A Spring Swim

After complaining last week about our unspringlike weather, well we have been treated to quite a few days now of lovely weather.  This is my favourite time of year.  Everything is new and fresh.  The vegetation hasn't gone wild and jungle-like yet, and it is not hot.  I am not a hot-weather person, this is the kind of weather I like.  I have to confess though, that I did make a comment one or two days when working outside that 'phew, it's hot'.  It wasn't really, but I was exerting myself, and who knows, at my age, maybe I was having one of those 'power surges'? 

On days like this it's nice to take the dogs for a walk and a swim.  Our favourite spot is Nathan creek, which is only a 7 minute drive away.  It is a dyke alongside a creek just before it flows into the Fraser River.

Jake runs ahead, goes down to the water at what he thinks might be a likely spot, and then stands and watches one of us, JUST IN CASE WE MIGHT PICK THIS SPOT TO THROW A STICK IN THE WATER!!

Does this photo make me look fat?

Yes, Jake, for some reason it does.  Don't they always say the camera adds 10 pounds? 

Although 10 lbs on you would be positively obese.

There's lots of water here, how about this spot?

Almost there Jake. 

We like to go down the end where there is a gravel bar to stand on , and rock rather than mud along the edge

Luna always picks the shortest distance to swim, and enters the water cautiously for the first time.

And then emerges on the side where she went in, and has to run along the bank back to us.  Can't you just picture her as a grizzly bear with a salmon in her mouth in this photo?

Two labs came down to our end, but their owner said they didn't know how to swim.  Huh?

They didn't pay any attention to us throwing the sticks either.  I think they are an embarassment to their breed.  Hmm, better watch what I'm saying.  Jake is a border collie, and he doesn't give a hoot about herding.

Calli likes to find the perfect rock, dig holes in the sand if there is any, and take the rock for a swim.  She doesn't chew the rock, just carries it around.  She usually carries it back along the dyke, and we have to get her to drop it before she gets in the car.

With the warm dry weather, the farmers are able to get on their fields and do some plowing.   They were spreading liquid cow manure also, thankfully the wind was not blowing our way.

A great blue heron flew up the creek

                                 Jake found  another potential stick throwing

spot on the way back.

I really like this photo below.  Notice I said 'I'.  Not expecting the other few people that read this blog to feel the same way:), but there is just something about it to me.  The colour, the water, the sunlight, the intensity of Jake's gaze.  The way his left elbow is turned out slightly, because if Larry (which is who Jake is staring at) makes the slightest move in his direction, he will spin round to his right and probably go into a play bow, in preparation of something being thrown.  This is our desktop photo right now.  Don't forget that you can click on any photo to see it much larger.

We made one last visit down to the water while a couple of Belgian Shepherds on leashes passed by, and then headed home