Tuesday, February 18, 2014

Dions Make Good Dog Repellent

Another warm day in North Iowa. As I got started on the trails, a woman was heading back towards the parking with two dogs in tow...or rather loose. There's a sign posted that claims dogs must be on a 6' leash. I tend to not worry about that requirement when there is no issue with control by the master. I have never trusted Piper when I've been dog-sitting so I always keep her on a leash. 

One of this woman's dogs was a large Golden Retriever and it was crouched beside the trail as if waiting to pounce on prey. The prey turned out to be me as it rushed forward, growling, and teeth bared. My only option at this point was to raise my Dion-clad foot directly towards it's face and that brought about an abrupt stop...until I went past then it tried to sneak from behind. So I stopped and watched the dog, raised my snowshoed foot each time it moved towards me and listened to it's owner yell at the dog on each approach. Finally the owner caught the dog and I was on my way!

Yesterday's extra work on breaking the trail was enhanced by a subsequent snowshoe hiker so the path was nicely groomed and prime for smooth running today. I had less issue with clumping snow today because I sprayed a good amount of silicone spray on the bindings of the snowshoes.


Six miles total on the day.

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