Hills, Bugs and Dogs • A trip to Vermont

 We took a trip up north to Vermont the last few days to visit relatives.  Driving in the Northeast, no matter which route one takes, is challenging and a real hair raiser (if I had any).  Seems like there were a million cars on the road going north and south, east and west, like a swarm of ants one might see when turning over an old, decomposed log.

Getting there, then wasn't so much fun, but it was uneventful until, with less than 2 miles to go, there was no longer any internet connection for our Google map.  Silly me, I didn't do a map study or print out a map, or save a map off line.  I will never learn.  Luckily, the old fashioned way of getting directions worked, as we found a very nice older gentleman who provided excellent directions to our destination.  The extra 20 minutes of driving blind was not in vain as the scenery was outstanding.  Ponds, hilly terrain, dirt roads, old and new homes, a few fruit farms and even a Vermont dairy farm. Nice.

I knew keeping my walking streak going wasn't going to be an easy task, as the place we were staying was on a very steep hill and lots of activities were planned. Cars going up and down past the home fly by, either letting it go downhill or revving it up going up hill. Thus, just going outside was taking your life in your hands if you were not observant.  Walking downhill to the flats and the local ponds was difficult, but manageable. Walking back up was a major challenge.  Even if I were still young, I am not sure if I could have run back up to the house without walking a bit.  

To compound the situation, the flies, mosquitoes and bugs were in full force.  I don't like using a spray, so I have a number of welts garnered from some ambitious bugs that seem to like my skin and blood.  

Finally, the neighbor next door up the hill a bit had two good sized dogs that like to roam the neighborhood and scare walkers and people on bikes. For some odd reason, these dogs are smart enough to stay out of the roadway when cars go zooming by, but here I come up the hill and here they come out into the road.  

I had to use my "coaching" voice a number of times to get them to stop and then, finally turn and go back home.  Meanwhile, no sight of their owner, even when I am certain my voice carried well into the home, where the side door was wide open.

I did get some miles in and even went down into the town and walked three plus miles along the flats, with the final half mile doing laps around an outdoor basketball court.  

I was happy to return to my flat home base with some woods, but not overwhelming and complete my walking today in a fine, soft rain with the temperature at 79º.  Worked for me.

A lovely pond along the road I walked

Another view of the same pond