CJ's Birthday Hike

Went for a short hike at Springton Manor Farm yesterday.

It was 50°F in January and Jen & the dogs needed some exercise.

It was also CJ's birthday. He's officially 14 years old, though he was running for treats like he was 12.

Gretchen spent most of the time on the leash. There were too many things for her to chase and Springton Manor Farm isn't really big enough to just let her chase.

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Nice Fall Hike

Headed to Springton Manor Farm this morning for a hike. Everybody needed to get out.

CJ's been getting pretty stiff in his hind quarters. Nothing like running around the woods to loosen things up.

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Dog Ride

Sean and I did our first ride with both dogs (Gretchen and Yoshi).

Turned out better then either of us expected.

We've each successfully ridden with our dogs individually, but together made us nervous.

The way I described Gretchen's behavior was she just follows me. The way Sean described Yoshi was she stays out front.

The way it went down was I rode out front with Gretchen and Yoshi on my rear wheel and Sean taking up the rear.

It worked perfectly.

Occasionally Gretchen would show-off a bit and run next to me on single track trails (i.e very narrow trails), which she never does.

Yoshi was having a great time. When we stopped for water breaks, she'd run around in circles then back to Sean as if to tell him how much fun she was having.

Gretchen was like "Whatever. I do this all the time."

It was cool when we'd hit a field. The dogs would just take off chasing each other across the grass and into the night. It would get quiet as Sean and I peddled alone along the path in the grass, then suddenly crescendo with the sound of dog collars jingling when they came tearing by and heading off to a different corner of the field.

Hopefully we can get some kind of schedule together. I think we all could benefit from this being a regular thing.

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Late Summer Hike

Managed to get out for a short hike with Sean and his dogs

If you look up ahead of Sean, you'll see Yoshi. She's still the same old Yoshi as far as I can tell.

The dog dynamic was kind of funny. CJ and Zephyr are the old dogs. They hang back with Sean and I while the kids (Yoshi and Gretchen) run all over the place.

Every once in a while CJ or Zephyr will get off track and Sean or I will be yelling (the old ones are deaf or play deaf) to get them back in line.

Meanwhile Gretchen and Yoshi are off over the hills chasing who knows what. No use trying to get their attention.

Every once in a while the kids get a little rowdy for the old ones and bump into one. The old ones take it upon themselves to remind the kids who they're dealing with and the kids quickly take their recklessness elsewhere.

Though maybe rude, I find it kind of funny if and when we come upon another dog. The new dog is like fresh meat. The kids run to play and greet not knowing what kind of demeanor the new dog may have. I guess because it's two of them (Yoshi and Gretchen) they don't seem to care if the new dog wants none of it. They're two young energy explosions with two older meaner minders to back them up.

It must be a blast for them.

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Dogs & Ladders

Ladder down the backside of Saddleback or Basin. I can't remember which.



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Remember Yoshi?

Remember late last winter we started hiking with Sean, his kids and his new dog Yoshi?

Yoshi was full of boundless Australian Cattle dog energy, but a little light on the side of manners or training.

All that changed (except the energy) within a few hikes. Quickly she became a well behaved trail dog running and playing with the pack as expected.

She got so good on the trail she graduated to trail running with not only Sean on his bike, but with a group of bikes too.

Things were really going great until this weekend. Saturday night Yoshi got hit and drug by a car. Needless to say, She was hurt pretty bad - mostly road rash, but no broken bones.

Recovery is expected to take two months.

Hopefully she'll be ready for hikes again come fall, and we can help get her back in shape.

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Outdoor Dog

Gretchen did pretty well while we played on the rocks all weekend. Sunday got a little rowdy when two other dogs showed up, but at least they had fun while we had fun.

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Morning Routine

Gretchen pre-run-ready.

Gretchen post-run-rinse.


After each run/ride it's into the lake to rinse off the gunk. A couple of stick fetches from the lake usually do the trick, then it's time to towel dry, load up and head home for coffee - for us, not her.

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