Dansville NY

Winter Walk: Stonybrook Park

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I know I have written about Stonybrook before, since it is our closest gorge park. For more see posts: Here Comes the Sun!: Stony Brook Park and Kira’s first outing.

This winter we were able to share this wonderful place with my parents. While my parents were here we had settled in, caught up,  eaten many yummy cookies and great meals, and we were ready to walk some of it off. So we took my parents to Stonybrook.

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Because of our mild December, we were able to enjoy a winter walk without any rain or snow and mild weather walking down the gorge trail.

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We also had the chance to try out one of Kira’s Christmas presents: a fleece camo vest my mom made her for the winter and hunting months.

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Again we did not make it through the whole trail (still a goal of mine) but we made it further down the path then we had before and boy was it worth it!

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In spite of the dry day we had enough rain and snow recently to still have beautiful falls to discover.

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It was the perfect winter walk and picture spot. Afterwards we came home and enjoyed hot coco by the lit fireplace.

What type of outdoor winter activities do you enjoy?

Kira’s first outting

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Our lab-mix puppy Kira is now a little over four months old.

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The past few months adjusting to a puppy have been a fun challenge. It was entertaining to watch Kira discover fall winds, rain, baths. It was especially enjoyable to watch her jump into the neat piles of fall leaves Luke made with the blower.

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Through this process we have had to not only be patient with her as she became potty trained, and learned new commands, but we also had to be patient for her to be old enough to go out with people.

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Finally she has all of her booster shots and her rabies shot. To celebrate last weekend we took her for her first official “non-vet” outing to a local state park: stony brook (for more on this see stony brook park). We got set with water, bags, training treats, and collapsible water bowl then drove to the park.

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Although it was cold it was beautiful. There were many starts and stops along the way as Kira pulled on her leash, got over-excited, and went off the trail. The further into the trail we went the more she became comfortable with the pace and staying by our side.

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We were not the only ones at the park. It was not crowded at all but there were some people and dogs. Kira loves people but is still learning about the different sizes and breeds of dogs.

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It was a great chance to show her how to be social. But it also made us realize we still need to train her to not jump on people when she is excited and wants to greet them.

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I was all set for a vigorous walk but quickly realized-this was a training session. We did not come close to completing the trail but it was beautiful and I know we will go back soon.

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Dogwood Festival and Orienteering

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This past weekend was our local city Dansville’s spring festival. Unlike the larger cities the local festivals are more children and family oriented. Most events for the Dogwood festival centered around children’s performances, magic shows, choir or choral performances, and city softball or baseball games. There was also a small carnival being held at a local park. For more on Dansville’s Dogwood Days click the link: Dansville Dogwood Days

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We were not interested in much of this but did get out of the house early to explore the many yard sales happening around town. Some of the sales were posted in the local penny savers. After driving and walking around many yards we came home with a kitchen table for only 5$. It needs a little TLC  some children’s paint and stains removed but it works perfectly as extra work space in the kitchen or as a kitchen eating area.

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We also went to our second ever Orienteering event (it was a busy weekend) at Powder Mills Park in Pittsford outside of Henrietta. We decided this time to do the yellow course and jogged parts of the trail. The park was beautiful, green and shaded.

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Trails winded around and through the trees and a creek. This course was a more hilly and we had to make decisions on navigation making short cuts or taking the longer less strenuous routes.

We finished in 42 minutes and as of the time we finished we were in first place for our course.

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It was just as much fun if not more so then last month’s course. The park is more spread out, and diverse but had just as well kept shelters, bathrooms, and meeting lodges.

For more on Powder Mills Park Click here: powder mills park

Here comes the sun!: Stony Brook Park

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Well it’s taken much longer than anyone wanted for us to get sunshine, but it’s finally here. It amazes me how it can be snowing Easter morning and the next weekend we are basking in 65 degree weather!

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We took advantage of the perfect spring this past Sunday by driving to Dansville after church with the sunroof open. We grabbed some taco bell for lunch and watched a few planes take off at the airport.

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Then we drove over to Stony Brook Park, our closest state park which is only 10 minutes from our house for a picnic.

The park has been closed since we moved out here. It’s still too early for the trails along the water, but the picnic area as well as the playground were well used by local families and their dogs enjoying the blue sky and first signs of green grass.

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We ate our fast-food picnic then wandered around. The park has tennis and basketball courts, a baseball diamond, and a summer-time natural swimming pool.

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We drove around then went to the southern entrance were there is a camp ground. This entrance was closed off so we moved on.

We know we will return later in the year. Looks like a great place to get out in nature without a long drive and maybe take a family dog to walk around (more on the dog topic to come).

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What are your first favorite spring activities?