The Paddle Pups and we took advantage of the most amazing weather we’ve had so far…sunny, and warm, with light winds. Our destination was one of our favorite local waters…we were anxious to try out a different camping location at the lake. What a delightful few days we had! Great canoeing, great company, great campsite…and great observations of Gavia Immer, the Spirit of the Northern Waters (AKA common loon).

Here is a photo log of our trip, with brief commentary…

The camping site is 3 tiers…first tier is water level, with smooth rock for watching the peaceful waters beyond.

Climb up the hill 100 feet, and there is a flat. lightly wooded, open sky tent-site, overlooking the water.

Another 100 feet up, and there is the fire-pit, more possible tent sites, and flat ground for relaxing. Edgar thinks he is a lap dog, but at 60 lbs, it can be a bit much. The folding chair is our one luxury item—it will soon be replaced by a Big Agnes Helinox chair.

The weather was mild, but after a long day’s paddling, nothing feels as good as the blaze of a campfire.

Once it gets dark, Griff will go and stare at the tent door, asking to be let in. When we have his Outward Hound tent, he will go in that instead, at least until bedtime!

Our tent at night, as we wait for the sky to fill with stars. The haunting calls and hoots of the loon families are music unlike any other.

A morning “polar plunge” was cancelled, as we found many loons swimming and fishing 50 feet from our shore. We are careful to respect the loons, and we do not harass or follow them ( though they sometimes follow us, or pop up unexpectedly!)

Baby loon chicks…mama and papa loon are never very far away!

The dogs were enthusiastic, and very well-behaved paddlers on this trip.

A little tight on space, when fully loaded…but the dogs acclimate nicely. They are getting quite proficient at this canoe camping business!

When you are a pooped-pup, even a thwart makes a serviceable pillow.

Quite a satisfactory adventure!

Paddling and Hiking..a busy week!

We’ve had some lovely weather lately, but also some pretty miserable rainy weather, too. During the past week and a half, we have been fortunate to get out and play on some of the nicest days this season. Griff and I were able to get in a sunrise mid-week hike to a small mountain that is literally in our backyard.  As we prepped to head back down, another local family arrived, a bit startled I think, to see that someone was at the summit before them!

long shadows cast by the rising sun….

We’ve also been able to take the 2 dogs to hikes a bit afar…one hike to Haystack Mt. in the Northeast Kingdom, which also gave us an optimistic look at a nearby pond, suitable for paddling. This combination of mountain and water will make a lovely fall hike/paddle day excursion.

On the south overlook at Haystack Mt.

Of course, as usual after a hot day’s hiking, it is time to stop for an ice cream! The dogs have been trained to wait their turns–we alternate giving them a spoonful of ice cream, and they will wait patiently until the spoon comes to them. Bystanders are amazed at their control!

We don’t even have to count our fingers anymore, after giving them ice cream!

On a beautiful sunny Father’s Day, we knew our local mountains would be crowded. So, if we have to deal with crowds, let’s go someplace new! So we headed off to a part of the state we rarely visit…other than driving through, on our way to Western New York to visit our son. We had seen Snake Mt. on these trips, but had not considered it as a climb. We learned the name originates from the serpentine geology of the ridge, not from it’s inhabitants. That made the hike acceptable to one of us (not me), who is not fond ( to put it mildly) of snakes.

We got off the a semi-early start (0830), and were pleased to see a sign at the trailhead.

Well, the only dog we encountered on the climb was leashed once his owners saw us…on the descent, we had 2 dogs scrambling, off-leash, around us and our dogs…on a slippery, muddy, rocky section of the descent.  The owner acknowledged he had seen the sign, and just chose to disregard it.  On our descent, we met the hordes of folks climbing up this popular hiking trail. Every other dog was leashed, or put on a leash when we approached.

We were fortunate to have evaded the crowds. At the summit, we were alone, and  had amazing views from Killington Peak in the south, to northern Lake Champlain to the north. The impressive Adirondack range was in full spectacular glory…not a bright sunny day, but a clear and cool morning, perfect for long distance viewing.

This week we also attempted a night-time full moon hike. It had poured rain the evening of the “strawberry moon”, so we went out the next night, with a weather prediction for clear skies. Well, the skies did not clear, we never saw the moon ( though we did see some stars), and it started raining as soon as we returned home…we’ll try again next month.

