One of my and Zouey's favorite things to do is hike, and the hiking in these Colorado Rockies is superlative. And this summer, we are bound and determined to make the most of this place and opportunity!
And while I pledge to remain true to my vow of secrecy, I can tell you that Zou did P. on this trail! :)
What a handsome girl. (Can I say that? Handsome ain't just for boys, is it? She's pretty, but in a serious way...?! And cuter than anything. But I readily admit, I'm totally biased!)
I still think that if Zou and I had made it to the Ramona Bow Wow Pow Wow (aka, dog show) in time for the "Most Beautiful Dog" contest, she would've walked out with that blue ribbon! We saw one of the big winners - a pretty silver grey pit - and yeah, that dog was certainly good-looking, but sorry, that pretty pitty would've had to bow down and settle for second!
So, as I'm sure you've all noticed by now, my blogs all devolve to dog pictures, or maybe they really just evolve to a higher aesthetic, but they certainly all revolve around this little brown cutie!
But just for kicks, I'll throw in a landscape or two, just to fool you and keep the charade going...
Early morning light. It's so funny these Colorado hikes are almost the reverse experience of my San Diego ones. In the latter, I was getting up at 5am in order to hit the trail while the temps were still cool enough to be doable - here, I need to sleep in some to give it a chance to warm up enough! Back home (as some of you may have seen on my Mt. W blog), the trailscapes are predominantly boulders and dirt (with a few semi-green things thrown in now and then). In these here hills, other than the Rocky Mountains themselves, it's all green! Trees, scrub oak, grass, flowers,...mmmmm.... And last but not least, in San Diego - NO DOGS OFF LEASH!!!!!! And I can mostly abide by that, because of the rattlesnakes (in the warmer temps) and poison oak. But, here? Go for it! I just have to be sure Zouey doesn't go off half-cocked after a squirrel/chipmunk/rabbit/deer/grouse and end up flying over a cliff!
And speaking of which... Being here this early in the season is lending itself to lots of violets...and grouse! This little lady really spooked us. She virtually exploded out of the brush next to the trail! And then she had me worried that she'd injured herself in her frantic effort to get away - her wing seemed to be dragging... BUT I soon realized that she must have had a nest nearby and was trying to lure us away because not only did the dragging wing change sides, but she also ended up walking towards us on the trail!
Once she decided she was close enough she would turn around and walk away - being sure we were following her. Unless she was mentally deranged, she was obviously doing her best "follow me" truck imitation. My worries over her health were finally put to rest when she up and flew to a nearby branch.
Zou and I reached our turn-around spot...
but not before Zou assumed the pointer position (OK, so she was pointing with her nose, not her leg, but her intense focus was unmistakable - she had spotted something somebody). Even though I know she's a really good critter spotter, and that there would then inevitably be somebody worth looking at, it still took me awhile to see them. Can you see them (there are two)?
I think this is somebody else (not pictured above), but I loved that she gave me such a nice silhouette pose.
Love these arched scrub oaks. Zouey travels down the oak tunnel...
I told Zouey she should make a wish. She said she would, but all her wishes had already come true! Food, Colorado hiking, food, sleeping, food,...
Such amazing seed formations - lots of tiny parachutes, together forming a composite sphere, but each ready to depart upon the most promising breeze or dog wish...
Almost back to the truck...
Awesome Arnica.
OK. Wait. What?! Yeah, somebody put their old, beat-up, yucky couch near the trailhead. Go figure. Such a complement to beautiful nature, don't you think? For a town that's all about tourism anymore, you think they could either splurge for some pretty, more appropriate log bench or something - or just forget about it altogether! But if there's anything that could make this scene more palatable, I figured it'd be guess who...!
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