Raz and I went for a long noon hike today. The weather has been cool and rainy lately, which tends to delay our hiking plans. I figured that today I needed a hike way more than staying dry, so off we went. The trail was a combination of known, good trails, some experimental routes (i.e. bushwhacking), along with covering a couple old trails I haven't been on in a while. And, of course, being on the lookout for something new to explore. I took a few pictures along the way, but they didn't turn out very well. Still, they provide a glimpse of a fall hike in New England.

Lately Raz has been running off after wildlife on our hikes, disappearing into the distance for ten to twenty minutes. This is a bummer for a couple of reasons: I don't really want to abandon him (well, some days) and it's not much fun sitting around twiddling my thumbs while he's off being a goober. After he did it today I put him on the leash for the remainder of the hike; neither one of us enjoying it.

It's been really dry the last two months so our recent rain is welcome. With the new moisture the mushrooms are finally out, along with the Red Efts. Fall is well under way. I noticed the hillsides had changed color on the drive to work the other day and the forest floor is carpeted in newly fallen leaves, making it a bit of a challenge to follow some of the trails.

Towards the end of the hike I had a strange experience: a bird flew over my head. I mean right over it, like a few inches from flapping into my hair. I could feel the air from it's wings and heard some sound, perhaps of air through feathers. Oddly enough I didn't even turn to try and look for it: "Yeah, buzz bombed by a bird. Whatever." Gotta try harder to keep the sense of wonder alive.