Who’s Ready for Stuffing?

It all started when I heard Mr. N was coming over for our joint birthday party. Mom was busy in the kitchen making pupcakes.

The smell alone was driving me crazy. Anticipation was building..

There was a knock on the door and there he was–let the party begin!

 Let me tell you, it didn’t take long to made short work of those pupcakes.

So, what’s all this about ‘stuffing’? 

I can do this? Really??

So satisfying…

Um, you said “go ahead”.

Go ahead–I’m busy.

Or, maybe it really should be called ‘de-stuffing’.

Note from Mom: No stuffing was harmed in the process–it quickly found a new home in the trash. 

Mosier Plateau Hike

We’re a little late getting this out, but it was such a good hike that I just had to tell you about it!

Mosier is a little town about 70 miles east of Portland, so we met up with Mr. N at 1000 Acres. A good run before heading out was needed by both of us and the long drive to Mosier gave us both time to catch a quick nap. When we turned off the highway (that always wakes me up), we got a little lost. The trailhead wasn’t well marked, but after Mom got on her trusty phone, we backtracked and found it. Off we went!

We followed the trail past a pioneer cemetery nestled on the side of the hill and soon came to a waterfall.

At the falls

That’s a ways down!

I’ll stay right here

It was a fairly easy hike to the top of the plateau–some stairs to climb and a bunch of switchbacks–and wild flowers all over the place. I saw a lizard and my prey drive kicked in! Good thing Mom always keeps me on a leash when we’re hiking. But I inspected every grouping of rocks–I was sure there were more!

Balsamroot

The best part was at the top–we could see the Columbia making its way to the ocean. What a view!i was glad Mom packed plenty of water…my black coat makes me even hotter! And I’m even gladder Mom puts flea and tick medicine on me–one of those nasty ticks got on me, but Mom got it off before it could do any harm. Those things are just plain icky!!

We stayed up there for a while. Me looking for lizards; the Moms enjoying the scenery and Mr. N watching several Hawks circling overhead.I told Mr. N not to worry. I would have no problem chasing them away. What were they thinking anyway?

And now Mom is off taking care of the Popstar, but we’ll be around to see everyone really soon.

Pittock Mansion Hike

Right in the heart of Portland, high atop one of the west hills, sits the Pittock Mansion. The Pittocks were prominent Portland residents during the late 1800’s through the early 1900’s and were instrumental in building Portland into the thriving city it is now. The mansion was built late in their lives at the pinnacle of their success and the view was as spectacular as their lovely home.

Overlooking Portland

Sage & Mr. N

The grounds were beautiful

We headed down the trail for a fairly short hike to the Stone House, right in the heart of Forest Park. This building, now in ruins, which was originally built in 1950 as an elaborate bathroom.Graffiti covered several of its walls, but Mr. N and I found a wall where we could pose.  AND, we didn’t even use the facilities!! 😃

Then rain started coming down. We scurried back up the path, but not before I examined each and every culvert. I wasn’t sure what I’d find, but I just had to look.

Mom says I missed one–she must have walked way too fast at that point.

We scampered along Balch Creek (no, I didn’t get to go in) back up the trail to our respective vehicles.

We all got wet, but that’s what happens here!

Ponytail Falls

Hiking the falls in the Columbia Gorge is always fun and you never know what you’re going to see. Mom said we were going to stop at Horsetail Falls and I had my mind all made up that this is what we were going to see.

Silly me. I guess I wasn’t listening and missed the “Falls” part…

and I sure didn’t see any horses.Mr. N and I cavorted up the path through a series of switchbacks lined with basalt walls. We soon reached Upper Horsetail Falls, also called Ponytail Falls. The water fell into a pool (how I longed to take a dip) and the path went behind the falls!

                                 Have you ever been behind a falls?

Mom loves to know all this stuff about why we were behind the falls, so she said I could tell you. In very simple terms (that’s me, by the way), a basalt lava flow buried a softer layer of rock and soil. Then water and winter ice removed the softer material below, creating a cavern of sorts. And there we were! In the cavern.

Moving along, we hiked to a spot that overlooked the Columbia River

And found a nice spot to take a rest.

Wahclella Falls

In my last post, we were hiking to Wahclella Falls–I left you just before reaching our destination. So now I’ll finish my adventure.

We rounded a corner and there it was! 

One of the prettiest falls we’ve seen. Mom took a short video…the roar of the water dropping into the creek is something you don’t want to miss.

