Pussy Willows and Skunk Cabbage!

Petey and I headed out to the Co. Park for a two hour hike in 60 degree weather. It was threatening rain, but actually balmy out. What a welcome surprise after the past couple of months of fridged weather. As always when it isn't perfect weather.....we had the place to ourselves! If you go out in all sorts of weather it enhances the nature experience, everything looks completely different from the day before. That's what keeps me coming back everyday...the view is always different. We saw three beautiful Adult Red tail Hawks, three Yellow shafted Flickers, Pine Siskins, Gold Finch, Red-bellied Woodpeckers, Juncos, Chickadees, and three tom turkeys. Petey started to chase the turkeys and I called him off and he came! So proud of my boy! Watching Petey's joy today, while he was out there running in fields, jumping over fallen trees, and trailing game made my heart sing. He turns the worst of days into great fun. I am never sorry for having made the effort to take him for his run, no matter how tired or crappy I feel. We both benefit greatly from every hike we take together. Today while on the fields, every so often Petey would run back at me and start to spin circles, four or five at a time at lightening speed, I started to tell him to SPIN every time he did them, I think he got the word connection. It's really funny to watch him lose his head in joy! Life is so simple when you share it with a canine companion. He actually smiles, its contagious...then I'm smiling. When we got to the top of the park, I remembered to check the willow bush as we do annually every Spring, and sure enough there were catkins out! A sure sign of impending Spring...for me it is going to come on fast and furious from here on in. Unless you spend the Winter out in the woods it is easy to miss the stubble signs of the most glorious time of the year beginning. For a lot of people when they see traditional ornamental flowers in bloom that is when they think Spring. For me it's pussy willows and the skunk Cabbage poking it little red flower out of the muddy banks of streams, and today....I saw the first skunk cabbage! Monday there was nothing there, and today...they have started to push up from the rapidly defrosting stream bank. They are the first flower to bloom, there waiting for the Morning Cloak to come out of hibernation with a meal. I'm so excited....I am only days away from hearing a Spring Peeper!!!