This walk was the Beagle Club of Queensland’s first venture to the shores of the beautiful Damien Leeding Park, at Oxenford on Queensland’s Gold Coast. We had heard that many of our members use this lake for a great walk and we decided to include the walk in our events for 2014. After the day, we are certainly glad we did.

This walk took place in the middle of Autumn, so we were expecting conditions to be cool and perhaps a little wet with a 90 % chance of rain on the day. Still, we checked the radar on the morning and everything looked fine. And we were in for beautiful Queensland weather for the walk. Not only was it a cloudless sky, the sun was beaming down on us and the weather was a balmy 30 degrees.

At the beginning of the walk we had 40 happy Beagles and two honorary Beagles joining in on the fun. It was also great to talk to those who just came along to see the spectacle. Not having Beagles themselves but just enjoying the company of all the Beagles and their owners.

The walk commenced on the foreshores of the lake. The walk itself is about 4 kms round trip, so only takes about an hour. It was a leisurely walk, albeit quite hot. There are plenty of areas along the foreshore for a good swim and a cool off in the warm weather.

The path along the lake is fully paved, so very easy walking. We walk past the homes along the foreshore, admiring the architecture but enjoying more the Beagles as they sniffed their way along the edge of the lake, tails up and enjoying the company of the other Beagles.

There are several drink fountains along the way, which the Beagles took advantage of. Some, however, thought they were a little too dignified to drink from the dog fountain and decided to use the human fountain instead.

After about 3kms of the walk, we had a great romp at the dog off leash area beside the shore, as well as another dip in the lake for those that wanted to enjoy another cool off.

After a good run and play, the pack headed back along the foreshore, barking at the model speed boats as they zoomed past, to the start for a nice cold drink and a talk about all the fun we had.

A couple of the Beagles, tired of waiting for their owners to give them some morning tea, decided to take it upon themselves to help themselves to a little snack. They obviously thought that the big walk and run around the off leash park deserved a little snack.

Thanks again to everyone for a great morning. It was hot but fine and very enjoyable.