Most of my traveling in the past fifteen years has been by automobile and with a dog. So, in response to Amy’s challenge this week, I offer what I have learned to make traveling with a dog comfortable and fun for all involved. Before leaving home, make sure your vehicle is in top running condition, tires are inflated properly, and gas tank is full. Keep 1 leash per dog, in the vehicle at all times, along with a supply of poop bags, small water cups and bottles of fresh water. Dogs should always have their id tags on, whether on a collar or harness. Pack their food, treats and meds in daily portion packets. Bring at least one of their favorite toys, their pillow bed, and two or more of their blankets, so wherever you stay will feel more like home.
Some folks use crates, however we like our beagles to be able to be close to us, sit up and watch the world go by, and have a comfortable, safe nest to snuggle into.
Know in advance when the next rest/comfort stop and change of driver will be: how many miles and approximately how long. Allow enough time when you stop for your dog to stretch and sniff.
Book overnight stays in places that accept canines, and take you dog for a walk around the exterior of the premises before settling in.
As much as possible, keep your dog’s daily routine consistent: breakfast at the usual time, then out (always on a leash) for a potty walk, and at the end of the days drive, dinner at the usual time, and another potty walk before lights out.
As always, wherever your travels take you, please respect our earth, be kind and stay safe.🐾
Walking close to the ebbing tide, watching the wave layers wash over one another on this lovely afternoon, with the sun suspended in light clouds and sparkling on the water, lifted my spirits.
Wherever you journey, please continue to be kind and stay safe.🐾
Those of you who have followed my blog are familiar with our wonderful beagle, Jello. Last month I featured her on Lens-Artists Challenge #178. Sadly, last week Jello passed away from congestive heart failure. She was with us at the condo and went peacefully in the night with us by her side. Dog lovers know how difficult it is to lose your loved furry family member, and how important it is to remember the joy they brought into our lives.
For this week’s challenge, I offer a short-short story that I wrote from Jello’s perspective. It tells of a real event from one of our walks that most certainly was memorable to me!
It was early one morning last spring when we were at our forever condo. Mom was making coffee and fixing my breakfast, while I sat patiently looking out the sliding-glass door for deer. Suddenly I saw something move through the undergrowth and amble across the meadow. It was big and round, certainly not a deer, so I started baying like crazy and tried to climb through the glass. Mom came right over, but wouldn’t even open the door to let me out! I could hardly believe it, so I just kept baying and complaining until the thing disappeared into the forest. Then I had breakfast.
Mom always takes too much time getting herself organized for our walks, and this morning she was even slower than usual. When I finally was able to sniff around where I’d seen the thing, the scent was getting cold, so I just stored that smell away and focused my nose on the trail to the beach.
A day or so later, on a walk back from the beach, I smelled it again. My hackles lifted, and I started into a deep throaty growl to get Mom’s attention. Then, there it was crossing the trail just ahead of us. On stiff legs, I trotted forward and started into a full bay. Mom freaked out, and yelled at the top of her lungs the one word she knows I’ll obey, STOP!!!!! I did, and the thing took off like a shot through the underbrush into the forest, while I turned back to sniff its trail.
Mom praised me big time for doing as she had asked. She told me the thing was a young Black Bear, and we don’t want to mess with bears. I didn’t much like its odor anyway. Besides, Mom lets me chase deer through the dunes when we’re out on our walks, and though I never catch up with them, its great fun to try!
Wherever your travels take you, please remember to be kind and stay safe.🐾
Thank you Ann Christine for the opportunity to share this story.
Sunrise washes the western sky and reflects upon the marsh ponds. Photographed from my deck at the Breakers condominiums, Long Beach, WA – USA, with my iPhone 13 Pro.
Joining Hammad Rais in Cellpic Sunday and the joy of looking up!
All of the subjects I selected for this week’s photo challenge were photographed on the Long Beach Peninsula. Below is a Fresnel Lens used for decades in two lighthouses to warn sailors near Cape Dissapointment. I love how light reflects and fractures along the bevels of the glass.
This first order Fresnel lens that lighted both Cape Disappointment and North Head lighthouses for decades, is now a featured attraction at the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center in Ilwaco, WA.
Walking the beach one day I came upon this mostly intact Bald Eagle eggshell. What a find!
Folks on the Long Beach Peninsula have a hearty sense of humor. At Christmastime they decorate this crab-trap Christmas tree structure with holiday lights and have an evening celebration to welcome the season.
When I was a kid, individual amusement rides like the one below were in front of most of the big grocery stores. Just put your nickle in the slot and gallop off into the sunset!
Hi Ho Silver – Away!
As the Omicron variant of Covid 19 reaches a peak, please continue to be kind and stay safe.🐾
Thanks to Patti for hosting this week’s interesting challenge!
The Long Beach Peninsula, has received eleven inches (28 cm) of rain so far in January 2022, which prompted me to stretch this week’s ‘Double Dipping’ theme to include a side by side photo comparison showing what our marshes at the Breakers look like now compared to last spring. Rain and flooding is our weather in the Pacific Northwest (Washington-USA) which fits right in with the theme this week from Becky – https://travelwithintent.com/
Photo on the left taken 5/17/2021, on the right 1/12/22.
Clark’s Tree
On our first walk to the beach, I wore knee high rain boots and had only an inch to spare as I waded parts of the Discovery Trail out to the beach. Water in the foreground of the above photo covers what is usually bare ground where folks cut across on foot or bicycle. This image fits with John Steiner’s challenge of cell phone (or other such device) photos only. https://photobyjohnbo.wordpress.com/2022/01/09/cellpic-sunday-227
I love it when the sun is setting in hazy skies. Taken 1/12/22, here is another testament to the size of our marshes. I cropped out the lens glare which made me think it would be a perfect fit with the theme of Becky’s challenge: https://beckybofwinchester.com/square-daily-photo-challenge/
Cee Nuner has been a wonderful advocate for all WordPress challenge sites. The photo above, taken 1/13/22 fits her B&W Photo Challenge for this week: Birds. As Jello and I started our walk this morning, a pair of Bufflehead Ducks paddled furiously away on the marsh beside our condominium building. https://ceenphotography.com/2022/01/13/cbwc-birds-2/
Jello is all Beagle. Water is not her favorite place to be. On our return from the beach, she let me know she was not interested in swimming home! Savvy to the landscape, she managed to find some deer trails that led her into the dunes where she was able to avoid the swamp! https://stillrestlessjo.com
Wherever you walk, please continue to be kind and stay safe.🐾
Walking With Eagles is a collection of original poems and photographs by Lindy Low Le Coq. A lifelong naturalist, amateur photographer and bird enthusiast, Lindy’s verse, composition and photographs open a window into the essence of her subjects. Her poems and photography reflect the rich natural wonders of the Pacific Northwest.
Bald Eagles mature over the course of five years. Walking With Eagles invites the reader to take a poetic and visual tour of this odyssey.
view ~ Walking With Eagles ~ in top menu bar for a preview, though the folio is much nicer!
