Center Valley, as seen aboard Lily

I threw down my rake.

I walked into the house where Bill was getting ready to go fly fishing in the Clark Fork River.

"I'm going for a ride," I said. "This is too beautiful to waste."

A few minutes later, Lily was saddled up, and I'd eaten another helping of horse hair.

I'd already gotten the full-meal deal earlier while brushing both Lily and Heather.

There's no avoiding the stuff right now, as the horses are dropping their winter hair.

This was Lily's and my second ride in 2010, and I planned to make it as far as possible without her unshod hooves suffering from stepping on sharp rocks.

South Center Valley Road was fine cuz it's still a tiny bit soft, but Center Valley Road presented more than its share of sharp rocks.

So, we turned around at Marie Spraker's place and headed back home.

Lily is 5 this year, so I felt comfortable carrying my camera. Lily's also had enough experience of my telling her to "whoa" while I snap a photo. She knows the sound of the camera and stands patiently while I shoot photos of the scenery.

It was a beautiful ride, even though my hands almost froze off on the way home. That's what it's like on pretty days in February. Warm one minute and downright cold the next. So, I've learned the hard way to carry along some gloves.

Bill wasn't so lucky with his fishing, but we both did exactly what we loved yesterday afternoon and have no regrets.

Check yesterday's posting and scroll down to see Annie enjoying her day at the Vancouver Olympics.

Happy Monday. Today I'll probably finish that raking project.