in the middle of the photo is the flood retention pond...... not sure what's floating on it that's red......

and our friend the hawk...... i will some day get a good photo.....

happy trails- here's to a great week!