Monday, May 23, 2011

Travels With Clancy: Ault Park

After the rainiest Spring I can remember, we finally had some sunny days over the weekend here in Cincinnati. So, Clancy and I were able to get our Travels With Clancy project up and running.

We woke up to a perfect Sunday morning, and the temperature was just right for a walk outside. I thought it was a great day to get started on our travels, and Clancy agreed. Since the rest of the weekend had been a bit hectic, we decided to go somewhere local, and ended up spending the morning at Ault Park.


Ault Park is on the east side of Cincinnati, in a neighborhood called Mt. Lookout, and it is celebrating its 100th birthday this year. While it's only about a 30 minute drive from where I live, I'd never been there, even though I'd always heard how pretty it is. I was glad to learn that what I'd always heard was indeed true.

As Clancy and I drove into the park, I couldn't help but notice the lush greenery all along the windy, hilly road. If there's a bright spot to all the rain we've had, it's that everything is incredibly green. The sun peering through all of those green, densely packed trees made the entrance to the park quite beautiful, and set the stage for the peaceful morning ahead.

Feeling exhilarated, we parked the car and started walking. The first thing we came to was Heekin Overlook.


We climbed across the stones and looked down on the magnificent views of the Little Miami River valley.


According to a nearby sign, the valley was formed by the pre-glacial Ohio River. I have to admit, geology is not my thing, and I'm generally clueless about it, but I was still interested in reading the sign and getting an idea of how the park developed. But, Clancy disagreed, and made it clear he didn't care one bit about reading that sign when there were so many great smells all around us. He was very anxious to get a move on and see more of the park.

He won out.

We walked a bit, and came to the Ault Park Gardens. With their rows of perfectly trimmed hedges, pink roses, cobblestone pathways, and shaded benches, the gardens looked like an English Garden transplanted into the heart of Cincinnati. For a moment, I wished I could sit on one of the benches and have some tea.

We started to walk along the paths, but were stopped short by this sign.


Clancy was more than a little bit offended, but he didn't push the issue. We said goodbye to the gardens, and went on our way.



Not far from the gardens is the Pavilion, the centerpiece of the park. The Pavilion is an architectural beauty with two flights of stone steps, and a fountain of water cascading down the center.




The view from the top of the Pavilion is spectacular, especially on a sunny morning when the sky was so blue and clear that I could see the faint half-moon in the sky in addition to the bright sun.


After climbing all of those stone stairs, the heat was starting to be a bit much, so we looked for a place to sit in the shade.


As we sat on one of the benches, Clancy's tongue was nearly hanging to the ground. He decided he'd had enough of the heat, and was ready to get back in the air conditioned car.


If you've read my blog for a while, you know there's nothing Clancy loves more than riding in the car. And, he has a special affection for air conditioning.

So we made our way back to the car, cranked up the ac, and headed home, happy and energized for the rest of the day. We enjoyed our trip to Ault Park, and couldn't have asked for a more beautiful Sunday morning.

We're planning on traveling a bit farther next time, so stay tuned for more of our travels!

26 comments:

  1. I think it's the best medicine to spend time with your dog. It always calms and relaxes me.
    Clancy is so cute.

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  2. Wow, what a beautiful gem of a park. Love those gardens.

    And it's always about the smells for dogs, isn't it? I tease my dog, telling her she needs to check her pee-mail. :P

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  3. Clancy is absolutely adorable! Looks like you both had a great time. I'm hoping this stormy weather will clear out so Cooper and I can go for a walk tomorrow (but just in our "usual" local park).

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  4. I wish we had a gorgeous park around here like that!!

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  5. what a lovely walk you had! Shame on them for putting up a "No Dogs" sign! What's up with that? BTW Clancy has one heck of a looooong tongue! lol

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  6. Terrific photos of the park! Sorry that handsome Clancy wasn't allowed into the garden section. What a smart boy for appreciating air conditioning! Julie

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  7. Well, I did not realize you were so close to me! I'm an hour south in KY. Haven't been to that park but I have been to tall stacks.

    What a bummer dogs are restricted in such a lovely place. My 3 love riding as well but without fresh air they get a bit green :)
    Jules @ Trying To Get Over The Rainbow

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  8. @Giggles, thank you. I totally agree, being with my pets always relaxes me, no doubt.

    @LG, LOL about the pee-mail. That's so appropriate! Clancy spends 99% of his time outside with his nose to the ground.

