by John New
It was fabulous to see so many people (40) and beagles (25) for our last 2002 outing of the Sydney Sniffers at Centennial Park. We met near Musgrave Pond, which is next to a dog obedience training area. After a brief welcome we began our walk, capably led by Tanya Caine.
The park grounds are extensive so we didn't plan to walk right around the park, just a few different sections. We started off following a shady footpath next to one of the roads within the park. Because the park is very popular, especially on weekends, there were plenty of other walkers, cylists, roller skaters, plus other dogs. This meant that this section of the walk was very busy and it was tricky stopping those sniffy noses from barging into other people.
The weather was hot so we were very pleased to have a break halfway through the walk near a kiosk. Here we lay down and shared our ice-creams and some water with our eager four-legged friends. At this point we also greeted some latecomers who had followed our trail. Not by following their noses, but by asking people whether they had seen a large group of beagles. It turns out a group of beagles is very easy to track!
Feeling refreshed we set off again, this time cross-country, which encouraged some brave people to let their beagles off-lead. During this part of the walk, imagine our surprise when some of us came across an unidentified beagle running loose and nosing around some picnic baskets. Fortunately, it had a name tag with a mobile phone number. It transpired that this beagle had escaped from its owner's house nearby. We were only too happy to rescue it before finishing our walk.
Many thanks to all the Sydney Sniffers who supported our walks during 2002. Please have a look at the walks for 2003. Some are short, others are long, most are fairly easy, so hopefully there is something for everyone. Hope to see you and your beagles soon.