Snow Day, Part 2, A Husky in His Element

The snow stopped Wednesday afternoon and the wind went down. I loaded up TJ and Maya and headed up to Pleasant Grove for a walk.

No one had been on this stretch of trail;
it was all ours.

Waiting until the sun was out on Thursday would have made for a prettier hike perhaps, but the adventurer in me wanted to be among the first on the trails. There is nothing quite like walking on untouched snow. There's a picture I have seen on Facebook of a dog looking out over a vast area, with the caption: "It's all mine, all I have to do is pee on it." TJ seemed to have that same attitude yesterday, as if the covering of snow wiped away all prior ownership claims and it was ours for the taking. We all did our part, but TJ put out the best effort. While TJ was busy marking every tree and clump of grass, Maya was in hunting mode, even more than usual. She was convinced that the snow covered grasses were concealing small prey underneath, rodents, rabbits, birds, whatever. I got a really nice series of pictures that I'll share tomorrow, but today's pictures are mostly about the Husky. 

I can't complain about the occasional snow day given the fact that dogs like TJ have to suffer through Virginia summers. TJ will go for a hike any time of year, but summer heat is tough on him. Days like yesterday were made for him. Not only did he enjoy the cold and snow, but he looks good in it too. 

We covered three miles, some on virgin snow, some following others' tracks or on the roadway. Walking in snow is tougher, and my legs told me that three miles on even a little snow was the equivalent of five miles on dry ground. 

Snow covered trees are pretty.

It was getting darker so I tried some pictures with the flash.
It really lit up his face.

I always love it when I stop while walking two dogs
and they turn their heads in opposite directions. It's an
efficient use of their resources, each scanning the
woods nearest to them, looking for prey or for threats.
The sweep of Maya's tail shows that she's fully engaged.

TJ doesn't have Maya's prey drive, but he is
still very observant and doesn't miss much.

TJ is more interested when we see other dogs or
people. Maya cares only for deer and other prey.

Towards the end of our walk the sun was going down and
the pictures are darker, the snow looks almost blue.

This wasn't deep snow, but it was enough to
require a different combination of leg muscles.
I think even the dogs were done after three miles.