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Tag Archives: Outdoors

Trail Trip Without Me

18 Mar

Do you know what my people did? You won’t believe it. I can’t believe it because what they did is really terrible.

While I was stuck at the dog hotel you know what they did? They went out looking for new trails.

Without me.

How could they do that?

I mean, I love trails. And I love adventure. And how can you find more adventure than on a new trail?

And they didn’t take me.

And look at all the things they found.

I’ve never seen cactus like this on my trails. It’s towering over my younger person. Look how small he looks. It makes me feel bigger just to look at that picture.

I can be Big Dog now. My younger person doesn’t look so big after all.

Hey wait a minute. Now wait just a minute.

You found a lake on that new trail and you didn’t take me swimming?

This is totally not fair at all. I’m going on strike.

No walks for my people until they take me to that lake.

What, person? There is what on that new trail you found?

Attack cactus?

If you get too close that cactus jumps off and sticks to you?

That sounds like a secret weapon to me. If some bad guy comes I could convince him I want to take his picture next to that cactus. And then whap, whap! That cactus jumps off and attacks him. And I’ve got it all on film.

I sure wouldn’t want to kiss him after that.

What do you mean, that’s not very nice. I’d only do it to a bad guy.

You think I would get tangled up in that cactus?

I would never go near that attack cactus. I’m the perfectly behaved dog. I always do what you say.

Fine then. I wouldn’t want to go on that new trail anyway. Giant cactus and attack cactus and a lake that’s so far down the hill that I’d have to take a flying leap into it.

I’m all worn out from the dog hotel anyway. I had fun that you don’t know anything about.

Don’t even think about trying to take me on that new trail. I’ll be busy. Taking a nap.

Click here to find more mischievous pets.

36 Comments

Posted by Bongo on March 18, 2013 in Bongo, dogs, humor

Tags: Cactus, Hiking, jumping cholla, Outdoors, Pets, Photography, Recreation, saguaro, Saguaro Lake, Trail

On the Trail Again

06 Mar

Finally! Today I was able to get my leash and put it into my person’s hand and take her for a walk. It’s been a week – well, except for one day that I took my younger person. I guess my person is getting better at chasing that bug away now so she can go with me.

I had so much to catch up with out on my trails. I had to find out which of my buddies had been by and which of them had left me messages. I bet some of them were worried when I didn’t answer for so long. Well, I sent them all messages so they know I’m back.

I was so busy sniffing that I almost didn’t notice when my person got her camera out. It’s that flower season time of year.

Wait a minute. What are these doing blooming? I thought I’d managed to get away with no Manzanita blossoms this year.

Last year the Manzanita blossomed in January. What gives?

I guess there’s only a few bushes with blossoms. My person can’t take too many pictures of them, can she?

***

We were almost back home and we’d even gone past all the Manzanita bushes – there are a lot of them on my trails – when I saw it.

I saw the strangest forest creature I’ve ever seen on my trails. I don’t know where it came from or what it was doing there.

I’m not sure what it is, but I think it’s some kind of forest fairy.

37 Comments

Posted by Bongo on March 6, 2013 in Bongo, dogs, humor

Tags: Fairy, Hiking, manzanita, Outdoors, Pets, Trail

Washed Out

18 Feb

I really love going into the wash on my trails. It has the best smells and it’s full of quail to chase. Well, I wish I could chase them. They’re always running away through the bushes long before I ever get near them.

The wash isn’t really a trail, but it does have trails leading down into it. One of those trails, my favorite, my person usually won’t let me use. Sometimes when the ground is moist and soft she lets me go down it but otherwise she says it’s got too many loose rocks for how steep it is. Just because I jumped all over her the one time she did slip. I thought she just got on the ground so we could wrestle. How was I to know?

But there’s another trail into the wash a little ways past that one. It’s not so steep so my person lets me use that one most of the time. Sometimes when it’s been raining a lot she doesn’t want to go into the wash at all. And that’s the most fun time, too. I love splashing in all those puddles. My person just doesn’t know how to have fun.

