 Click to enlarge. Nice Friday hike at Thornwood with Camille, Dewey and Harley. We trekked up Bridle Trail and instead of turning left toward Schilling Lake, we took a right onto Schilling Lake Trail to explore a new route.
Schilling Lake Trail offers more flat terrain (sans switchbacks) and is also a bit more exposed in areas which made it pretty hot in the mid afternoon sun, but we found plenty of shade for some rest & water breaks. During one of our stops, Dewey decided Camille made a great prop and cozied up to relax... Camille didn't seem to mind as she leaned into him (top). Harley was pretty tired (only his second hike with us) and appreciated the rest after a healthy drink of water. The longer hike made for some pooped pooches! Schilling Lake Trail ends at a private road with a small parking area which we'll explore as an alternate starting point for future Thornwood adventures.  Click to enlarge. We had a full crew of 5 dogs today, including River, who joined us for his first hike. Camille and Dash had lots of energy as usual and decided the car ride there was a good time to sneak in some playtime in the back seat.
River was excited at pick-up, but when he realized that we were driving away without his person, he decided to let out a howl. This was a first and caught the rest of the crew by surprise as he howled a few more times while riding shotgun on the way there. Once we hit the trails, River fit right in with the others... Dewey showed him the ropes by setting a fast pace and Leika balanced us out by ensuring that we weren't too speedy. We caught the attention of some passing motorists as we hit the trail and they smiled and pointed in amusement at the crew. The dogs kept a steady pace and got in some good exercise (along with their guide). As you can see from the post hike picture (lower right), the ride home was much calmer; no howls, just some happy, tired dogs... another great adventure!  Click to enlarge. Nice hike at Thornwood... small crew today, but we had fun. The .7 mile hike up Bridle Trail to Schilling Lake has some pretty steep switchbacks and running up was a great workout for all.
Camille and Leika enjoyed the fresh air, fair weather and beautiful scenery as we took a break at the lake for a profile shot and some water before heading back. We discovered another trail (Schilling Lake Trail) with this little bridge, but we had to save that one for our next Thornwood adventure!  Click to enlarge. Today was a Dewey day! We had the trails to ourselves and didn't encounter a soul for the entire hike - pretty nice.
We worked in some cardio via some nice inclines and incorporating some running into our hike... it was a nice workout for me and Dewey was game. The weather was mild and well suited for the activities. We made the loop in about 45 min today with the faster pace. I really like this hike - it has become our regular Friday hike spot... Dewey said he likes it too!  Click to enlarge. Before we even made it to the trails, we encountered some wildlife... two deer! I got a shot of one jumping the road to join the other (iPhone camera doesn't really do them justice).  Click to enlarge. This was our first hike at Windy Hill and we will definitely be back... the views are amazing!  Click to enlarge. We found a water trough along the trail with fresh running water flowing into it... the dogs all stopped for a drink and then Gus decided to take a dip (as Leika watched in confusion)!  Click to enlarge. Dewey and Camille were blazing the trail today...
As we headed back, we saw a really cool contrail shooting straight up into the sky. Anniversary Trail was great... looking forward to exploring the other trails here soon... |