THE LAST DAY OF SUMMER -- A WALK WITH NELLIE

I try to keep current with my blog posts – or else in the distant past. Nevertheless, when I took the pictures off my camera, I discovered that I had some nice landscape photos taken last Thursday, Sept. 21, the last day of summer. Mike had taken Bess and gone hunting. (The figure in the field in the above photo is Mike, and I think I see Bess, too.) So Nellie and I decided to take our own walk/hike.

As you can see, it was a brilliant afternoon with billowy white clouds. We headed down the lane and into the draw. Nellie has become a creature of habit and questions a deviation, but I convinced her we should take a new route, i.e., not climb Plank’s Pitch. I don't think she minds the Pitch much, but I do. From the draw, we proceeded into the gully, and Nellie enjoyed poking around in the grass and under the trees while I climbed into the field. The landmarks were familiar to us. We weren’t lost.

As we circled down into the old Plank field, we were then on the other side of the gully. I stayed above while Nellie explored near the brush. She found a deer trail under some trees and bushes, but surprisingly, she stopped and looked back at me as if to say, “Come down here, please. I want to go into this brush but not without your presence.” So, she waited patiently while I descended to her, and then she went into the brush to check it out. She didn’t stay there long, and we were once again on our way around the field.

At 14, Nellie has her physical challenges, but she can still negotiate pretty well in the field. Above, she takes the shortcut back to the lane.

This spectacular cloud appears to grow behind the house. Looking closely at the picture, you can see Nellie trotting back to the house through the field. She prefers the field to the gravel in the road.

 

Predictably, as evening approached, a storm developed.

Saturday Nellie and I again took a little walk. This time in order to avoid Plank’s Pitch we circled down off the road, entering June's field at the northern edge so that I could examine the elderberry and apple trees. And then we walked back to the house in the field above the lane. KW