Bobbi has a book about dog-friendly places to visit in the Bay Area. It lists off leash areas, parks, and trails, and after spending a lot of time at the Open Space, visiting our froggy pond, we decided to venture somewhere new. Morgan Territory Regional Preserve is really tucked away in a very rural area past Clayton. As we drove there, I couldn't help feeling like we weren't in California at all, like we'd been transported to some other world or time. Part of the road was only one lane. Yeah, that's right. One lane for two way traffic! Luckily, there weren't too many cars we had to pass. There were lots of lovely houses (ranchettes, Bobbi said they're called) with yards big enough for the horses out front. And the road travelled underneath a canopy of trees. The shady path was beautiful, and we were on it for what seemed like a long time. It was only nine miles, but it was a long nine miles!

There were maps and signs that told us what to do in case of a snake bite (don't run) or a mountain lion encounter (wave your arms slowly, look big, yell). After looking at the map as though it were merely scribbles drawn by a hyper toddler, Bobbi and Loki and I set out. We walked down towards a pond, and let Loki drink the water and get soaking wet. That way, he'd be nice and cool on our walk. I had my four 24-ounce bottles of ice water in my backpack, a visor, and plenty of sunscreen. Bobbi had a straw hat and a big ol' water bottle herself. We were set!

A young couple (like maybe 19 years old) came out of the gate just as we headed towards it. Bobbi asked if the trail was shady. They said it went on for a long time. They said a few other non-related things, and I looked at them wondering why they didn't understand the question. When Bobbi said, "No, I mean, is there shade? Like, from trees?", it dawned on me that they were probably trying to tell us, "No dude, it's cool, it's not shady." Heh.

We must have seemed like some real wussy hikers to that couple. "Is there shade?" "Are the hills real steep?" "We've never been here before! Is this trail easy?"

They pulled out their map, and mentioned the name of the trails they hit. I still didn't completely follow the map (couldn't figure out where the start point was!), but it seemed like they'd walked a long ways. The girl was wearing capris and cute sneakers. The guy was in a tee shirt and baseball cap. Neither one of them looked sweaty or tired, or any different than if they'd just been strolling around a mall. And they had just hiked all that way? What the??

Well, Bobbi and I set out. The first part of the trail was a little rocky. Then we hit the main, wide trail. I took lots of pictures as we went, and traded empty water bottles for full ones from my backpack every so often. We hiked and hiked, and along the way, we saw trail markers that made us realize -- we took the same route as that young couple, without even meaning to! And we only got a little turned around once!

By the end of it, I was feeling tired, but great. Loki was still doing fine. After all, he had the energy to dart through that barbed wire fence to run after a squirrel! Gah! We just kept on walking and he finally figured out how to get back around to us. We met him on the other side of the outhouses. Crazy dog! I'm glad he didn't hurt himself!

All three of us were pretty tuckered out. Bobbi and I both yawned repeatedly, while Loki conked out in the backseat. A few times, he sat up and his eyes just drooped, he was so tired!

At home, I calculated the distance. It was only a 3.25 mile hike that went around in a circle, according to the map (finally deciphered it!). It felt very strenuous, though! It was pretty hilly, and a bit hot out, too. We did great, though, and I'm closer than ever to hitting the 200-mile mark of my goal.

I'm so glad we tried someplace new today. It was so much fun, and next week, we're going to try yet another spot from Bobbi's book. We're adventurous hikers, by golly! And we're enjoying every minute of it.