7:30 am. 23 degrees.

It was a balmy warm day at the kennel today. I’m getting quicker with laying out harnesses, so that went fairly well and we got out on the trail at a reasonable hour. We were fortunate the clouds stayed over us so it didn’t warm up too much for the dogs first day of the long route. From about 4.5 miles, to 10.5 it was amazing to watch the dog’s strength on some gruelling uphills. They finally looked a little tired by the time we got back to the kennel. Hopefully with a few more snowfalls they’ll be doing that run once or twice every day depending on how many guests we have.

Sometimes I think I should run with the dogs to build up my cardio, but I think they’d end up dragging me along the ground as I panted ridiculously. Joel seems to be getting the hang of things and Beagle has already learned most of the dog’s names which took me almost a year.

I had Beagle help me de-worm today so the whole process was much more enjoyable. He squirmed on the ground with them, holding them still, I opened their mouths and poured the medicine in. I got in a good snuggle with each of them as well! The sun came out after we got back so I was down to three layers and no jacket. I’ve been waiting for a few sunny days like this to warm my bones back up.

My brilliant idea for down glove jackets hasn’t panned out yet, so I’m resorting to my one pair of gloves with a second fingerless pair over for a little more warmth. So far, so good. I should be an experiment in where heat goes, cause not a lot of it stays in my body!