Max and Maya

I haven't taken two dogs out hiking together since sometime last spring before it got hot. I didn't think that Sparky or Trooper could handle the heat and Max would always over do it, so it's been just Maya and me for most of the late spring through early fall. We both have enough sense to slow down when it's hot. It's cool enough now, though, for the boys to get back on the trails at least for occasional walks. It's easier for me to handle multiple dogs when it's cooler too, and more importantly, there are fewer "other people" out there now so fewer encounters where handling multiple dogs becomes trickier.

You can tell by Maya's tail, and their pace, that she's caught
the scent of something here. 

Today it was just Max and Maya. He's been antsy and really needing more exercise. We did about 4.5 miles and would have done more but we were losing daylight fast by the end of the hike. The sun was down by 5:00 p.m., and by 5:15 it was dark enough that it was time to be out of the woods. The temperature really dropped when the sun disappeared too. I don't like it getting dark so early, but I do like the cooler temperature and we shaved a couple minutes off the pace that I had been doing throughout the summer. That was due in part to the temperature, and it was also due in part to having Max along.

Max was happy to be out again and he moved along quickly and that encouraged Maya to move faster too, at least when he wasn't stopping to pee, poop, or sniff. Maya typically stops to pee and poop soon after we get on the trail. Max poops three times in the first half mile, and this time he made a fourth stop towards the end. I'm never sure if he has trouble eliminating fully or if he's marking territory. You can't assume that normal dog behavior will apply to Max.

We didn't actually spot any deer today, but they
got a scent a couple times and we heard some.

I need to get back to walking regularly and I'll probably start walking the boys in rotation, one at a time, with Maya, until I get strong enough to try walking three together again.

A bench along the trail overlooking the Rivanna.

These two do walk really well together.

I still believe that fall is the prettiest time of
year in Virginia.