    @Janel, thanks! Fingers crossed you will have a break in the weather, this sure has been a wet spring all over it seems.

    @BREA, it really is nice, thanks for your comment!

    @BetterisPossible, thank you! I think Clancy would agree LOL.

    @Caren, LOL, I know, when Clancy is really panting his tongue looks like Gene Simmons of KISS. He has the longest tongue of any dog I've ever seen LOL.

    @Julie, thanks! I agree, I am an ac fan too, no question. :D

    @Jules, oh, that's cool you are so close! Clancy and I are planning several trips into Kentucky on our travels, there are lots of parks and nature trails there that I am not familiar with at all.

    @Karen, thank you! Yeah, I think Clancy just wants to go where I go as well, that's part of his love of the car. Cute that your dog loves riding as well. :)

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  9. Wonderful photos! You and Clancy had a grand time.

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  10. Ault Park is gorgeous, especially the pavilion. It looks like you and Clancy had quite the nice adventure!

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  11. Beautiful place! I wish my dog liked to travel in a car. Well, okay, he does but I don't like taking him. He's a barker. Barks at everything that moves and I end up with a headache. :)

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  12. @Carol, we did, thank you!

    @Kendal, I loved the pavilion too, it was gorgeous. Thanks so much.

    @Ciara, how funny, that reminds me of my sister's old dog. She made such a fuss in the car it was pretty much impossible to take her anywhere. Clancy is the opposite and is very serious while we are driving along LOL. Thanks for your comment!

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  13. Clancy is soo adorable! And the pictures you took of the park are awesome! wish we had parks like that near the house.
    nutschell
    www.thewritingnut.com

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  14. @nutschell, thank you! It really is a nice park, I'll definitely be going back. :)

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  15. Clancy is adorable and I know how much he must have enjoyed his visit to the park. The park and the gardens were lovely and it looks like you both had a great day.--Inger

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  16. Clancy is gorgeous and I loved the photographs!

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  17. Thanks for the wander. Next time I'll bring my (currently misbehaving) pug, Lucee!

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  18. @Inger, thank you! I think Clancy really did enjoy himself, I hope so anyway. :)

    @Rebecca, thanks so much!

    @Cathy, Lucee is very welcome! :D

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  19. That's a lovely partk. I wish parks were more pet friendly. The city I live in doesn't allow dogs in any of its parks. But it looks like you were still able to enjoy a long, beautiful walk. :)

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  20. @Michelle, oh, that's too bad about your city parks. I guess in this garden they want to make sure dogs don't tear the flowers up, I don't know. But we did have a nice walk anyway, thanks!

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  21. Hi Julie!

    Finally figured out a way to follow your blog and leave comments. Long overdue I know. ;) I really love that new blog project of yours! So good to see Clancy and you had such a fun trip! That park looks so beautiful, wow. Too bad Clancy wasn't allowed to enter. :( That last pic of him cracked me up, that is one hell of a long tongue for sure! LOL Looking forward to more adventures from you guys!

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  22. @Carina, oh, thanks for the follow! I really appreciate your comments, thanks so much. I'm glad you like the project, I hope Clancy and I will continue to have fun with it. I had to laugh at the last pic of him too, he was definitely ready to be out of the sun LOL. Thanks again!

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  23. What a beautiful park! And what a great way to spend a Sunday morning. Clancy looks like he's ready for more ;)

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  24. Hey there!! Wonderful post and what I love about every day I take my wonderful dog, Teeka for her walk! We are best friends. Hey, I just noticed your followers are missing!!! So are mine!! Something is a miss.. I have sent a message to blogger. Not sure what is going on.

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  25. It looks like you and Clancy had a good walk, its a shame about the NO DOGS sign. It always amazes me that it's an offense to be prejudiced against people on racial religious and many other grounds but it's okay to victimize dog owns. Thank goodness dogs aren't so narrow minded about people.

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  26. @Trish, it was a great way to spend the morning, couldn't have asked for a better day really. Thanks so much!

    @Adrian, hi there! Teeka is such a cutie, I bet the two of you have a great time walking together. Yeah, the followers issue has been a problem on blogger, I'm hoping it's fixed now as it's very irritating! Thanks so much for coming by!

    @Rob, we really did have a good walk, thanks. You make a good point about dogs, they love everyone. Thanks for coming by!

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