Wednesday, October 11, 2006

Shotgun Alley

This is where you'll find me at 8.30am 5 days a week - on Dog Highway.
It can be relaxing breathing the fresh air and getting on top of the day's planning but yesterday's walk turned out to be extremely stressful because the hunters were out in force.
Though they're not allowed to shoot towards the path they are actually hidden behind the bushes on the right and it really is disconcerting to see grown men in camouflage popping out of the undergrowth.
Pastis, one of my dogs, hates it. You can just see a beige blur on the left; he's heading right back to the car. However, Split, on the lead, is a Swiss dog and isn't much given to flights of fancy.

To the left of the main drag is a dirt track, you can just about make it out, that the local college uses for cross country training and a class of kids was starting the course as I went past. Suddenly there was a volley of shots from the bushes and seconds later the pitter pattering of lead shot falling through the leaves. The kids all shrieked in excitement. I wonder if they ran faster.
It's a helluva way to improve performance!

3 comments:

Riana Lagarde said...

That is why I always wear a bright orange sweater when walking around here too! Those boar hunters are everywhere...and big duck hunting here too.

Linda said...

It makes me nervous too. The other day I was walking and could hear a jingling sound which I thought was a sheep and I was looking all around for the rest of the herd. It turned out to be on the collar of a hunting dog which I saw followed by the hunter with his gun just feet away from me. I'm so glad he didn't shoot at anything-could have knicked me, if not killed me.

JP (mom) said...

A beautiful road ... too bad the sound of shotguns interrupted a beautiful morning stroll. I would be very trepiditious with hunters lurking about!