Hiking Adventure #2 - Rattlesnake Ledge

As promised, here is my post about the hike we took last weekend.  Rattlesnake Ledge is across the way from the first hike we did at Cedar Butte.  Here's a link about Rattlesnake Ledge and it's location: http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/rattle-snake-ledge  I don't know why they call it Rattlesnake Ledge, we didn't see any rattlesnakes. It was Ellie's first official hike...I strapped on my back pack and showed her the ropes.  We arrived at the trail head early to avoid the big crowds.  It was a sunny day and the trail was tons of fun.  A steady climb with lots of switch backs for 2 miles up to the top.  The trail had a lot of huge boulders covered with moss.  Ellie and I had tons of new smells to sniff and we left lots of pee-mails.  Ellie had to be on her leash most of the time...she's not as good off leash as I am.  I stay really close to Mom & Dad and I'm friendly to all the people and dogs we pass - Ellie not so much, she likes to growl at the dogs.  She still has some manners to learn.  As usual, everyone commented on how cute I am in my back pack, and everyone thought Ellie and I were adorable (we are!).  We pretty much had the trail all to ourselves on the way up.  The views at the top are spectacular with sites of the Snoqualmie Valley, Mt. Si and Rattlesnake Lake. There were a few people already at the top and we ran into lots of people starting their hike as we made our climb down.  It is smart to get there early and leave before the crowds as this is a very popular hiking spot.  We checked out Rattlesnake Lake after our hike, it is right next to the trail head.  It has a rocky beach and a large grass area where I ran around and around - it was so fun!  I saw a dog swimming in the lake to retrieve his tennis ball, but I have decided I am not a swimmer...or a retriever.  I do however get very excited when Mom or Dad throw rocks and sticks into the water...I would get my paws in for a minute, then race around the beach and grass area. Ellie isn't much of a swimmer either.  This was a very fun hiking adventure! See my rating for this hike below.

Luna's Hike Rating System
Difficulty: 1 - 4 paws  (4 being most difficult)
Dog Friendliness: 1 - 4 tail wags (4 tail wags being most friendly)


Rattlesnake Ledge rating:
Difficulty: 3 paws (4 mile round-trip, steep climb with lots of switchbacks)
Dog Friendliness: 4 tail wags (made lots of dog friends)

Ellie's first hike, I'm showing her how it's done.

Up we go!

Crossing a bridge with Dad.

Top of Rattlesnake Ledge...what a view!

Flowers

Looking at part of Rattlesnake Lake below.

Rattlesnake Lake

Family Portrait

Ellie and me.

My friend, Sid.  He was an old guy...very wise.

Mom on a stump.

One of the big boulders along the way.

At the bottom along the shore of Rattlesnake Lake.

Ready for the car ride home.

We are going on another hike tomorrow...my pack is ready to go!  Mom bought Ellie and I a new water bowl that is lightweight and fits in my pack - we can't wait to use it tomorrow!

Hope everyone is having a fun weekend...Happy 4th of July!

Super Sized!

I know, I know...it's been far too long since my last post.  I am again blaming it on my Mom, as I can't post without her help...bad Mom. To make up for the weeks and weeks without a new post, I am going to make this one a Super Sized Post! (I wish Mom would give us Super Sized meals, but she keeps us on a strict amount to keep our girlish figures).  A lot has been going on here at my house! My sister Minnie (the two-legged wonderdog) had to have 14 teeth pulled...ouch. She now looks like she sat in the front row at a hockey game and a teeny tiny puck hit her square in the front teeth. She didn't feel too good for a day or so after her dental surgery, but she is now back to her barky annoying self. I am going in to have my teeth cleaned next week at the Vet, I hope I don't lose any of my pearly whites! Here's a picture of Minnie right after her tooth surgery, she looks pretty sad.

Minnie still groggy from surgery and in a lot of pain :(

Minnie feeling tons better!

Action photo of Minnie in her new socks...specially
made for dogs with traction on the bottom so she
doesn't slip on the tile floor.

Mom and Dad went away on another short trip, so Grandma & Grandpa (and big Uncle Hershey) came over from Spokane to take care of us again. I don't have any pictures, but we had tons of fun going for lots of walks on the trail and getting spoiled.

The biggest news around here is that we have a new member of the pack! Her name is Ellie. Everyone says she looks a lot like me except she's all black.

Here she is....Miss Ellie! (aka Bat Girl)

We do make a cute pair, if I do say so myself! She is a rescue that Mom & Dad adopted about 5 weeks ago. She is a bit timid and doesn't know how to play very well, but I'm hoping after hanging out with me for a while, she'll come out of her shell.  She and I get along great and it's so fun to have a sister/best friend to take walks with, nap with, go on car rides with...just hang out with! We are two peas in a pod.

Got ears?

Nap time.

I wanted to check out Ellie's crate too!

Check out our new dual leash! We sort of walk
each other!

Enjoying a little sun on the deck...it's a dog's life.

In summary, life here is good!  We went on a big hike today (first one since my last post...the rainy weather has really put a damper on our hiking adventures).  I will post a separate blog about that soon (really, I promise).

Hope everyone is off to a great Summer...happy tails to all!

