Wonderful Washington State

Okay, this is me, the MOM, but somehow I am on Daisy's blog. We loved the Cascades. We crossed them on Highway 20, enjoying first the high desert, then the mountain firs, then the resort towns, then the lakes created along the Skagit to provide commercial hydro power to Seattle. Along the way were fruit stands (peaches and tomatoes, ummm) and ice cream stands. And sunshine and lots of bikers having a blast on the winding, twisting undulating roads.

We arrived the evening of the 24th in Bellingham, my possible next home, and settled in to be citizens for the weekend. The weather is putting on a show for us, and we found a great fenced bark park to tire Daisy out.

Poor thing, she has continued to have the tummy bug. In what would be one of life's most embarrasing moments if anybody knew us, we stopped at a rural Washington vet to get her kennel cough shot updated, and she immediately got sick all over their rug. The country vet, who was clearly more concerned with the horses and cows, said she looked bright and perky, so just don't feed her for a day or too. So we have been dutiful and she seems better now.

Our plans are to hang here for a few days, visit friends, and then send Carl home. That will be the start of a new saga, the Chick Trip segment of Teregram's voyage. It's bound to be wild but largely unrecorded, so tune in for an occasional update.

10,499 miles

Wow. That's a lot of miles for a Sammy dog. Makes my head spin.

Today, Dad said let's go East for a while and then go back across the Cascades for fun. So we had fun. Great scenery, where Canada Highway 3 winds through the Skagit river valley with mountains and orchard land and wineries. Then the terrain became high desert again. One valley over, another ecosystem.

We crossed the border at the smallest possible border crossing, even smaller than Hyder Alaska. The man came out and said, "How did you folks find your way here?" For the final time at a border crossing, no one cared about my health papers or our food in the frig. Just "are you guys bringing anything back? Where ya going next?" I slept through the whole thing.

We are tonight barely back in the USA in Oroville, WA,otherwise known as nowhere. The lady running our RV park turned out to be a dog hater. She gave Dad an ALL CAPS MEMO OF DOG RULES. IT EXPLAINED HOW NOT EVERYONE LIKES DOGS AND HOW LONG MY LEASH WAS TO BE AND WHERE I COULD NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES TAKE MY WALKS. Guess who is number one on the list of people who don't like dogs? I wonder? Tonight, I am lying outside, calmly knawing on my t-bone, minding my own business like I always do. Here comes dragon lady in her little golf cart. She knocked on the RV door and told mom not to tie me to the tree. She said it's only two years old and won't take much to ruin it. Makes me want to potty on her front porch. Oh well. A person who hates dogs is an unhappy person, I always say. Almost everyone is happier than she is.

This morning, mom walked me around Harrison Lake to the source of the hot springs. Lovely walk, I must say, with geese parading down to the water and the hills across the lake a misty blue. On the way back, an elderly woman melted at me. I melted back at her, and she teared up over her poor little dog that is no longer with her. Her son said they were from Quebec. She spoke only French, not a word of English, but we communicated one soul to another. She rubbed my face, and I looked at her with adoration.

I have to say I can't tell the difference so far between Canada and the US. It definitely does not look like Texas yet. My trip is far from over, Mom says. She says I am going to stay with her cross country till around the first of September. That is one journey to remember, huh? I have so much to tell the dogs back home.

10,312 miles

There we were, driving from the hotsprings to our RV park in Harrison Hot Springs, BC, when mom pulls over in a hurry and says LOOK. Two sammies walking down the street. They came over to meet us. Both are rescue sammies (I guess they learned CPR). One was left for dead run over on a highway, and the other came from a home of older folks who could not take care of her. Her name was Betsy and she was an attention hog. The other, Keisha, and please forgive me if her name is spelled incorrectly, was given to random barking. I could not hear the name over her barking. Her owner says she has her own world, in which she listens to voices no one else hears and barks. I guess if I survived a hit and run, I might have some random things to say too.

I am feeling fine tonight, thank you for asking. But last night at 12, I got mom up by barking at the door. She walked me, but nothing. At 1 am, I got Dad up by barking. He walked me, but nothing. Then I kept barking and they told me to go to sleep or else. Some comments about crying wolf. Oh boy what a mess. I was so sick at my tummy. They felt so bad for doubting my sincerity. Mom was walking me around the RV park in the wee hours, dad was outside cleaning the rug by the light of a flashlight. It was a sad situation. Everyone got to sleep about 2.

Next morning the neighbors commented that we had a rough night, eh? We must have been noisy. I was sick several more times today, but I am getting better. Dad and Mom are going to feed me white rice tonight.

