Black Cows And Gorgeous Trees

Yesterday I met with my long time hiking buddy J. for a lovely walk in one of our regional parks, Crane Creek. The day started out overcast, but later in the morning the sun peeked through the clouds and eventually chased them away.

I love this park for its abundance of gorgeous trees. Most of them are oaks, but there are a number of other trees as well.

Many narrow trails crisscross the park and you can walk on some part of the land that is shared with black cows who spend the days grazing here. What a nice place to be! They are used to the hikers and walkers who share their space, but still prefer to keep some distance from any humans.

After J. and I had a lovely picnic in the shade of one of the old oaks, we made our way back to the parking lot and J. left. However, I didn't feel like going home just then and went back into the park, walking along a different path. Very soon I came to the creek that gave the park its name - and I was not alone here.

I do love cows. Very conveniently there was a bench where I could sit and watch these beauties. This was the first time that I actually saw water flowing in the creek, usually it is just a very dry creek bed. The cows obviously found quite some pleasure here as well.

When I finally arrived back in the parking lot, I noticed the geometry of the vineyard right across the park - and how very thoughtful of this red-winged blackbird to patiently sit on the fence post until I had taken this picture.

A Day in Davis

Last Sunday we went to Davis to spend the day with Kaefer. Of course it was wonderful to see her again!!!

She enjoys living in the dorms that are in colorful buildings that leave open space between the buildings, trees and lots of parking for bikes. Davis, after all, is a bike town.

We walked around campus on our way to downtown Davis. Kaefer has recently joined the Davis Agility Nerds which is an off-campus club that does Parkour. She showed us a little bit of what they're doing when they get together. I could see how much she enjoys this.

She is still at a very basic level and doesn't jump from skyscraper to skyscraper - Thank goodness!

Of course we noticed some more of the famous eggheads that you can find all over the campus.

Davis is a sweet little town with a lovely downtown - lots of trees line the streets here. Some houses look rather rundown and offer some interesting items on their porches. There is also quite a bit of interesting art to see.

Lots of outdoor cafes and beautiful young women...

We also spent some time in the Arboretum where we lazily sat on a bench, watching people, some turtles and two very active otters on the other side of the little stream. It was a beautiful autumn day!

Of course you can't go to Davis without visiting the cows!! Kaefer lives rather close to them and told us that they are the "smelliest" right before dawn. The two of us spent some time with the cows who were quite curious and one of them even wanted to eat my shirt.

Unfortunately way too soon we had to say our goodbyes again. It wasn't as hard as the day when we first took her to Davis, but I still miss my goofy girl.

The Cows

There's something about cows that draws me to them over and over again. Not only are they such sweet creatures, they also remind me of my childhood when I was visiting all those farms with my Dad where he was vaccinating the cows against foot-and-mouth disease (this was during the 60's when this kind of vaccination was still done) or clipping on the earmarks. So when I saw this fence with these lovely cows behind it, I had to stop, get out of the car and take pictures of them.

Aren't they cute?

This one was particularly nosy.

Anybody who knows me is aware that I just don't simply take pictures of cows. Oh no! I talk to them as well - and as a result they come closer and closer to the fence, pushing each other out of the way. All of them want to see that crazy woman.

Some are more daring than others and put their nose through the barbed wire to sniff and lick the hand of that person. Cows are just like people - some are shy, some are brave, all are curious.

Have you ever noticed the beautiful and kind eyes of cows?

This is where they live - on juicy green meadows close to Tillamook in Oregon where they give their milk to be turned into lovely cheese and yogurt - and yummy ice cream! Thank you, cows!

Linking up with Theresa's Good Fences. Please come and visit some other fences as well!