Travels with Walter: Daytime Tricks, One Night Stands, and a Bite in the Ass

No, I am not dead. I took my computer apart quite a few weeks ago and in the middle of the project was distracted by a shiny object and never got back to it. My mother got a new computer and wanted the address of my blog so she could see what I have been up to so I put it all back together today and decided to update. Hi Mama!! The late spring and early summer here in Spokane has been horrible. We had 300% more rain in June than normal. It has been horrid. The temp last night got down to 34 degrees in some parts of the county. Most of my adventures have been day trips in between storm systems. Walter and I have been camping 3 times but never for more than one night at a time for various reasons. This post covers stuff from mid May through yesterday from newest to oldest.

Upper Coeur d' Alene River Trail: This is where the bite in the ass comes in. Yesterday Nancy, Walter and Elliot and I went hiking in North Idaho along the North Fork of the Cd'A river. It is so incredibly beautiful. We hiked somewhere between 8 and 9 miles. The temp was in the 70s and the sky was mostly clear. It was a wonderful reprieve from the horrid weather we have had. About 3/4 of a mile into our hike we stopped at this fantastic overlook to take some pictures and look down into the river valley. Walter and Elliot were on their leashes as normal. Out of nowhere I heard this man yell and a boxer (not on a leash of course) ran up to us. Elliot and Walter freaked out and the dog and Walter were nipping at each other. In the process Walter got me in the ass by mistake, at least I am pretty sure it was Walter and I hope it was a mistake on his part.

The bite as of this morning: it was really more of a pinch and scrape than a puncture

Moose along the river

Nancy and the boys on the trail

Nancy and the boys at one of the many beautiful little creeks we crossed

Amazing view

There is a little speck in the river below the cliffs that is some guy fishing

Nancy checking out what is below the cliff but too scared to stand up and look

What she was looking at

Incredible

The boys in the back of the car

Paddling Bonnie Lake: Last week my buddy Michelle and I went for a paddle to Bonnie Lake. To get to the lake you have to paddle up Rock Creek and into the lake. The narrow and shallow creek keeps large boats out. Animal sightings: balk eagle, 3 heron, buzzards, cows.

Michelle at the put-in

The meandering creek

Creeping through the tules

Cool basal arches

Big beaver dam

Sullivan Lake: Three weeks ago I had a plan to camp at Sullivan Lake up by the Canadian border for 3 nights. I had everything ready so Walter and I could take off as soon as I got off work on Monday. That morning right after getting up Walter barfed. Nancy kept an eye on him and he seemed a little off but kept down his breakfast and dinner so we headed out anyway. We got to the campground around 7:00pm and had just enough time to sit and listen to the night settling in before we hit the sack. All night long Walter's stomach made horrible noises and his gas was enough to send me into shock. The next morning he would not eat his breakfast and then barfed while I was eating mine. The campground host did not have any pepcid (though she did give me two tums which I am not sure dogs can have) so I drove into Metaline Falls to the grocery store. They only had Pepto Bismol which I bought and gave to him. Walter has a history of GI issues, most of which have been serious. Two years ago after having a towel removed from his stomach I had the vet tack his stomach up so it would not twist when he gets bloaty, a frequent problem that is solved by sticking a tube down his throat. So when he did not perk up I said something like, "F*#K" and packed up and came home. We had a vet appointment the next morning and low and behold he was just fine. But it ended up ok I guess because then it rained for three more days.

Pretty Sullivan Lake

Sicko at the campsite

Marie (Muddy) Creek Trail: Having been stir crazy due to the rain Nancy and I planned a day hike along Marie Creek in Idaho regardless of what the weather was going to be like. Hell, we have rain gear, who cares if it rains. What I had not anticipated was the mud. Most of the trail up to the top of the ridge was under several inches of water and was a mess; mucky, slippery, hideous goo. We had fun anyway.

My knees within the first 3 minutes of the hike. I slipped jumping over a creek.

Nancy at our resting spot where I took off my pant legs and washed them out in the creek

Walter

Elliot. This was the only minute of sunshine on the hike. Elliot's legs are pure mud from the knees down.

Paddle at Medical Lake: Nancy and I spent a couple hours paddling around on Medical Lake one day. I am totally loving my new canoe, though because of the cold Walter has only been out once. It should be warming up sometime...

Priest Lake: I think this was right after Memorial Day. Walter and I went up to Beaver Creek Campground for a couple of nights. Yes, it was raining and I knew that it would rain on us, but it never occurred to me that it would rain as hard and as much as it did. We got there on Tuesday late afternoon and set the tent and tarp up while it was just sprinkling. Then around 1:00am all hell broke loose. I had set up the big tarp (12x12) and it was not big enough so I hooked a bunch more smaller ones to it to stop the blowing rain from coming in. I cooked breakfast (cous cous and pea pods pictured below...yeah, the only picture I took) and then decided to take a drive in the car and dry out. We checked out some other campgrounds, went to the tiny but cool museum at Luby Bay and bought coffee in Nordman. It rained all day, non-stop, tons of rain. The ground was so saturated that I put Walter up on the picnic table so he would keep dry. I was sitting there thinking about how much fun I was not having and realized that one of my core beliefs is that it is not necessary to suffer to build character. So at 7:00pm I crammed my soggy gear and stinky wet poodle in the car and drove home. But I did see an elk and a moose and heard an owl hoot all night. He was probably bitching about the rain.

Walter's first ride: Walter had his first ride in the canoe at Fish Lake. Nancy went along and sat on shore ready to help us out if we swamped. The canoe is very efficient to paddle. The trade off is stability, but it is pretty good compared to my kayak. Walter did really well and neither of us got wet. Fish Lake is tiny, shallow, and pretty warm so it was a perfect first spot. I started out with Walter in the front but every time he would move I would try to anticipate the movement and compensate for it. Then I put him behind me and ignored him and it worked much better. We just need more practice but only when it is warmer and ending up in the drink won't freeze us.

Walter in front

Walter in back

One night at Farragut: We had another one nighter at Farragut. I was really busy and we just took off for a quickie. It was great until it started raining.

Palouse and Snake Rivers: My first real paddle in the boat was in mid May. I worked in Richland one day and the company paid for a hotel room so I did not have to drive back late. I took the canoe with me. I got off work around 6:00, checked into the hotel and was about to head down to paddle in the Columbia River around a cool estuary when the thunder and lightening started. The next morning I got up early and took a detour to the confluence of the Palouse and Snake Rivers. It was splendid. I had no agenda and just spent my time paddling up and down the Palouse and then into the Snake a bit. It was a tad windy but not enough to keep me on dry land. After the paddle I stopped off at Palouse Falls. I had never been there before. I was truly moved by the sight and sound of the falls. It was magic.