Today was fine scenery though. That sea to sky highway is something. From Whistler to Vancouver is really awesome with the low coast mountain ranges doing their blue shadowy shimmer again the turquoise Howe Sound. Then we skirted north of Vancouver to head east to Harrison Hot springs. Mom and her springs. You would think she has enough minerals. She likes to be hot and have prune hands. I guess it's not a bad thing.

9,870 miles

I am calling this guy Billy, cause there used to be a black lab named Billy in our neighborhood. Today while Mom and I were hanging out near Pemberton BC and Dad was riding his bike, Billy came by and invited me to play. He picked up a rock and gave me a come hither look and led Mom and me to Pemberton Creek. He had a thing with rocks, as labs often do. He went into the bushes for the perfect rock, then buried the rock in the water, the same place in the creek every time.

This went on for some time. Then he led us to the creek on the other side of the road, and mom thought the whole thing was so cute that she did what she never does. Let me off leash. I was perfect. Billy and I played in the water and on the beach for a long time. He taught me to fetch sticks. I never did get what the deal was with the rocks, but hey, what happens in BC, stays in BC. If he wants to chew rocks, I guess he can chew rocks.

Finally, Mom said, "Okay, you guys, lets go get puppy cookies". We both sat and she gave us cookies. I have never had more fun the whole trip.

Today was more fun that the night before when I got to walk on the Fraser River at Lilleoot and crawl on rocks. More fun than meeting the little girls who were afraid of me, but their dad said in a Brit accent, "Don't be afraid, Just give Daisy a little tickle." More fun than the walk to Brandywine Falls and having my picture taken with people. More fun than the ladies next door tonight who came over to give me bones because they missed their puppies at home. (Mom said she thought they were a little bit manly, especially the one who hooked a blow torch to a propane tank to start their fire).

Today made up for Mom not feeling well lately and giving me only the most basic of walks. Today was PRIMO!

9,131 Miles

Uh, oh. I have competition. Mom came home with this guy in Valdez. Says his name is Balto. First thing I did was grab him and run out the door with him. Looked like something I should chew the stuffing out of. I have grown used to him over the last few days and today I was even nice enough to pose for the family photo. Mom says she needs a cuddle dog on the top rack, and I am too afraid to go up there. I guess as long as it doesn't go any farther than that I can tolerate him. As long as my food and my puppy cookies don't get eaten....

Mom is still walking me. She wants to ooh and aah about the flowers and the scenery and the rivers and the mountains, but I say walks are all about rodents. There are ground squirrels everywhere, and ungrounded squirrels in the trees chirping at me. The last few nights have been a cornucopia of squirrels.

We are somewhere in BC now. I get so confused sometimes, because it all looks the same at the end of a longline. We left the Yukon a couple of days ago on the Cassiar highway to see new scenery. It sure worked. We have bear sightings everyday, and we have seen a red fox and a moose in a pond. I will have to do some catchup on my animals. The road was supposed to be awful, but we have found that when Dad drives, it is smooth and paved and the sun shines. When Mom drives, the road turns to gravel with potholes and construction zones with flag women. And it rains.

The first night on the Cassiar, we stayed at Boya Lake. Now that was scenery. We went on a lakeside trail hike, and I drank lake water twice. Mom took pictures and I barked at squirrels. Eventually the squirrels moved out of our tree or went to bed and I was allowed out on the longline.

There was a family from Vancouver next door, three boys very close in age, and Anthony came right over to check me out. He has this British accent so he says his name is Antony without the h. He wanted to know how much I weighed. About 60 lbs Dad said. How much do you weigh? Anthony said 70. Mom asked how many kilos? No kilos, he said. There were lots of other questions. His brothers hung back, but not the middle child Anthony. That is why he is in the picture with me.

Anthony's family started a fire with a big old log. It struggled a long time. Mom was trying not to show them the girl scout way and I could tell it was killing her. Finally they fanned it into a flame that began to thaw their burgers. Mom offered to get the grill out, as it was about dark thirty by then. Just then the log finally caught fire, as did their burgers. They all ate and crawled in their little oversized van for the night.

Next morning Anthony and his brothers and his dad all had a dip in the lake. Dad finally jumped in, and the boys all stood shivering up to their knees but no deeper. All of them had on their swim goggles. Pretty funny sight. Mom and Dad both said it was not very nice to keep looking at them, but they were such cheap entertainment. All that and a lakeside view for $15 a night. Just pay the first nations lady when she comes by.