Today I found a new trail into the wash. And it takes me into the wash even earlier than those other trails.

And guess what. That upper part of the wash has some special surprises in it. Things that must get washed out before they get further down the wash.

Today I found something really special.

The only patch of snow left anywhere on my trails. Time for a treat!

Click here to find more mischievous pets.

25 Comments

Posted by Bongo on February 18, 2013 in Bongo, dogs, humor

Tags: dry wash, Hiking, Outdoors, Pets, snow, Trail

Trail Barricade

24 Jan

Today was a beautiful day out on my trails. The weather was warm, the birds sang,

and airplanes flew about overhead.

And lots of people passed us on the trail.

And my person kept pulling me aside so I couldn’t get any loves from them.

So I figured out a fix to that situation – but it only works when my person doesn’t see the other person first. Like when we’re going around a bend in the trail.

I’ve got to make sure I’m on the opposite side of the trail from my person. And I’ve got it.

Immediate trail barricade.

And I’m not moving until I get some loves.

One person thought I was totally innocent – that I had no idea I was blocking my trail. Little did she know that she was in my trap.

But my person is such a party poop. She yanked me over to her side of the trail and the trapped person escaped without even giving me a single love.

Somehow I’ve got to figure out how to get my person on my side.

Wait, I mean on the other side.

Now I’m confused.

Just remember to give me loves before I wrap you up in my leash.

25 Comments

Posted by Bongo on January 24, 2013 in Bongo, dogs, humor

Tags: Hiking, Leash, Outdoors, Pets, Trail

Appreciating the Weather

10 Jan

Today was one of those T-shirt kind of days that we sometimes get here in January. My person said snow was on the way so we needed to take advantage of the weather while it’s here. So off we headed on my trails.

Hey person, this isn’t our usual way to go. Where am I taking you?

Did you say snow was on its way? There’s some snow already hanging out here.

***

When I finished checking out the snow that seemed to like this warm weather, we headed on up the trail.

Where am I taking you person? This trail’s really steep.

Are you coming, person? You seem to be taking your time.

You can slow down now, person. I need a rest.

***

Finally, we made it to the top.

Can you see our house down there?

Hey, this is pretty cool. A what kind of view is it? Panoramic view? I don’t see any pans from here? Just an old coffee pot.

Mogollon Rim

Coffee Pot Rock

Thunder Mountain

Hey, I worked really hard to get up here.

What do you mean, we have to go back down again?

37 Comments

Posted by Bongo on January 10, 2013 in Bongo, dogs, humor

Tags: Hiking, Outdoors, Pets, Photography, Sedona, Sedona Arizona, snow, Trail, Weather

Long Things and Square Things

23 Oct

I see the strangest things on my trails sometimes, but today I found people doing strange things. Usually the people I see are busy walking on the trail, but these people weren’t. I’m not sure what they were doing, but I guess my person wanted to know too so we went over to investigate.

Sorry person, you cannot share my Detective Dog hat with me. That’s for me alone, even if you do help me with the investigation.

We wandered off the trail and went over to where these people were, and we found a bunch of guys mixing colors with long things and then wiping the long things onto some square things.

It didn’t make any sense to me but my person talked to them and found out the guys were part of the Sedona Plein Air Festival.

I’m not sure what that festival is, but I always thought we had pretty nice air here. I didn’t know it was plain. And why would people want to have a festival for plain air anyway?

We hung around for awhile and my person talked to the guys and looked at their square things with the color on them. I’m not sure what she was looking at. I think they had used up all their rags and those square things were all they had left to wipe stuff off on.

But then something happened and I decided that having a festival for our plain air wasn’t so bad after all.

Because I made a new friend.

41 Comments

Posted by Bongo on October 23, 2012 in Bongo, dogs, humor

Tags: art, Outdoors, Pets, Plein Air, Sedona, Sedona Arizona, Trail

Official Trail Guide

19 Jul

Woo woo! I’m official now. I’m really an official trail guide. I got to lead my friend who came to visit me on my trails today. I made her hold on tight to my leash so she wouldn’t get lost.

