Merlin's Diary: County Hiking Challenge 2012--Hike 10/14

Mommy and I did a hike today that we only do when it is on the hiking challenge and only after our friend who also does The Challenge has done this one. This is because Mommy considers this hike "unfriendly". This hike is in one of the richest parts of the county and is full of warning signs that normal human beings don't seem to need because we don't see them at the other preserves.

This sign shows up about every 1/2 mile.

(Mommy erased the phone number if you were wondering.)

There is even a sign with a picture of an endangered turtle on it that tells you these very special turtles are very rare and are in the preserve and then tells you you mustn't bother the turtle if you see it. Mommy thinks that rich people need these signs because they just assume they own everything they see and it is theirs to play with or take. We saw a mom letting her child climb all over construction equipment that was parked at the trail head today. We have never seen this in other areas. We have seen parents walking around equipment with their kids and pointing out parts, but they've never let them touch it, much less climb on it like it was playground equipment.

Anyway, at this preserve a lot of the trails have "NO DOGS ALLOWED" signs on them too, and I'm not allowed to walk on ANY mowed trails, which, as you know, are my favorites. In the past, even though the Challenge trail is not marked "no dogs allowed" it has gone onto a "NO DOGS ALLOWED" trail and Mommy and I have had to turn around, so that is why we wait for our friend to tell us if it is worth us driving to the preserve. I didn't wear my camera today because the temperatures were in the low 40s and the Merlin Cam tends to malfunction below 50 degrees, so you will have to put up with Mommy's photos only.

First off, when you hike here you want to look WEST because if you look east what you see are houses that are bigger than some hotels we've seen. Why does anyone need a house that big? How many dog beds do they have to have so their dog can have one in each room?

Great big houses.
If you want to see this photo bigified, click here.

Me eating treats I stole from Mommy's bag while she was taking the previous picture

On the west side you see a river. It is a very small river and has been artificially straightened in sections too

Mommy was standing on this bridge to take the previous picture. That is another strange thing about this preserve. It has very fancy bridges. Most of the trail bridges in other preserves are just wooden spans with handrails. The ones here have fancy posts and wrought iron rails...

..or are all fancy concrete made to look like carved stone

Anyway, after you cross the river you get to a more wild area with ponds and woods. You can still see the houses to the east, but there is a small scrubby buffer between the trails and the homes.