We spent another day on the Cassier, a long one for us, 240 miles, because there was nothing between the park and the next possible camping place. Mom drove a lot because Dad has another cold starting (yick!). Mom said the scenery was Switzerland again. Mountains with snow and wildflowers everywhere.

We stopped for the night at a combo cabin/hotel/rvpark/heliskiing operations. It was quite the palace too. It had a sauna, a workout room and a HOTTUB. The hottub had three employees in it who had spent their day off floating on a lake and freezing their buns off. They were trying to warm up. After a while they got pretty warmed up, thanks to a bottle or two of wine, and one of them started group singing. You know how Mom is on talent nights, and she was pretty impressive when she could remember the first AND second verse. Of course these girls learned the songs on CD's and mom still has the original vinyls in her collection. Janis Joplin, the Beatles, etc. Dad said he couldn't tell if anybody was on key or not. He's a great audience that way. One girl got so warmed up that she offered Mom something Bill Clinton never inhaled. Mom said no thanks, it might make her want to start smoking again, the cigarette kind of smoking, which she has not done for 25 years. Mom headed for the showers and to bake some brownies, just in case the very thought of inhaling made her want chocolate.

We were lazy the next morning, the last RV to leave at 10 am. We had only a 100 mile day planned, a side trip to Stewart and Hyder on Glacier road, so named because in 32 miles you can see 20 glaciers. Bear Glacier is the biggest one. Hyder is in AK, so we made one more border crossing we hadn't planned on. But we had to cross the border and go down the pothole road because there is a bear viewing site where the salmon come to spawn. US Govt built it. Platforms just like the ones at Brooks River on Katmai, except so totally accessible....well, if you want to drive the Cassiar and go to Hyden. When we got there, the ranger said I could not even put one paw outside the RV because it would either run the bears off or make them want to eat me. Phooey. Well, there were only two salmon spawning in the creek, so no bears yet. Any minute though, everyone says, they are going to be fishing and training their cubs to fish. So we bumped back into town and crossed the border again. Empty handed once again in the salmon bear category.

Dad went grocery shopping in Stewart and Mom and I walked out a boardwalk to the estuary. It was raining one minute, sunny the next. That's Alaska. Wait ten minutes and the weather will change.

We found a spot at Bear River RV park where I can have unlimited longline but I have to come in at dark because of the bears. Mom walked me out a very nice rodent smelling road to the river. She was looking for bears the whole time.

I've had a pretty good day. It was a three walk day. Can't get much better. Except if I could catch one of those squirrels, grounded or ungrounded.

8,019 Miles

Here's my picture just so my readers know I am alive and well. As a matter of fact, I have never been better. It's been two months since I had to go to the groomer, and that in itself is better than a t-bone. And I have been on the best walks of my life since mom bought the long line.

Starting with Valdez, I walked the bike path with a mowed expanse adjoining it, but not so mowed that there weren't places to find smells of other critters,like birds, and fuzzy little things. Once Mom walked the whole circle path around the town and I came home pooped out. It didn't rain till we left Valdez, so that was great. I got morning and night walks.

Then we drove up the Richardson Highway through the rain, looking once again at the incredible waterfalls in Keystone Canyon, and took the Tok cutoff to Tok. There, Mom walked me to the post office, which was about a mile one way. I was once again exhausted coming home. The Post office is next door to Burnt Paw, which has sled dogs and sled dog equipment. I was whimpering with eagerness, but mom said no way. No more 120 dogs barking at me as far as she was concerned. The Burnt Paw sod roof log cabin had a lawn mower up on the roof. Pretty funny looking.

Next day we took off on the Taylor highway for Chicken, Alaska. Chicken was named chicken because the miners didn't want to have to spell ptarmigan. Dad said mom got to choose one dirt road for the trip, so this is the one she picked. All the cars coming toward us were pretty brown, but she said the scenery of the Top of the World Highway was going to be worth it. I thought Chicken would be a big deal for me, but all I got was a quick relief walk and then I had to wait in the RV while Mom had chicken noodle soup for lunch and shopped in Chicken Mercantile. It was pouring rain, which dad said would mean we wouldn't have any dust on the road.

I thought it was scary. The road had no guardrails, and it was twisty and windy. And muddy. Teregram was chocolate dipped. Later on mom and dad would discover there was mud inside every storage compartment. When we crossed into Canada, the road was paved, and it really was on top of the world. All those mountains we had driven around on switch backs from Chicken to the border? We were driving on top of them now. They were glacially rounded and incredibly soft and green, kind of like Montana was. Right on top of the world we drove, with no guardrails on either side, and steep drop offs if you messed up. It wasn't raining any more, so you could see what would happen if Dad didn't pay attention. I started biting my claws, I was so nervous.