Hiking Adventure - Cedar Butte

Last Sunday I went on a hike with my Mom & Dad.  I love to hike.  I have my very own backpack where I carry my treats and water.  Once my pack is strapped on I'm ready to go and explore new trails!  We hiked the Cedar Butte trail in North Bend.  It looked a lot like the trails around my house, but it was fun to sniff out new territory!  I met a lot of new friends on the trail and everyone thought I was super cute in my backpack.  I think a lot of the dogs I met were jealous they didn't have one.  We are going to do a lot of hiking this summer, so I'll post each hike and rate them according to difficulty and dog friendliness.

Luna's Hike Rating System
Difficulty: 1 - 4 paws  (4 being most difficult)
Dog Friendliness: 1 - 4 tail wags (4 tail wags being most friendly)

Cedar Butte is a 3 mile round trip hike with a bit of a climb to the Butte through mossy woods.  We went about 9am on a Sunday and only ran into a few people on the way up, it was getting more crowded as we headed down.  See this link for more information regarding Cedar Butte: http://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/cedar-butte  I had a ton of fun and it was the perfect distance for the first official hike of the season.

Cedar Butte Rating:
Difficulty: 2 paws up - short distance, but a bit of a climb to the Butte.
Dog Friendliness: 4 tail wags

Backpack on...check!

Heading down Iron Horse trail with Dad to get to the path
to Cedar Butte.

The start of the climb to the Butte.

Funky moss.

My new friend Tory.  We hiked together for quite a while.

Tory and her brother, Bo.

I stopped to smell the flowers.

Mom, Dad and me.  My backpack has a handle on it, so
I can be picked up like a purse.  It's handy when I reach
parts of the hike that are too mucky or I can't jump over.

Looking over at Rattlesnake Lake.  Getting close to
Cedar Butte!

The top of Cedar Butte. Looking across at Mt. Si
and Teneriffe.

More friends.  Munks and Boo.

Munks and I hoping for a little treat.

Me and Mom resting and taking in the views.

Zoe.  She's a rescue just like me!  We really hit
it off.  

She's checking out my backpack.

Me & Zoe.

I am already looking forward to our next hike!

Long time no see!

Hola everyone!  I apologize for my lack of posts lately, I'm blaming it entirely on my Mom.  She and Dad left me, Minnie and our kitty siblings behind while they went to Maui for a vacation.  They've been back for over three weeks, but my Mom has been busy with her social calendar and hasn't had time to help me type my post!  I really need to work on my paw dexterity so I can get on the computer by myself.

Having Mom & Dad gone on vacation was actually really fun because Grandma & Grandpa from Spokane came to stay with us, along with Uncle Hershey - whom I LOVE.  Uncle Hershey is a Chocolate Lab and he's tons of fun.  He loves walking and hiking on the trails just like I do and he's super big, so I feel pretty cool when I get to hang out with him.  Grandma and Grandpa are super cool too...they give all of us tons of attention and they took me out for really long walks and hikes and gave me pieces of their toast in the morning, which is one of my favorite daily rituals.  They are almost as awesome as Mom and Dad.

Hershey & I focused on Grandma who is eating toast. 

Yay!  Grandma giving us toast treats!  Minnie is
waiting for hers too.

Thanks Grandma, Grandpa and Hershey for staying at the house and taking care of us!

A walk with Minnie

Today my Mom & Dad took me and my sister Minnie out for a walk on the trail.  Minnie doesn't get to go on walks very often as she only has 2 legs.  Today was her lucky day!  We went on a short jaunt and I think Minnie had a lot of fun sniffing everything.  She sure moves fast on her hind legs!  Minnie had her front legs amputated in a terrible car accident with her previous owner (before my Mom & Dad adopted her).  We had a lot of fun and I got to herd and chase a retriever dog and his owner who was on a bike while Minnie barked and barked...it was so fun!  I think I would like to herd sheep.  After our walk my Mom had an apple...this is one of Minnie's favorite snacks and has now become one of my favorites too.  They say an apple a day keeps the Vet away...I made sure I ate a lot!  Hope everyone is having a great weekend...we sure are!

Don't worry Minnie, I got your back.

Tiny Minnie

Go Minnie, go!

Time for treats!

Here's a video of us snacking on apples...yum!

House Guest

We have had a house guest since Monday, her name is Keiko.  She is a small  chocolate Labradoodle.  She belongs to one of my Mom's friends who is recovering from knee replacement surgery.  I like Keiko, but sometimes I get a little snarly because she takes a lot of attention away from me and is chewing the ears and legs off all my toys.  My Mom says I need to work on my hostess skills.  Keiko and I do have a ton of fun running "laps" around the kitchen and family room, we like to race.  Scooter (one of my cat siblings) isn't too keen on the "run-around-the-house-as-fast-as-we-can" game, his tail gets super big and bushy and boy, do his eyes get black and scary.  My sister, Minnie, isn't too fond of Keiko, but she's not really fond of any dogs, including me.  Minnie really needs to work on her hostess skills.  Keiko and I also love taking walks together, she really likes the trail and I'm showing her all the great sniffing and peeing spots.  Mom dressed us up in green bandannas for St. Patrick's day, we looked super cute.  It's pretty fun having a friend to play and hang out with.  I think I overheard Mom say she's taking us out for a really long walk tomorrow morning, I can't wait!

Cute Keiko

Me in my St. Patrick's Day attire.

Keiko & I ready to celebrate St. Patrick's Day!

I guess Keiko didn't like her bandanna, she had more
fun chewing it than wearing it.

Keiko and I hangin' on the couch.