Nigh-time hikes…with glowing creepy eyes!

And of course, we had some fine paddling! We took a very long paddle on the local reservoir, checking out some potential campsites. The water was calm, the wind light, and we stopped to make coffee at one unused site.

Trying the ‘Reflection” mode on the camera!

We were pleased to find minimal debris at this site…this has been an issue on this body of water,as I mentioned in an earlier post.  A few corn cobs/husks, and a bundle of unused wood..probably thoughtfully left behind for next camper.

As usual, the dogs keep themselves quite comfortable in the canoe!

We also tried out Little Hosmer Pond, a lake that was new to us–a few years ago, we came here to paddle, but the wind was whipping up some heavy chop, so we went elsewhere. This day, the morning was quiet, peaceful, and the water calm. We saw loons, ducks, geese, and an osprey take flight right over us. We saw only one other paddler (this is a quiet water lake, no power boats are here), and that was off in the distance.

We noted an interesting visual along the shore–the shrubbery near the shoreline was defoliated, and dark,  up to a height of about 6 feet. This is a “browse line”, showing where the deer had fed over the winter, while standing along the frozen shoreline, eating the foliage.

There is an adjacent lake, where Olympic rowers train, as part of the Craftsbury Outdoor Center. In the winter, Olympic X-C skiers and biathletes also train on the nearby trails.  As that Big/Great Hosmer Pond is also a “quiet” lake, we plan to give that a try at later date.

It has been a busy few weeks…summer is coming at last, and lots of adventure awaits us.  We’re off canoe camping again soon, and are hoping that the weather does not involve rain or hail!

Canoeroots Magazine just posted an article about a DIY survival kit..a nice read, and a reminder to me that I have yet to post a follow up to my post from February entitled “What’s In Your Pack?”. So here we go…

When we decide to go paddling for a day trip, we have a mental checklist of the gear we need to bring. One of those items has been the “canoe box”, a plastic shoebox-sized not-quite waterproof box in which the “little stuff” goes. The box has recently been upgraded, and is now a 5 l. dry bag, with a clear window, in which we can place the map of that day’s paddling destination. The inclusion of the “canoe Go-Bag” means we have the most critical emergency supplies we may need, as well as those those items which can just “come in handy”. The bag is kept packed, and ready to go. Many of the items are duplicates of what is carried in my day pack…by having duplicates, we can insure that whether we are trekking on land, or on the water, we should not be caught short. The bag is small enough to easily fit under or behind a seat in the canoe….the line can be used to secure the canoe to a shoreline anchor if needed, and the floating camera strap gets put on the camera when we are in the canoe.

We keep nature guides to help us identify birds and other wildlife, laminated maps,small dry bag for cell phone, QuikPod monopod for “out of boat” shots, a waterproof emergency flashlight, a small emergency kit with matches, reflecting mirror, insect towelettes, and a compass. Oh, and some dog treats, of course!  Our PFD’s have whistles attached to them.

We also have a first aid kit, with items suitable for dogs, humans, or both….The small soft bag fits nicely in the canoe dry bag.

In this first aid kit, we keep the following items:

• • Space blanket — helpful should we have the need to stave off some hypothermia
  • Dog booties (cordura)–we have unfortunately encountered broken glass on some of our access areas, and the booties can help keep a dog’s paw bandaged/protected.
  • gloves (non-latex)
  • Triangular bandage
  • Gauze wrap, pads, tape, band-aids
  • Vet wrap
  • People Rx ( i.e. vitamin I)
  • Sharpie pen
  • Tick remover
  • Length of pantyhose for muzzle
  • Small penknife/tool
  • Kurgo Pet First Aid Guide (just in case our mind goes blank!)

So, I think that is about it. Many of the items we have never used ( thankfully), and others have become essential, relied-upon gear that we use nearly every trip.  We have recently added a LifeStraw, should we need to rely on “iffy” water sources for hydration. And of course, there are always new gadgets coming out that I think…hmmm, we’ll have to give that a try!

Okay, so this is not a paddling picture…BUT, if you look in the center of the photo, amongst the green hills , there are the blue waters of the Waterbury Reservoir, one of our frequent paddling destinations.

