After a few days of low single-digit temperatures, the warm weather has returned. Today was 12 oC (54 oF) and sunny. It was so lovely, that I when I took Raven for her walk, I went out without my jacket. First time in 2009! I took Raven up our road and then down the next one, over to Eel Lake. Eel is the lake immediately to the west of us – the properties on our side of the road are on Kingsford, and those on the west side of our road back onto Eel. There’s public access to Eel if you walk a little ways down the road, where a narrow causeway divides Eel from Canoe.
The ice all along the north shore of Eel has melted back, exposing a wide strip of open water. We have yet to see any open water at our shore on Kingsford, although the south end is already open where the submerged river current keeps the water moving. Eel is a deeper lake than Kingsford, so I imagine that the ice doesn’t get as thick, and in turn it melts faster. Also, I suspect that being the north end and therefore exposed to the sun most of the day, the shore we visited warms up faster than at our east-facing property.
Raven immediately went down to investigate the water, and bounded about in the shallows. Seeing her interest in playing in it, I threw a few sticks for her, and she went splashing in after them. At least, she would as long as they were close enough to shore that her feet could touch bottom; she wasn’t quite ready to swim out into deeper water. Still, she was up to her neck in the water – voluntarily. A long way from not wanting to get her feet wet back in the fall.
A wet, happy dog.
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Hi Seabrooke! It’s always such fun to watch a dog have fun in the water. My two will chase sticks (sometimes IF they are in the mood) and Buds seems to think that swimming humans need rescued.
The ice by the dam is largely out now and the ice sheets are breaking up as far as the first point. There is open water in the channel now from shore to shore so I expect it will join the other open water within a few days. This is easily the earliest I have seen the ice in this condition. We saw a great blue heron yesterday but he or she didn’t stay. Lots of little brown ducks though, and geese.
Our lab X has always loved to go into the water but always went where his feet touched the bottom. We were very surprised to find he could not swim when he ran off the end of a dock the summer before last. He just panicked. He is older now, but I have since heard of dogs who cannot swim. Raven has grown into a beautiful dog.
He looks like he is having a blast!
What a pretty dog!
Brrr! Raven’s a brave lassie! Cai would throw himself in if I let him, most likely, but I’m not ready to just yet! The Kennebecasis River has just started opening up this past week; someone was out iceboating on the 20th.
Thanks for the news from the other end of the lake, Barb! Sounds like there’s lots going on down there. We’ve only just seen open water along our shore in the last couple of days, but the lake in front of our house still has ice on it (but thinning rapidly). The south end, where we can see it through the trees, has been open for about a week.
Thanks, Ruth! That’s funny that your lab cross can’t or won’t swim. We know that Raven can (back in the fall we’d drop her over the side of the boat – or one time she actually accidentally fell over – and she’d paddle her way in to shore), and she’s a strong swimmer (she’s got the lab’s webbed toes to help), but I don’t think her confidence is there yet. However, I suspect it will just be a matter of time – back in the fall, going in the water was never done voluntarily on her part, and look at her now. We can barely keep her out.
Thanks, ForestWander! She’s really taken to the water now, and absolutely looooves to splash around in the shallows.
No kidding, Lavenderbay – I don’t know how she can stand the temperature of the water! Presumably it has something to do with Lab Retrievers being bred for the cold Newfoundland waters.Hope the dogs are adjusting well to their new home!