A walk in the Lake park

/ April 22, 2015

Everybody, their cousin and whatever kid they could find was taking advantage of the sunny Sunday at Onondaga Lake Park.

Children at play, adult's at alert.

Children at play, adults at alert.

The Wegmans area set up with all the play equipment to keep children happy and their parents and grandparents busy watching them was chock full on the breezy, 60º F early afternoon.

My dear wife Karen and I took Ellie B aka Dogamous Pyle for her first walk on the path set by the shore of lake that abuts the city of Syracuse.

My wife and my dog.

My wife and my dog.

The dog was overstimulated at the start, straining at the end of her leash, no matter the tug of the gentle leader attached around her nose. Ellie B saw what she saw and smelled what she smelled and life was great and let me at it, Ma and Da!

Because the idea was to let her walk as far as she could go, advancing her training so to speak, the overenthusiasm may have been counterproductive.

Calmer dog and wife.

Calmer dog and wife.

Eventually, the walkers, bikers, rollerbladers and other dogs stopped making Ellie B go bonkers. We settled into a pace that allowed her to sniff and enjoy as well as walk off that winter weight. When she started to pant …

A break and a drink.

A break and a drink.

… we stopped for a bench break, and poured a drink into a portable container that held chicken chow mein in its previous life. The blue lake looked pretty on April 19, 2015.

At several points, the paved path gave way to foot holds to the water’s edge.

Look at the water!

Look at the water!

First Ellie B looked out and thought it over. Then she spotted a large piece of driftwood and did not know what to make of it.

Maybe I’ll bail!
What did you say that was?
OK, I’ll dig to it.
Wait, what’s that big thing?

Click on each picture for a description. Click on the right picture for an enlarged slide show.

By the end of our journey, we’d walked 1 1/2 miles to the west before doubling back. Good day for Dogamous Pyle’ fitness comeback. It keeps her more interested than the usual blocks around our neighborhood. It keeps us more interested, too.

We saw one tree on the shoreline in bloom.

Green leaves, looking good.

Green leaves, looking good.

Believe it or not, the dog at bottom right was climbing five or six feet up the tree trunk, but scrambled back down before I could click the picture with my iPhone 6.

How far can you walk with your dog? Does your dog need to work off winter weight, and if so, how do you do it? Which photo is your favorite, and why?

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58 thoughts on “A walk in the Lake park”

  1. I’m catching up on a backlog of delightful blogs including yours! Loved the pic you label ‘Paddler’. We’re going into winter here in Melbourne so haven’t put on the winter layers of clothing or fat yet! My dog Bertie had had canine cough so our normal romps along the beach (B needs about an hour’s exercise a day) have been rather curtailed. Happy spring to you and happy dog days! Charlotte

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    • Hi Charlotte! I’m glad to see you, my friend. Be well as you head toward you Australian winter. I hope Bertie gets voer her canine cough so you and her can get to your walks along the beach. Be well. See you soon. ❤

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    • People were out enjoying the sun, Rachel!

      We put the Gentle Leader on Ellie B because it supplies a little tug when she pulls aggressively. It helps her walk in a more civil, controlled manner.

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  5. Pingback: Transition for T | joeyfullystated

  9. beautiful shots, mark. and i’m partial to the tree as well. you have to make the most of every moment of sun and warmth. people in our climates never take those days for granted, do they?

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  10. I liked having dogs in the past to investigate driftwood or other odds and ends dogs find to examine. They are so curious! I also enjoy grandies in parks, of course.
    This was a beautiful place to go, the play area is so colorful and friendly looking. The park with the trees, grass and Karen with dog, all look so wonderful. I liked the photo with Ellie B. stretching to look at the wood in the water. I also liked what may be considered a ‘weeping willow,’ but I may be wrong about this! I love the way you showed us all the different views to see at this Onondaga Lake Park, Mark!

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    • Thanks, Robin. There is a lot more there that I hope to show during the summer, too. By the way, this is the same park where they have the Christmas Lights on the Lake that I had the long post with all the photos around Thanksgiving time.

      Yes, I agree with you, I think the only tree in bloom in my photos is a Weeping Willow, too. 🙂

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  11. loved the photos- still can’t quite believe you have no snow anymore. swimming in the lake? wouldn’t it be a little cold?

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  12. With no dog to speak of, I can only comment on the pictures. Really loving the one of the tree and also, your wife and dog sitting on the bench. The water is captured behind them nicely! Well done as always Mark!

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  13. Hi Mark, I’m still walking off my winter weight. never mind the dogs! You call that a little lake but it looks pretty big to me. Looks like you had a great trip out there. oh, and please, straighten up your photos! – Roy

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  16. Spring has Sprung for sure! Soooooo nice that you got to spend a beautiful day with your sweet, sweet wife! And your pup was as happy as can be. I use to have a dog…but now with this super active life of ours. We have decided to not have a dog. I do dog sit! And I love that!

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  18. Your dog looks a lot like my Cody. Cody also begins her walks by pulling like a sled dog, despite the Thunder leash, but within a few minutes she calms down.

    A few years back, one of the neighbors on the next street had a tree-climbing coon hound. I understand that’s an actual breed. That dog could easily go six feet up a tree after a squirrel.

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  19. My dog and I both walk off winter weight this time of the year, and gardening for me, plus squirrel chasing for her sure helps! We can do about three miles before she really wants to stop or drink. She almost five and has a bad leg, but she loves a good walk 🙂
    The tree in that last photo is pretty, so I’ll go with that one. I watched a husky climb a tree in the dog park once. It was impressive!

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    • It is amazing to watch dogs rise up a tree, isn’t it, Joey? Better than I can climb at this point, that’s for sure.

      I’m glad you and your pooch are going the extra mile, too. It’s fun to walk at this time of the year, when it’s not too hot yet. 🙂

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    • Thanks, Paul. It’s a funny little lake we have here. They just had a big hoo-hah that it’s now clean enough to swim in because of a massive clean up. I’ll stick to pools because I’m not a lake swimmer anyway. We’ll see how many people begin to use it that way.

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