Well, the water was not really high…but it was a bit choppy,as we paddled out into the headwind. Our Swift Kipawa was loaded for a short camping trip at Green River Reservoir State park in northern Vermont. There are 30 (water-access only) sites on this 700 acre pristine waterway…no shoreline development, no motor boats , and only one dirt road to access the park entry. We had eyed site 17 for a few years..the “best” site, so the one that is “never” available . Popping in at the park and taking your chances on getting other sites is fine, but you’ll never get this site (unless you reserve in January, as did we).

We had been a bit concerned about weather–the forecast had been for showers with a chance of thunderstorms with high wind. Rain is fine, we’re not wimps after all—but T-storms are a different matter! Lucky for us, the sun broke through, and we were able to load up, and get to our site without issue, accompanied by some of the many loons on this lake.

We arrived, and immediately set up the tarp…in case the looming clouds did drop some precipitation. We recently purchased a large tent footprint, added bungees and grommets, to make a modular tarp unit..it worked great! The tent was up, a fire started, and dinner was consumed overlooking the beautiful islands to the north. Then…well, suddenly all “hail broke loose”. The wind was roaring down from the north, and the rain that quickly began, just as quickly turned to hail. The hail gradually increased in size, until it was the size of a large green pea. The dogs immediately begged to be let into the tent…in they went, though they appeared a bit worried about the pelting on the roof!

The wind was blowing the campfire flames horizontally–towards the tent–so we quickly doused the fire. After about half an hour, the winds began to diminish, and the hail had turned to a light rain. The campsite looked as though there had been an early snow!

By 7:30, the skies cleared, and Griff and I had a short solo around the point. The sky was beautiful, with a rainbow against the dark sky to the south of us. We were able to re-establish a campfire, and enjoy our welcome hot toddies .

The overnight was marked by a few more showers, and the sounds of loons, barred owls, and geese permeating the evening. Day dawned not with the bright sun, but with some grey coolness….after feeding the dogs, and us, we headed out for a paddle along the northern arm of the lake. We were greeted by a group of 3 loons, 50 feet off our shore. They ignored us, and we ignored them..the dogs are now so used to the loons, they tend to just accept them as part of the paddling landscape. But the geese were really honking,and the dogs took a good long look at them!

We stopped back at our site, and loaded up the canoe–a brisk tailwind invigorated our paddle back to the take-out.  We will return to this lake for more overnight camping in a few weeks…prior to that, we’ll hopefully be able to get out for some day excursions. What a jewel we have available, and only 30 minutes from our home!

Our paddling companion

Edgar’s back there somewhere!

The long holiday weekend forecast was not inspiring…mostly rain, and some thunder to be heading our way. However, we managed to be selective in our timings and destinations, and were able to get in a few hikes, one climb, and a lovely paddle. On Saturday, we climbed a small peak, starting in the sun, but descending in a steady sprinkle. Gryphon and I had been up to this point earlier in the week, on a glorious sunny day. Of course, when we brought Edgar and his dad up the trail, we had  less than ideal weather. Still a nice workout, and the dogs had fun.

The sunny hike…only negative was having to use the tick remover for the FIRST TIME EVER! Yuk, we’ve never had ticks before….

Edgar did not have the sunny view on this day, and he got nice and wet and smelly!

We were able to get out for an early paddle on Sunday, while the fog still rested upon the lake. We saw the loons for the first time this season, and also saw Great Blue Herons, and a beautiful Osprey . We made a hot breakfast ( JetBoil stove, we love it!) on a rocky outcropping, which is unfortunately often the hang-out for some inconsiderate jerks. Since the weather had been “iffy” all weekend, no one had been camping here..but we did find quite a bit of trash (broken glass, cans,bottles, sharp metal shards etc) ; we collected it, and will submit a trash data survey card.  Seeing how some folks can ruin such a beautiful spot , and make it dangerous for our dogs, confirms our belief that it is a good thingthat our state’s Forest and Parks agency is going to begin to monitor this area.

Waiting for breakfast !

The morning fog….

On Monday,we traveled a bit to visit family in NH. There is a 26 +/- mile trail network around the town. Today, we decided to hit the Cascade Brook Trail, since a 3 mile hike to see waterfalls is a good option on a day when the weather is threatening.  The dogs loved the opportunities to splash, and the weather held off just long enough for us to finish our hike.

The trail commission has a program in which you can earn a patch, for hiking all 26 miles….I thought that would be neat, and that Gryphon can earn one too! However “due to the inconsiderate actions of a few dog owners” (as the posted sign says), one section of the network is now closed to dogs. It would be no fun to earn the patch without my hiking buddy at my side…so I guess we’ll pass on that program.

