New Year's Hike

Happy New Year

I haven't been on a hike or seen my friend Mia since last year! So at 9:00 AM I hooked up with her at Apollo trail north and we went on a hike to the cliff overlooking Safe Harbor Dam. Our trip ended up being quite an adventure.

The Hike Out

A sunny but crisp 25 degrees when we started out at 9:00 AM

The way out to our destination went fairly smooth. We took the upper trail and met a hunter all dressed in orange. She said she was hunting squirrels but her husband was down in the valley along the creek trail (Wilson Run) hunting deer. Mia and I both got to give her kisses.

This is the only deer we saw. Mia's owner said it would make a good European Mount.

On the trail out we found a deer skull. Mia's owner, George, said it would be a good European Mount. I had never heard of that before. George likes to bring back "treasure" from his hikes but for some reason he didn't carry this back to his truck. It is still out there and if you want to go get it there is a good kit you can get from Amazon to mount it. Click here to see it. Ican't believe George didn't add it to his "hiking treasure" stash.

We made it to our destination. You can see what a beautiful morning it was.

The Hike Back 

The hike back was even more exciting. Remember how last post George ended up taking back about 7 or 8 sticks? Well he had one of the sticks with him. I am glad he has a walking stick now. And, as you probably could guess, on the way back he was on the lookout for more "treasure". He did  come up with a great find. A part of a stump with all kinds of grooves in it from bees or termites or something. He says it will look really good when he varnishes (he has this thing about varnishing stuff) it and puts it on display. He is going to label it "Nature's Art". I am sure Teresa, his wife will be really thrilled to see more "treasure" coming home.

George's find. "Nature's Art". It may be for sale soon.
He carried it through the woods for a mile so it won't be cheap.

Mia is good at finding stuff in the woods too. Guess what she found. Below is a picture of her bringing it back the trail to George.

She is so proud to be bringing back a hornet's nest!

You want to be really careful if you go hiking with Mia in the summer. I would hate to have her bring you a nest that is full of hornets! Thank goodness there weren't any hornets at home in this one.

George hauling out his "treasure". I don't think the hornets nest made it back.
See Teresa, it could be worse. You could have a deer skull and bees nest also on display. 

George got lost on the way back. He wandered off the trail. He might have been looking for more "treasure": Mia and I had to go get him back on track. If you look close in the picture below you can see Mia and I fetching him.

George takes a wrong turn but we found him. 

Mia was a little concerned that George didn't understand the trail markings so she tried to get him to see the blue blazes for the trail we were following.

Mia kept checking to see if George was still coming.
Notice the blue blaze on the tree she is pointing out to him. 

We all made it back to the parking area. It was a great way to start the New Year. Only 365 hiking days left in the year. Get out there and get some exercise! 

Mia Teaches Her Owner To Fetch

Last Sunday I finally got the cone removed from my head. This Sunday my friend Mia got her cone removed. I know how it feels to be running around not being able to see and bumping into and knocking everything over so I told Mia to meet me at Urey Overlook trail and we could go hiking and celebrate. Check out how happy she was in the video.

It was great seeing Mia again.

While our owners looked for eagles we played until we were exhausted.
click to see the pictures better

Our owners didn't see any eagles and we were really thirsty so we went down to the river for a drink before we headed home. 

That's Holtwood Power Plant on the far end of the dam.

Fetching Sticks

Mia taught her owner how to fetch sticks! Most people collect things like rocks or leaves or coins or stamps or baseball cards. But her owner collects sticks. He must have fetched about 7 or 8 of them. He said he got them for himself and some for his family. Lucky them. At least he said he is going to dry them out first then maybe varnish them. He called them "walking sticks" but they don't walk. They just lay there. 

They must have had a really sad Christmas if he can only get them sticks. And Christmas is already over. Geee I got lots of neat presents. Maybe I should give Mia one of mine. So sad, giving out sticks you find along the river. Poor Mia. 

If you like to collect sticks I guess this is the place to go. 

Dog (park) Day Afternoon

Today was a sunny 57 degrees. A great winter day. So Dingo and I went to the dog park. We weren't the only ones with that idea. There must have been 50 other dogs there, which was fine because it is a very large park and the more the merrier.

I had a great time so I thought I would post some pictures to help me remember this day later in the winter when I can't get out so much.

Below is a picture when I first got there. Click on it to see if you can find all 16 dogs in it. Can you find Dingo and me? Can you find Dingo's owners and my mom and my college girl?

My first day in the Big Dog area. 

I don't think I was the first one to use this today.

Dingo and I would team up. Notice below Dingo is on the left and I am on the right. We were herding them up. We always like to stay on the outer perimeter and round things up. We are a good team.

A good day for Australia. Notice the Australian Sheep Dog and the Border Collie/Heeler mixed.

Here are some more pictures of other dogs at the park Dingo and I got to meet. 

Everybody is friendly at the park.

Hey, it is not a snack. It is just a camera. 

I am just having fun Dingo but nice to know you got my back!

Teamwork. Here we go again herding them up. Got em surrounded. 

The ride home. Relaxing in the back seat with Jannessa.

If we get another nice day this winter or early spring maybe my friends Mia or Storm or Zeke and Callie could meet me there. They would really like it. 

Christmas Party At My Vet's

I love going to my Vet. I had a great time there today. My owner guy told me they were having a Christmas party and I was invited. I got there early before they were even open. There were already a lot of other dogs in the back. The receptionist took my leash and I led her to the back room. I was so excited.

Jami - One of the cute nurses I got to hang out with.

But before I knew it the party was over. I must have overdone it on the eggnog or something because I don't remember a lot about it. I wish I could tell you more but everything is a little fuzzy. I think I had a great time though because as you can see in the photo I woke up with this lamp shade on my head! I bet I was the life of the party.

You can see I was a little hung over. I bet I had a good time. 

I am going to figure out how I got this lamp shade on my head and I will let you know more about the party later. As for now, I am going to tell mom I am starting to feel better and how about getting me something to eat! Then I think I will turn in for the night. 

Hey Mom, I am feeling better. Got anything to eat?
Can you get this lamp shade off my head? 

A Tree In The House

A Tree In The House.

What could this mean? There is a tree in the house. And it is all decorated with lights. I am not sure what this is all about but Jannessa sure had fun getting it ready. She decorated me!

A dog with lights. Very funny Jannessa. 

Everyone was involved in decorating this tree. Even my human brother who I finally got to meet for the first time came all the way from North Carolina to help. And guess what. He just got married yesterday so now I am a dog-in-law.

My human brother I just met and my new sis-in-law decorating the tree. 

I Figured It Out.

I finally figured out why they are all so excited about putting a tree in the house. Camden and Simba have litter boxes. So it must be that I am getting an indoor bathroom too! It will be so nice to have my own indoor bathroom this winter when it is so cold out. This is going to be great!

Hey guys, I am not allowed to mess with your litter box so stay away from my tree.