Dog Friendly

DogFriendly.com just announced its 2005 Top 10 Dog Friendly Resorts. And the Hocking Hills region is number 10! Many cabins in the area allow pets, including our log cabin at Marsh Hollow. Plus, you can take your dog on all of the trails in the Hocking Hills State Park. Dogs aren't allowed in the Conkles Hollow & Rockbridge nature preserves, but they don't seem to mind.

We have had many canine guests at Marsh Hollow. With woods, fields and a creek to run through, most leave here happy and exhausted. Our cabin has an elevated deck with a railing and gates so pets can be secured.

In case you're wondering, number 1 on the DogFriendly.com list is Monterey, California. Not bad company!

Bullfrogs & Fawns

A quick report on wildlife: this morning I walked along the creek to our adjacent property. Two deer popped out of the woods, and I thought they looked kinda short, or the grass was high. When Mom arrived, I finally realized the short deer were fawns. They kept hopping around, playing with each other, just like kids (the human kind and the goat kind)! Mac caught sight and took chase, so they all scattered.

There's more evidence of deer around our apple trees. The deer come down from the hill in the evenings to have a late snack. And leave droppings everywhere!

And this fine fellow was under our bridge. Very handsome!

Patriotic Visitor

Saturday morning (6/18), as we were enjoying our morning coffee, our dogs Mac & Juice raised such a racket I had to go check out what the hullabaloo was all about. Turned out to be a very frightened raccoon up our flag pole. Here's another view. We dragged Juice inside, which being a 70 lb redbone coonhound, was not easy. However, we are experienced in this "procedure". Mac, we could not catch, but being a shepherd/Doberman mix, he was not really into raccoons, and lost interest.

Generally, we don't see raccoons in the day time, so this poor thing made a mistake I don't think he, or she, will ever make again!

Dining in the Hills (plus a wildlife sighting)

Friday, Dave's business partner Tom arrived from Georgia. When we have company, we often like to go out to dinner...and the Grouse Nest is one of our favorite restaurants. It offers gourmet dining (at gourmet dining prices), but has also started to offer a "neighborhood special" every day, priced at a very reasonable 10 bucks or less and they are excellent! However, this Friday, we all opted for the fancy stuff (Tom and Dave each had grilled prime rib, and I had the chicken in a gorgonzola cream sauce). Too wonderful for words.

The following evening, we took Tom to the annual Hocking Hills Chapter of the Ohio Horseman's Council's hog roast and ride at Palmerosa Horse Campground. We didn't ride, but partook of the fabulous roasted hog and chicken prepared by the Anderson boys (Danny & Donnie). Plus, it's a potluck so there were great side dishes and desserts. There was also a silent auction and I won a great purse with a cowgirl outlined in sequins - my kinda stuff!

Finally, we saw a doe and very new fawn up on Thompson Ridge Road. Mom crossed the road, but baby dropped to the ground and stayed still while we passed. I believe that is the youngest deer I have ever seen - still quite wobbly!

Horseback Riding in the Hocking Hills

I've been wanting to create a Hocking Hills blog for months. Should be a great way to let people know about all of the wonderful ways to enjoy this area. For example, last Friday my daughter Carolyn and I took our horses Dusty & Cash over to the state forest trails. It was my first time to ride there without an experienced trail guide. Carolyn is a wonderful rider but had never ridden on these very challenging (HILLS! MUD! CREEKS!) trails.

We got a little bit lost so ended up riding for about 3 1/2 hours. We had a pretty good map of the Hocking State Forest trails but missed a key turn that kept us riding about an hour longer than we had planned. Here's our intended route:

1. Ride the Orange Trail out of the Horseman's Camp on Keister Road.
2. At Point "J", turn on to the Purple Trail.
3. Follow the Purple Trail all the way back to Keister Road (makes a nice loop ride), but don't ride out onto the road (this was our error).
4. Just before the road, turn right on a very narrow trail. It is marked with a purple post, but there's so much foliage it's hard to see.
5. Continue on this trail for a short distance til you come back to Keister Road.
6. Cross the road, then turn right onto another very narrow trail to continue on the Purple Trail. You will make this turn right in front of the Point "G" sign.
7. Continue on the Purple Trail which eventually merges with the Red Trail to take you back to camp.

All of the main trails are marked with colored posts and big colored dots on trees. The side trails are marked with white posts and dots on trees. Carolyn had her GPS unit with her which helped guide us back to our starting point (but it was tough to get a good reading due to the dense foliage).

If you don't have your own horses, there are lots of great stables in the Hocking Hills to choose from. Spotted Horse Ranch and Happy Trails are closest to Marsh Hollow (vacation log cabin). Contact me at mailto:marshhollow@hughes.net for more information about riding in the Hocking State Forest.