Deep Creek

I realized this morning that if I did not get out and do something outside that my head would explode. I have a butt load of studying to do as well as work on several projects that are due in the next two weeks. It is supposed to start raining and continue all week so today seemed like a good time to find a trail.

Walter told me that he wanted me to take him to Deep Creek because he had never been there before. Deep Creek is this totally magical place that is in Riverside State Park, near the Ninemile Dam. The road used to be totally open to cars but is now closed for major portions and is part of the Centennial Trail system. We used to park right at the mouth of the creek and spend the day swimming in the river and hiking around in the creek bed and the hills above the canyon. This was the first place I encountered a rattle snake. I have not visited the creek in probably ten or more years which is really a shame.

The area is full of basalt cliffs, huge boulders, and giant basalt spires. There are a couple of rock shelters and one I am sure was used by the native folks for storage. A couple of people could probably sleep in it as well. In the later part of the summer the creek bed dries out and you can hike up as far as the Seven Mile Road. I cannot even use words to describe how cool this place is.

I was feeling like I needed to have maximum pleasure since I was taking time away from school work and cleaning the pit that I call home, but we ended up having a not so great encounter with another (UNLEASHED!!!!!) dog. We were just starting up a big hill when I heard a noise behind me and turned around to see a dog running at us. It startled the shit out of me. Walter did not see the dog until it was biting him on the ass. Walter was trying to get away from it and bite it back all at the same time and they were both running around my legs and I was getting twisted up in Walter's LEASH...I HAD HIM ON A LEASH!!!! The owner of the dog was way back on the trail yelling for the dog to come...which he eventually did. Then these folks were like, shocked and amazed that their dog did not listen to them. I lost control to be honest and pretty much every word out of my mouth as I yelled at them was "fuck." I was so angry that I wanted to tie Walter to a tree and get in their faces. Everybody thinks that their dog will listen to them, and that no one else is going to be out on the trail and blah blah blah and they don't have to follow the rules and they are exempt from any consequences that might result from their actions. A few days ago, some guy was jogging on the trails with his dog and the dog went over a cliff. There was a huge search party and rock climbers out trying to find the dog. And guess what, THE DOG WAS NOT ON A LEASH!!!!!! I don't think it has been found yet and is probably dead. That line of thinking is what gets people (and obviously animals) hurt and killed. As much as I love Walter and talk about him like he is human, he is still a dog and will act like a dog in situations that trigger his primal instincts. I know that he would probably run off and chase a bounding deer through the forest, at least for a little ways because it is in his nature. Even though they are our companions in life, they still have their own way which we will never understand and their own agenda. Ok, that's all I am going to say about that. Except this...leashes are for the protection of your dog, the wildlife, and other people on the trail. That is why there are leash laws. And people who think they are above those rules are the ones who fuck it up for the rest of us. In the very least, dogs should be leashed in really popular places, like places where there are a bunch of cars parked at the trailhead. Ok, really, that is all I have to say about that. Really.

So after this little incident, I had lots of adrenaline going through me and got up to the top of the cliffs in record time. Ok, I had to use a stick to poke my lungs back down my nose once I got to the top, but it was pretty amazing. We wandered around for a bit more and then headed down the side of the canyon to the paved road which took us back to the car. We left the trail head the back way and took some gravel roads over to the Seven Mile Road. Then we headed down to the Little Spokane River which is quite full of water right now, and just sort of goofed around for a bit before heading home. Walter is fine and there is no broken skin. I however, could use a gin and tonic.

I did not take these pictures as I had forgotten to grab my camera. I "borrowed" them from a pretty cool site that has lots of outdoor info for this area. It is http://www.spokaneoutdoors.com/. Check it out.