The End Of Summer

It feels as though the seasons changed overnight and I didn't even see it coming.

One day not long ago it was very warm and the weather was seemingly caught in a never-ending holding pattern of hot, sunny, dry and calm.

A couple of weeks ago LC's friend visited from Alabama and the bottom dropped out.

Freezing cold, biting wind, snow, ice.

For a while temperatures bounced back again but they never regained their same holding pattern of this past summer.

The entire year from late April onwards has seemed like a dream.

Summer somehow came and went, barely noticed. 

Fall is already going fast and I didn't even see it happen.

There is snow on the tops of many of the mountains surrounding Cody.

Soon this year will be done and I barely even knew that it was here.................

I found these pictures the other day while wandering through the growing number of picture files I have cluttering up my lap top.

I had forgotten about this walk, and I am not exactly certain when these pictures were taken.

Mid-summer is probably as accurate as I dare try to be.

There is a park in town that is located adjacent to the Shoshone River.

The park proper includes only a couple of picnic tables and a small green space, that you see immediately after you first drive down the long paved and narrow road that leads down to the river.

So "park" is possibly not the correct term for this place.

Rather, this place is used for two specific purposes.

There is a long paved and gravel trail that parallels the river in both directions, making it an excellent place to quietly walk in nature without having to head out of town.

It is also very common to see fishermen casting their lines into the always cold and usually fast flowing Shoshone.  Some fish close to their vehicles, but many also wander down the trail, pull off the trail and stand or sit in the grass along the embankments.

I have had people tell me that the fishing is good and I believe it.

LC, Jamie and I walked part of the trail one day during the summer when the weather was still unusually hot and dry, even by Cody standards.

After we parked the truck we stood briefly debating in which direction we should head.

Since we had never walked this trail before it ultimately did not really matter because it would all be new to us, and after giving it little thought and little discussion we headed to the right and passed under the bridge.................

We have driven over that bridge hundreds of times both this time we are in Cody and last, but for some reason had never bothered to explore this trail to see what we could find.

It is a user friendly trail - primarily gravel, flat, without obstacles, easy to walk.

User friendly suited both LC and I just fine because neither of us had the energy for epic adventures.  A quiet adventure would be just fine.

My sweet dog headed out, eagerly setting the pace..............

We had taken this walk on the spur of the moment and I was not carrying water for Jamie.

On a very dry and hot day in mid-summer I worried about wandering too far with my 48 pound old pup.

There was no easy way to get down the embankments and to the river, so I was pleased when we eventually began to find small ponds along our route.

She had to reach down to get to the water and so I took a number of "Jamie's butt" pictures during our slow and quiet trip.....................

A look back the way we had come.  Our truck was parked just beyond the bridge, and Cedar and Rattlesnake Mountains stand in the background...................

It is only when I look back on these pictures that I really appreciate that summer is truly over.

During this walk close to the river we found endless growth - grass and reeds and sage bushes, berry filled trees, sunflowers and purple flowers.

Blue ice-cold water.  Ducks and hawks.  Signs of summer that (at-the-time) seemed as though they would never end.......................