We all had dirty feet by this time and still had to walk back through a very muddy section of the trail (check out Mr. N’s blog to see how muddy it was!) We all enjoyed a foot dip in the creek at the end!

Hiking to Munra and Wahclella Falls-Part 2

After a romp at 1000 Acres

Mr. N and I drove into the Columbia Gorge to Wahclella Falls – our next hike. We have been fortunate to have fairly nice weather recently as winter hiking can present numerous challenges. Even so, it was quite muddy on the trail, but that didn’t bother me a bit! You see, I was already muddy (and a bit stinky from a roll in coyote skat) from our stop at 1000 Acres.

This lollipop loop trail is considered “easy” (300 foot elevation gain) and is only a 2-mile round trip. But the scenery  definitely made up for any ‘shortcomings’. 😃

mossy tree

Water dripping off the cliff

Cascading water off the side of the mountain

Of course, Mr. N and I had to do some stump sitting along the way!We crossed a bridge so close to Munra Falls that I could reach out and touch the water!

Bridge next to Munra Falls

Munra Falls

Munra Falls

looking back at Munra Falls

We found a cave but Mom’s pictures didn’t turn out very well. But, this was another spot that could have been a cave (but wasn’t).We took one fork of the lollipop loop that rose high above Tanner Creek. It was pretty impressive!

Tanner Creek rapids

Tanner Creek

Tanner Creek

pool in Tanner Creek

Tanner Creek rapids

I knew we were close to our destination–I could hear the falls.So don’t miss the rest of this hike. You’ll love it!

WW: Beginning the Hike

The hike to Wahclella Falls was one of the prettiest yet. Come back for more!

Nouvelle Cuisine Dog Style

Nurse Sage

I arrived at Mr. N’s all prepared to nurse him back to health–he had a nasty cut on his foot, you know. But, when I got there, Mr. N said “join me for a bite to eat“. What happened to the foot??? Oh, it’s better, Mr. N said.

So, never one to turn down food, I made my way to the table. We both sat down.

The waitstaff brought out a plate with little tiny mounds of chicken, tuna, shrimp and salmon.

I guess that’s what Nouvelle Cuisine means–some kind of fancy stuff on a plate.We waited for a bit–chit chatting about this and that. Then I heard the word (‘OK’) and we dug in.In a flash, it was gone!A walk was next on the agenda. After all, we had to work off all that food!!

And Mr. N didn’t have to experience my extraordinary nursing skills ;).

Mr. N Spends the Weekend

Mr. N showed up the other day with his suitcase and leash. His Mom was with him, so I knew he hadn’t run away. I asked him “is everything OK?” He wasn’t sure. Then I heard them talk about food and clothes and a whole bunch of other boring stuff. That’s where I zoned out and decided to have a little romp around the house with him.

It was rainy that first day, so we donned our matching raincoats and headed out for a walk. Leaving your mark is important when you’re in new territory…I worked hard at keeping up with Mr. N. Somewhere, we both ran out, but that didn’t stop us!The kitties had another take on this situation. They remembered the last time Mr. N spent the night. He chased Mystic and she gave him a ‘correction’. Now, Mr. N has a healthy respect for my kitties and steers far away from them. Even so, Mystic spent lots of time in places far away from this little ball of fur. 😃 I think if he stayed longer, she might get to like him!

Today, Mom kept running in and out of the house–putting lights and stuff here and there. Then she dragged a tree in AND we didn’t even get to put our stamp of approval on it. What’s up with that??? Really, it was a bit boring.

But we did our best to cope.

So, what is it like when another dog comes to spend a few days at your house?

My Thankful Day

I have a lot to be thankful for today–let me tell you why.

You know I get really hot with all that running and stuff and there’s almost always a mud puddle to cool off in.

Or a river to swim inA ball meant to land in my mouthOceans to exploreMountains to be climbedMy friends

Sage & Toby

I’ll play ball with you, Heidi.

Sage & Mr. N

She loves it–really

Sage & Macy

Thailing

And most of all

IT’S MY BIRTHDAY

I’m now 5-years old…Mom says it means I’m supposed to be all grown up. Frankly, I think that’s a bit over-rated.

We celebrated with a fun, fun trip to the coast with Mr. N, who gave me a Tuffy Mega Bone with not one, not two but 10 layers of indestructible material. I looooved it. And it’s still in one piece. 😀 More about this trip later, so stay tuned!!