But I had to have a lot of patience with her. I tried to run so she could see as much of my trails as possible before it got dark, but whatever I did, I couldn’t get her to run with me. I kept having to wait for her.

I showed my friend where all the good smells are. I tried to get her to check them out for herself, but she just wouldn’t do it. I can’t figure out why. She’s missing out on the best part of the tour.

I wanted to make sure my friend got the full Arizona experience, so I made sure she brushed against some cactus.

I’m not sure why it’s so important to people, but my person said to make sure I took my new friend where she could see lots of red rocks, so I even took her to see the best scenic views.

But I seem to be having a problem now. My official fee for giving tours of my trails is lots of loves, but I wore my new friend out so much that she doesn’t have any energy left to give them to me. Next time I give a tour I’m collecting my fee in advance.

35 Comments

Posted by Bongo on July 19, 2012 in Bongo, dogs, humor

Tags: Arizona, Hiking, Outdoors, Pets, Sedona, Sedona Arizona, Trail

Dots in the Dirt

11 Jul

The dirt on my trails looks a little different today. I don’t know why, but there are dots in it.

Those dots don’t smell any different.

So where did they come from?

Did someone take a stick and poke it all over my trails? They must have poked pretty fast because they made a lot of dots.

Maybe they had a large sheet of dots and they went along my trails pressing it in everywhere.

But why would they do that? Did they think I was so bored that I needed something to do in my Detective Dog hat?

Well, you’ve got something coming if you think that. Anyone who would take time to put all those dots on my trails must be really bored. Don’t you have anything better to do?

What, person? What do you mean, God made those dots?

Those are from raindrops? Raindrops make mud – and puddles. Since when do they make dots?

It’s not even wet. Shouldn’t there be tiny puddles in the raindrop dots?

34 Comments

Posted by Bongo on July 11, 2012 in Bongo, dogs, humor

Tags: Hiking, Outdoors, Pets, Rain, raindrops, Trail

No Wash

15 May

Do you see anything? Besides me, that is.

Neither do I.

But my person says there’s something there.

That picture is me, heading down the trail to my wash. My person wouldn’t let me go there. She made me go on my regular trails today.

Why? She made up some lame excuse about something you can’t see. Invisible things that fly around and irritate you. Little bad spirits or something.

She says they always show up around this time of year and they just showed up today. I don’t even notice them. I think my person made them up. She says they’re all over my trails but they’re worse in my wash.

She could have come up with a better story if she didn’t want to go in my wash. Like a giant flood on its way that might overtake us, or a mountain lion lurking behind a tree waiting to jump out at us. Or a bunch of coyotes waiting to lure me into their pack. But no, she made up a sad story about invisible things. She even has a name for them. She calls them “no see ‘ems.”

Well, the next time I don’t see a cat, or I don’t see a rabbit, or even a quail, I’m chasing after it anyway. I can play this “no see ‘em” game too.

49 Comments

Posted by Bongo on May 15, 2012 in Bongo, dogs, humor

Tags: cedar gnats, Hiking, Outdoors, Pets, Trail

A Pile of Rocks

12 May

This strange thing showed up in the wash on my trails today. A pile of rocks. It looks like a trail marker but it can’t be. The wash isn’t a trail. It’s just a cool place with lots of good smells that I like to walk in.

And sometimes when it rains the wash turns into a stream. It washes away all the cool smells and brings in new ones. But that’s why this new thing can’t be a trail marker.

Can you imagine a trail marker in the middle of a stream? Maybe if there were stepping stones and it marked the best path, but all there is in that spot are small rocks and sand .

What kind of person would put that trail marker there?

Maybe they were lost and figured if they ended up going in circles they would know it. You think they’d figure it out by the smells though.

Or maybe they put it there as a target for birds. The birds could fly right over and aim at it. As long as they’re not aiming at my head that’s okay. I guess they shouldn’t aim at my person’s head either.

Oh, wait a minute. I just figured it out. One of my friends left this here.

It’s a new message post. Now I don’t have to sniff all over to see which of my friends has been in the wash lately.