Zealand & Hale, A Dog's Tale

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Double Bow

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Allow me to introduce myself. My name is George. I am a retired greyhound that the guy you know as "Double Bow" rescued. He likes to hike a lot but I don't have the stamina to do the kind of hiking he enjoys. I like to sprint, not do marathons! Regardless, sometimes I humor him and come along on one of his hikes. We kind of have an understanding. I'll go if we keep it short and slow and we don't go when it's too hot or cold. Well, this time he really pushed me.

I had previously done Starr King and Waumbek and enjoyed them and now "Double Bow' and "Shamie" were going to take me up my second 4K, Hale. I was pretty excited as we were going up the Hale Brook Trail but I kinda kept tiring myself out trying to go faster. Boy that trail is steep! There were some scary rocks that I had to climb over but, I managed to get up the mountain without any help. Mom & Dad were so proud of me! They kept telling me how good I was and encouraged me all the way up. At the top, Mom had lunch and hung out for over an hour while I napped. Then we headed back down the way we came up. I didn't really want to go back down but, Mom said I had to so I did. Again, no problems but boy was I tired afterward.

Dad on the other hand, took off. He said he'd meet us at the car in 5 hours. Mom doubted it. He had 11 miles to go! He starting running down the Lend-A-Hand trail (where he counted 67 new bog bridges) and out to Zeacliff where he took a half hour break, had lunch, and talked to ATers. After that, he pushed on to the summit of Zealand where he took a 15min break to rest and eat his apple. Once he was done with that, he headed back towards Zealand Falls Hut. He said he was going slower then because he knee was bothering him a little.

When he got to the hut, he refilled his water and checked out the falls. Then he saw that he still had about 2.7miles to go and only 45 minutes to make it back to the car (which Mom and I had taken to the Zealand trailhead). He cinched his pack tight and jogged or hiked fast back to the car and made it back to us in 40 minutes. Mom was suprised that he covered those 11 miles in less than 5 hours, especially when he told her that he took over 45 minutes worth of breaks. I didn't think it was a big deal. I used to go much faster than that when I was racing. I used to hit speeds of close to 40mph! He was only averaging 4mph on his fastest section!

Ah, well, I can't understand those two. All I know is that they're nice to me, they tells me I'm good, and they gives me treats. What more could a dog want?

Sorry there are no pictures but, I don't have opposable thumbs. Typing this was hard enough!
 
Nice perspective from the dog, change is always good. I look forward to another adventure from George.
 
Great TR, Ross. Coincidentally, Hale was the last 4k I did with my Golden Retriever. She has always disliked going uphill and is now getting up there in years, so she is relegated to smaller hikes now. Good job yourself on burning through the rest of the hike.

Marty
 

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