About halfway to Dawson City, the road began to alternate dirt and paved, and it began to rain again. Mom kept laughing about how she picked this road for the scenery, and all she could see was the road, sort of. Then it got really exciting. The road ended at a river, the Yukon. There was a bit of land jutting into the river, and Mom said was she really supposed to drive on that little spit of land? Onto that tiny ferry? The river was boiling. Really full outside of its banks, and brown muddy. And it was still raining. It looked very unfriendly, but it worked out okay. We made it to the other side of the river to Dawson City and I started breathing again.

Now, I don't mean to be critical, but Dawson City looked old. Like saloon girl days old. During the gold rush in 1898, 60,000 people lived there. Now there are 2,000 or so, all of them walking around in period costume like a century hasn't passed. Walking in the mud of the dirt streets. Sure, they have wooden sidewalks, but to get from one sidewalk to the next is MUD. Peeling paint, some things restored, some not. And the lady at the RV park said we would want to stay a week. I have this feeling she likes to gamble.

Mom said we would go to the museum, but that was all she wanted to see. She says she is not into either gold mining or gambling. So she and dad went to the museum and learned more about the gold rush and saw some miners put on a mock trial. They saw a movie about the city too. I got a walk in the morning when the rain finally stopped, and there was grass, so I was just fine with Dawson City.

Next day we started down the Klondike Highway. It follows the Yukon all the way from Dawson City to Whitehorse. Do you know that is 500 miles? All those prospectors, after hiking from Skagway up the Chilkoot Trail 45 degrees vertical, with 1000 lbs of stuff, would build boats on Bennett Lake and then in the spring, they floated 500 miles to Dawson City.

Something else funny about the Yukon. It used to flow the other way. Then the Tintina Trench opened up and some land came over from a sea bottom, and all kinds of things that just amaze me how the world could do that, and then the drainage reversed. Is that wierd or what? Of course that was a long time ago, before I was born, and before the ice ages too. How on earth did geologists figure that one out? Who knew about plates and such? The trench sits on the biggest fault in North America. Scary to think the earth could rock like that again while I am in the Yukon.

Tonight we are in Carmacks. Carmacks is one of the few towns that survived after the Klondike highway was built. Before the highway, steamers made the trip from Whitehorse to Dawson City downstream in 36 days. Took 80 to return. It was the highway of the territory,that river. Towns were built on the river. Then the highway was built, and Carmacks survived because it happens to be on the highway as well as the river, but the other towns died away when the steamers stopped running. Do you know that downstream is north? That seems backwards if you are from Texas.

Views are wow (that's what mom says when she looks out), looking down into the valley with the river pouring through it. It's a wide and mighty river, the Mississippi of the Yukon Territory. The Yukon is spitting distance from Teregram tonight, and there is an incredible boardwalk for a couple of miles along it. Mom walked me till I cried uncle tonight. She can outlast me with this new long line thing. Then she made me a bucket of ice water and gave me a new rawhide. Life is pretty good here in the Yukon. I am on my best behavior the next day or so, because we are going really close to Frank Turner's Muktuk Kennels, and I sure don't want to be left there with his 120 dogs.

7, 206 miles Yikes, bears!

Mom's friend Miss Debbie is deathly afraid of bears. She will swim with sharks, not a problem. But when it comes to bears, she is sure Mom is going to get mauled.

Well, she is right! This last week in Anchorage (now that's a big city you know) a jogger got bowled over by a mama bear. Then a teenage girl on an all night mountain bike race got mauled in the same area. It's a big park on the edge of the city, and area where bear experts say three major bear trails converge.

The paper is full of nothing but bear news. Who sited what bear where? Sign on and post your findings and photos! Mom went to the botanical garden yesterday, and they had seen a bear that very day. All the docents went home after seeing the bear, leaving the visitors to wander alone in bear country. On our walk today, we saw a sign that said "Bear and two cubs sighted right here!" It was two days ago though, so I could not even get the scent.

On the Russian river, the game warden picked up two yearlings and relocated them. They have taken to chasing people for food.

So who is in the right? The human, or the bear? They both like the same area. Tranquil creek, salmon running in it, nice trail.....who can blame them?

All I can say is, I am SO glad that Mom bought me a bear bell. I don't want to meet a bear, and I don't want to meet a moose either. Moose and dogs don't mix. I'm with you, Miss Debbie! And since I know you will be swimming in Galveston Bay all weekend, please be careful about those sharks!