Lily and Clark (a Lewis and Clark style adventure) featuring Sadiejawea

Wow! What a weekend. I ran the gamut of emotions, from relaxation, to frustration, to excitement, to anger, to relief and joy. Most of that was all thanks to my beloved football teams.

Alabama escaped a close one thanks to 2 blocked field goals, one occurring as time ran out. Bama defeats Tennessee 12-10. As we used to say at Northwestern state, ant win is a (Sam) Goodwin.

The New Orleans Saints are FOR REAL! But Sunday looked to be a remnant of the "aints" glory days of the past. in the second quarter the Saints trailed the Dolphins 24-3. But they never quit, for its "The Battle They Love"(a shameless plug for the old blog). The Saints fought back and overtook the Dolphins 46-34 in one of the greatest comebacks in team history, and who knew that Drew Brees could dunk? I do believe this is the year. I get the feeling we will be playing one more game in Miami this year (for those who don't keep up with the NFL, the Super Bowl is in Miami this year).

As nice as those two victories were, the highlight of the weekend came far far away from any football field or television set. The highlight of the weekend took place way out in the woods on the Louisiana/Mississippi border.

The 1st exploratory expedition of Sadie and Lily into the woods of the American south took place on Saturday morning. The expedition began as we load the Jeep, which has been nicknamed "the Sack", which fits perfectly in this story. Kelley suggested I call the jeep Betsy Ross as it is a Jeep Liberty Sport and Betsy represents liberty to many (particularly women). However, I thought the name was a little lengthy and thought calling the jeep Sacajawea would be more appropriate as she travelled with Lewis and Clark's expedition across the American west after the Louisiana purchase in the early 1800's. But, Sacajawea is lengthy as well, thus the name "The Sack" was born. It's also nice because I get to say things like, "hey baby, wanna take a ride in the Sack?" Pimp, I know.

So my fuzzy explorers and I head north from capital city to Clark Creek Natural Area which is located on the MS/LA border, about 55 miles north of the house. When I put it in the GPS a message popped up to alert me that the route would take me on unpaved roads and asked me if I wanted it to re plan a route the used only paved roads. Whats the point of 4 wheel drive if you ain't gonna use it. So away we went. We were on an unpaved road only for about 2.5 miles. But, the point is, we fear no road paved or otherwise.


This was Sadie and Lily's first time out on the trail so i was a bit concerned about how they would act. Would they run off never to be seen again? Would they cower by my feet? The result is exactly what I hoped for. The stayed near but often ran ahead or ran into the woods chasing critters and smelling all there is to smell(and there's a lot to smell). they chased each other. Often, the would run over the crest of a hill, disappear for a minute, then come running back over the hill full of excitement as if they hadn't seen me in a week.



We spent about 2 hours hiking. As it turns out, Lily is an off road machine, jumping on and off of boulders, leaping fallen trees, wading, or jumping into, deep parts of the creek. Meanwhile, Sadie was a bit more hesitant. Though very athletic and agile, she is a bit more cautious and deliberate when choosing a way around or over obstacles.

It was a beautiful morning. We arrived around 9am and it was in the low to mid sixties, clear skies and a nice breeze. The weather was perfect and the leaves had begun to change colors. Very beautiful.

Clark creek has 6-7 waterfalls. I was a little nervous when approaching the falls from above(i get that from my mom, stop holding my shirt) but from the bottom we went all the way under falls #5.

We were all alone on the trip in to the woods, didn't see a soul. Had the entire place to ourselves. That's one reason i want ed to go early, i figured most people would get out there closer to lunch time. On the way out of the woods we began to see people. 1st we scared a man and a lady, I don't think the lady liked dogs and the barking didn't help. Then we passed a Boy Scout troop(in think troop 348) from Slidell. All the boys wanted to pet Sadie, Lily would have none of it. Then we met Jake, a large, thick frame boxer and the two ladies he was with. I think Lily liked Jake, which is rare. Sadie was more interested in having the people pet her. We passed a couple more families before reaching "the sack". We loaded up and headed home, as it was getting close to kickoff time for the bama/Tn game. The mighty explorers had conquered Clark Creek, Lewis was nowhere to be found. The conquistadors of dogdom slept all the way home and for most of the rest of the day.

I am glad we went. These dogs are awesome. Even more so, it was nice to get outside and get some fresh air, to feel the dirt up under my feet. It was nice to not be bombarded by city noise and the feeling that there is always someone there. It was nice to be able to think uninterrupted and to go for intervals without thinking at all. It was nice to walk around with a clear head and the headache i had for 3 days before vanished(only to return Sunday night while doing lesson plans). It was great to watch the dogs run and play. I know they are dogs, but i get a joy out of watching them run, jump, romp, and chase things or each other. Very few things make me smile as much as Sadie's ears and jowls flopping when she runs.

It was quite an adventure for the wolf pack 3. I can't wait to do it again.