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To me, hiking has never seemed natural. To go for a walk just to walk always seemed to me to be a waste of time. If a person is carrying a shotgun and walking miles of cornfields in hopes of shooting a pheasant or two is good fun. Walking the hills and timbers deer hunting is a worthwhile activity. In either case, there is a good chance of bringing home food. This is the way things are supposed to be. I always thought, to walk for the sake of walking is just not right.

Sunday afternoon, my wife suggested we go for a walk. My first response was, "Why?"

That was the wrong response. She then told me how we are not getting any younger, our bones need to maintain their calcium, we could use a cardio workout, and it might be fun. After more than forty years of marriage, I have learned not all suggestions are actually suggestions. I thought going for a nice hike would be a good idea.

Any venture into the wilds of the farm entails taking a pack of dogs. Coty, the Lab, is in dog years, as old as I am in people years. He gets a bit gimpy, much as I do when he lies around too much. Duke, the mastiff, is in his prime and needs the exercise to keep his boundless energy from exploding in drool and fits of wanting to be petted. Lewis, the newest member of the pack, is an eight week old boxer. Everything in the world is new to him. He lopes along, smelling everything in his path, and tries to eat anything he can get in his mouth.

From the house, we started across the dam and up the hill toward the top gate. From the house to the far side of the dam is a nice walk. The hill to the top gate is a lot like work if a person is not hunting. Even Lewis thought it too much and sat down in the middle of the hill. I carried him to the top where it was level and he was off again. When deer broke out of the timber and ran down the path, Coty only watched as they ran away. He knew he could not catch them. Duke ran after them for fifty feet or so until it must have dawned on him, he did not know what to do with one if he did catch it. Lewis missed the whole thing but my wife and I enjoyed watching them bound down the road, over the fence, and into the timber. The end of the path breaks out into open pasture. We had heard a turkey gobble before we started our walk, and this is where he and his hens were. They were pecking around minding their own business until Duke ran blindly toward them. They flew off in all directions leaving Duke confused and Lewis afraid. Coty just thought it was a bunch of turkeys and continued on his way.

At this point we turned around and headed back. When we broke out of the timber at the top gate, the geese were flying in to spend the night on the lake. I carried Lewis like the tired baby he was. Duke had enough exercise to calm himself down, and Coty, being older and wiser had paced himself to where he was walking along enjoying the outing. My wife decided we had a good workout that was good for us, and I must agree it was an enjoyable walk in the woods. I still think it would be better if a hunting season was open so we did not have to call it hiking.[[In-content Ad]]

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