by John New
It was a lovely day when we gathered for our walk along Chipping Norton Lake. Blue sky, a few white fluffy clouds, and a light breeze. We set off thinking "What a nice day for a walk". But that soon changed.
The dark storm clouds appeared first, then we felt a few drops of rain. We sheltered under some trees. As the rain got heavier we walked quickly to a handy undercover barbeque area. When it began to teem, we were glad to be under better cover. The beagles, however, became very anxious when the thunder and lightning started. A few had their tail between their legs and some of them just wanted to run.
Fortunately, the storm only lasted about 20 minutes. The rain stopped, the clouds cleared, the sun came out, and we set off again. As an added bonus for the beagles, there were now plenty of muddy puddles and probably stronger smells. They had a lovely time splashing around.
The walk itself was along easy flat concrete paths, and there were lots of wide open spaces, making the walk ideal for beagles on a long lead. We continued along the main path until we reached some construction work. Then we turned around and returned more or less along the same paths to a welcome snack and drink.
Our next walk is along the Cooks River where we'll look forward to seeing you and your beagles again.
Thanks to one of our (unnamed) walkers for providing these photos.