Today's hike was not as epic as I would have liked, but it was still a great day spent with the ones I love.
Typically Charlie and I would have done a long hike on some wilderness trail, most likely the Ice Age Trail. But this year, there is still plenty of snow on the ground (although it's melting fast!). Plus, we have Jake now. And Jake just turned 6 months old last Friday. He's got tons of energy... but in short bursts. A long hike would be out of the question for this little guy.
So we settled on the winding paved path along the Wisconsin River in Mosinee near Alan's house. We could enjoy views of the swiftly flowing river while treading on an easy trail that was a decent distance to get some exercise and fresh air, without over-doing it with Jake.
It turned out to be a great decision. Most of the cars in the parking lot had boat trailers attached, so the trail wasn't too busy. The dogs had a great time sniffing scents in the quickly melting snow and earth below.
Jake still has tons to learn, but he's making a lot of progress so far. I need to be careful not to let him "follow" Charlie too much and make sure he's actually learning the training words. Looks like I'll be working with him quite a bit in the next few weeks so we can get the basics down before he gets too much older!