Rain is predicted today, so yesterday I made "take Piper to the pond" a priority.
We haven't gone for many of our favorite Autumn rambles at the pond because the Highlander has been in the shop several times recently, and usually for more than one day each time.
It's one of those repair situations where fixing Critical Issue A (to the tune of over $900, which made me blink) unfortunately leads to Critical Issues B though D. The tally is now over three thousand dollars, and yesterday when I got the call from the office manager at the garage saying "your Highlander is fixed," I felt a bit like Charlie Brown and the football.
Anyway, after morning chores and getting the truck back, I brushed Piper thoroughly so that any burrs she might pick up in the woods would be a bit easier to remove, and off we went.
Can you see all those little specks on Pip's coat? She went through a stand of goldenrod and picked up a few seeds to disperse along the trail.
Sniffing is one of Piper's very favorite things to do.
She did a lot of it yesterday;
The colors were phenomenal.
So much green and gold.
Piper ambled to and fro while I took photographs
and picked up bits of things to possibly sketch someday.
It was while I was photographing this pitcherplant...
...that Piper went into the bog.
I don't know if she intended to go in, or if she was thinking of having a drink and was taken by surprise by the sudden depth of what is usually just wet ground.
But in a flash she was in muddy water halfway up her ribs, and her effort to turn around and get out only made her feet sink deeper into the muck.
Thinking she might panic, I quickly squelched over and grabbed her collar to give her something solid to pull against.
Result: one very stinky, mucky hound and one equally mucky shoe and trouser leg. I didn't take a picture, but Piper looked very much as she did in this blogpost - with a higher waterline.
Piper was expecting to carry on rambling and sniffing as if she wasn't soaking wet and dripping muck, but since it was chilly and windy, our ramble was curtailed.
Even worse from Piper's point of view, the moment we got home she immediately had a very thorough bath.
After which, everything I was wearing went into the washer with extra detergent.
We are so clean now.
All ready for today's rain.
~~~~~
