Silly Raccoon

We often have wild visitors on our deck. We feed the birds and find that the squirrels, wild turkeys and raccoons love birdseed too. The raccoons in particular make a mess and do damage so we scare them off whenever we hear them banging around out there, almost always after dark. We had a mother on the deck with 5 little babies one spring, the little ones were so cute. This was when we were building and there was no deck rail up yet. The mother ran for the hills shimmying down the deck support pole while the little ones ran to the edge, turned, and were slightly over the edge hanging on for dear life. They stayed there looking at us as if they feared they would be our next meal and considering their options. Five little baby faces peering at us, so adorable! One by one they either attempted to descend the railing after mom, simply jumped or lost their grip and fell. Being very small and having a soft landing on the forest floor they all survived. We were surprised that the mother deserted her children like that, but she must have stayed close & we did not see them again.

Last week we once again heard the banging and noise on the deck that meant a 'coon was at the feeder. This raccoon was on the deck when I ran out the back door making noise to send it running in hopes that it would be scared enough not to return for a while. Well, evidently I scared it alright. We can only imagine it is this years baby and still young and inexperienced. It ran to the corner of the deck and simply froze. It seemed to think that as long as it couldn't see us we couldn't see it either & it was safe. I stood not 4 feet from the critter as it peeked over the railing at me and then quickly hid its head again. Calling Joe to come and see I waited while he came up from the lower level, got his jacket on and come out onto the deck. I thought for sure that at any minute it would run along the railing to the edge of the deck and out into the night. That or, as the mother did some years back, head down the deck post to the ground and safely make its way into the woods. I didn't want Joe to miss seeing him up close and standing still. He had his chance and we both stood and talked with the raccoon for about 5 minutes. The raccoon did not respond, or move again for that matter. We went in and watched from the window for a few more minutes but the raccoon did not budge. Since we had all the lights on we felt that this was probably the reason for the continued game of 'statue'. Off went the lights and when we checked back a 1/2 hour later the raccoon was gone. Its been very quiet on the deck lately & while we enjoy having these up close experiences, we are happy for the peace as well.

Walking with dog - the sequel

Maddie and I take many solitary walks through the various trails and hiking paths around Boyne. The woods change with the seasons and fall is one of my favorites. The leaves on the ground make a beautiful blanket and you can once again see the contour of the land through the trees.

This fall there has been a large amount of little white moths on the floor of the woods. When Maddie runs along through the leaves they rise up behind her and it looks like a silver fairy trail floating a few feet off the ground. I would love to have a picture for you, but my camera is not up to the job. This silver path is simply amazing as it sparkles and moves. Walt Disney couldn't have had a better model for tinker bells magic trail. The Northern Michigan Woods are truly a magical place.

Maddie likes to run, but with the possibilities of hunters in the woods she wears her 'hunters orange' to decrease the possibility of any accidents. She's a trooper and doesn't seem to mind this, or the new back pack we purchased for her so she can carry her own drinking water and treats, leashes, etc. On the trail, Maddie will find any available standing water and take a drink. Some of the water does not look incredibly palatable, but so far she has not gotten sick from these nature made bowls. I'm hoping her luck holds or she gets a little more choosy about where she drinks. We had a traveling water bowl but she chewed it. I'll get another and with a fresh water supply and portable bowl in her backpack she'll be ready for hiking in health and style.

Running with dogs

OK, So I don't actually run with them, but they run. I've been walking Maddie at a local park in town where it is a bit safer to let her run during the fall hunting season. People are not supposed to be hunting in that area so I put her orange vest on her and can let her go. A lot of people take their dogs up there to give them some exercise and although I believe technically you should have them on leash, most are not. Maddie LOVES to run and really NEEDS to get her energy out. Once she's had a good hour walk she is chill for the rest of the day, just the way we like it!
A couple weeks ago I ran into two women who were also walking their dogs up there and we walked together while the dogs played and ran. We all got along so well that we've been walking together whenever possible and the dogs, a Golden Retriever and a Wheaten Terrier along with Maddie who is a Belgian Tervuren Sheepdog just have a ball together. We meet every day we can so the dogs (and us by default) have a good hour walk/run.

Each day the dogs seem to find a lot to explore and often find things of interest. They have a spot with a double tree where the bottom makes a natural bowl so they can get a drink, they have returned first with little round burrs and more recently with long pointy ones that we talk about combing out of our respective dogs in the evenings. More recently a spot was found with something fowl (we believe turkey poop) and the other two dogs have rolled in it requiring baths. Until today I was very pleased with Maddie for not joining in and therefore not needing a bath. Today it was bath day. She ran ahead and when I saw her she was rolling on her back in the offending spot. I called her over, took one whiff and knew what the rest of the afternoon held for me. Luckily she is a great dog when it comes to baths and doesn't put up much of a struggle.

I love walking through the woods and seeing or hearing the turkeys on the ground, or as the other day, roosting in the trees. The little gifts they leave on the ground that the dogs can't seem to resist are a whole other story!

The beauty of it is, Northern Michigan woodlands are SO beautiful and there is SO much of interest in the woods that these little issues are really non-issues. The dog can be brushed (and it promotes bonding) and can be bathed. The time together running in the woods is irreplaceable and the joy of breathing fresh (fall in this case) air and experiencing the outdoors is what life is all about.