Thursday, December 25, 2014

Winter Solstice 2014

Climbing up to praise the sun at winter solstice.  Minus 18 centigrades, a chilly wind and soft snow, but almost reaching the sun disc.
Gazing at the challenging landscape and the highest peak ahead which is the goal for our trip.

We took a short brake at the top. Then a hurried return before the sunset.
Descending the slopes, sometimes stumbling, sometimes falling, but great fun after all.







Sunday, October 12, 2014

AUTUMN

Autumn as a continuation and unavoidable consequence of the best summerseason I can remember. 

A deluge and thunderstorms gave birth to new streamlets and becks along our runningtracks.  The ever changing seasons prevents whatever boredom that can settle in my mind. 

Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Transition Summer to Fall

A relaxing hike at Blefjell after a long summer with lots of running.  It has been an extended summer, and this hike marks the commencement of fall.  Lazy dogs and lazy man recharging our batteries before winter. 

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

33 centigrades summerheat



Buddy and I at Edens Lake.  Breaking off a run in 33 centigrades in change for a swim. Watch buddys large paws facilitating his strokes in the water.  Just like a beaver. 

Friday, June 20, 2014

Summer Semiwolves - Sunny Skinnydipping

At 30 below or 30 above the wolfdogs enjoy an easy jog as much as I do.   With ease, and unlike the panting of the common dog while running in such heat, they run along without a sound from their throats.   A wolfdog adapts to the extremes of both summer and winter in a much better way than the shepherd or the retriever. Physical fitness will in addition make it possible for the dog to run without overheating.  An anatomy that allows effortless locomotion in a physical fit dog prevent the overproduction of endogenous heat.  Interestingly;  a walk on a leash results in more panting than an easy freerunning trot.  The trot is the natural choice of gait for a longer distance in a canine.

In my experience the trot should be the main gait from the age of 3 months until maturity.  This period of physical development is crucial to the animal for the rest of its life.  Walking, and especially on a road, should be restricted in favor of a trot to enhance the better physical development.  Not only for the muscles and fitness of the animal, but also for its joints and bones.   Maybe more important for a lazy breed like the wolfdog.

Arriving the lake they cool down swimming and playing.  Unlike my skinnydipping they have to wear their coats on in the water, but a much reduced summercoat without wool as  undercover.  This is midsummer celebration 2014. 



Saturday, May 31, 2014

Entering his 13th summer with no trace of senescence

Similar to the reindeers;  this animal floats on top of whatever surface his is running on.  The distance doesnt matter - short or long.  He has passed 12 years and is running  his 13th summer without any trace of senescence.

Sunday, March 9, 2014

Springbreak

My snowshoe trails transforme from a solid to a liquid form and runs hurriedly towards the ocean. 
The trails are difficult to walk and impossible to run on right now.  My wolfdogs with their large and weblike paws, still surface the trails, while I am surfacing 3 steps and breaking through on the 4th.  The picture shows the speed of the water and is just 10 meters adjecent to my track.  It roars like thunder and the noise makes the wolfdogs very cautious and reluctant to approach it.  On the third picture one can observe the dog`s anxious expression about crossing a bridge.

The small brook on the fourth picture wasnt there last week and his first response was to return, but very soon the dog seemed to remember the stream from the time before the snow and run over.  Any change in the environment, be it a fallen branch or tree or similar, must be inspected before passing by.
Frustration is released in the end by attacking some bushes before heading home.  My own legs are anticipating the springthaw  to make running possible.  Fortunately I have access to some dirt-roads that I use for running in this time of transition.



Sunday, February 2, 2014

Forestal Signatures

New snowfall covers my snowshoe tracks in between every effort to make a trail the last couple of weeks.  It gives a perfect chanse to observe the tracks of wild animals.  Usually the animals dont move much the first days after a heavy snowfall, but it seems like they were in a need for a walk today.
Hares occure most abundantly with no particular direction to its tracks.  The fox has been absent for a while, but is forced on the go - maybe by hunger.  Squirrels have been in a hurry - no doubt about that - running at high speed from one tree to the next.  The most lazy walker is the lynx, barely lifting its legs off the ground and making parallell longitudinal lines in the snow.  Only a short sprint trying to catch a hare will make the lynx put enough energy to suspend its legs above the snowy surface.  The moose has no trouble walking with dignity and in no hurry on its stilt-like legs.  I doubt the snow is a hindrance for the king of the woods. The deer, not as large as the moose, has still no problems walking down to an opening in the river for a sip of water.  The last one to mention, made my wolfdog startle by its sudden appearance from under the snow.  A woodpecker had found an ants nest in a rotten log under the snow and had a january culinary meal while we almost stepped on it.  To get up into the air from under the snow made such noise that my wolfdog run off in fear.

Friday, January 24, 2014

INSPIRATION

25 years ago, while still roaming the mountains with my dogteam, this particular wolf taught me the differance in locomotion of a superior sleddog and the wolf.  The sleddogs could run at considerable speed and pull for hours knowing that the musher would provide a good meal at the end of the day.  The wolf had developed a most effecient gait wasting the least amount of  energy at any time to conserve its calorie storage for possible prolonged fasting and energy shortage. The anatomical differances in the sleddog and the wolf, although both species are extremely efficient in their locomotion, fascinated me and made me watch this wolfs gait for hours to learn the nuances.  I remember observing the similarities with my sleddogs and a good icelandic horse.  The wolf on the other side, could easily be compared to the wild reindeers on their move.  My wolfdogs exhibit a gait somewhere in between the wild wolf and the sleddog.  Running my dogs always remindes me of this old wolf. His apparition appears somewhere in the back of my head as a reminder of form and function.   If making another attempt at dogbreeding, my ambition is to improve this particular wolfgait in a future litter.

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

BRAKING TRAILS


Being consistently patrolling our trail every day now, I hope its surface soon will resist braking through it while jogging.  The cold, soft, dry and buoyant snow mutes all sounds in the forest.  The silence is absolute.