So, now that we have had a few shakedown cruises in the boat, the dogs and we are ready for some overnight canoe camping….stay tuned, for further reports!

Heavy rains and winds were in the forecast, so our planned overnight canoe camping trip was postponed. Hopefully we will soon be enjoying the sunrise and sunsets from our favorite locale.

We hiked Saturday, once the rains cleared out, and focused on finding a trail which would be hikeable after the prior evening’s deluge. We succeeded in this endeavor, and had a great few hours hiking along a raging brook..the trail itself was surprisingly dry. Of course, being near the lake and the adjacent river has it’s hidden dangers….dead fish! Not generally a big issue, but when Edgar decides this is the perfect rolling spot…well, thankfully, since he is on a trekking line, he could be quickly “reeled in”, and the wilderness bath he received before getting in the car seemed to have limited his odoriferousness.

Edgar along the raging Cotton Brook ( before he found the fish!)

Gryphon wearing his bug-off scarf

By Sunday morning, the wind had calmed a bit, the sun was shining, so it was clearly time for another paddle. We did not use our new canoe cart/dolly today, as we went to an access where we can practically drive the car into the water. The wind, of course, picked up as soon as we started paddling…however, this Swift Kipawa just slices through the waves as we head into the wind. The dogs were impeccably well behaved, and seemed to enjoy the feel of the sun on their faces. Not much wildlife to be seen today—a few ducks taking flight, but no loons, herons, or eagles yet.  This is starting off as a memorable paddling season!

Just cannot beat bluebird skies!

Relaxed Paddle Pups

Water Dog!

A lovely, sunny peaceful Mother’s Day…kids are grown, and off making their marks on the world. That leaves my husband and me, and the two dogs, to enjoy a quiet day. An early morning bicycle ride gets the day off to a nice start—then, we consider going for a shakedown cruise in the canoe. The air temperature is nearing 70, but there is a breeze kicking up, and the water is still quite cold. We decide to go for a short paddle, and head off to one of our local canoeing spots.

Little did we know what this “great” canoe dolly had in store for us!

The dogs are excited to put on their PFDs, and we remember nearly all our gear ( the item we forgot is not critical for comfort or safety!). There is a 1/3 mile carry to the launch site, so we are able to put our new canoe dolly ( a Christmas gift) to the test. The dolly works great, and we easily reach our destination. We manage to get all of us into the canoe without any issues, and head out into the choppy water. We stay close to shore, and keep it a short paddle; as whitecaps begin to be seen,we decide to head in to shore. This was a great start to the paddling season, and has really fueled our enthusiasm!

The return home is uneventful, except….an hour after we return home, we hear an explosive BOOM! from the back of the house. I discover that one of the tires on the new dolly has violently exploded, sending the plastic hub rim 15 feet, and the webbing which had been left on top of the dolly,  20 feet in the opposite direction. The inner tube was sliced open, and the tire remnants damaged. This was rather disconcerning, to say the least. A quick live-chat with Siera Trading Post, and an email of some photos, resulted in an immediate refund to us.  We did realize that a “real” dolly is the way to go…our home-made milk crate/kids bike wheel dolly had served us well, but this dolly had worked slick and efficiently (until the tire exploded!).

The 3rd of the day’s activities was a hike at a local trail network; best observation? The trails which have been either brown or white for the past 7 months are now showing GREEN! After our hike, we went to the local creemee stand for a cool reward. The dogs even remembered how to take turns as they are fed the ice cream. A delicious way to end a delighful Mother’s Day!

Green!

Griff waiting his turn for a spoonful of ice cream….

….May your favorite paddle always be at your side,

    May your portages be short, and your trips be always long,

    May you always keep the open end up, and the pointed end forward,  and you’ll never go wrong.

Yes, MAY, the lovely month of MAY!  With the Irish canoe blessing in our heads ( watch over us, St, Brendan, patron saint of canoeists), we prep for the upcoming season. The PFDs and day trip gear is out of storage, the paddles are coming down from their winter display position, the NuFinish and Tung Oil are ready for pre-season application, and within 2 weeks, we should be heading out on the water. The American Canoe Association safety standards indicate that we have about 10-15 more degrees of water temp to go, before we can safely paddle without dry suits. The dogs were bouncy with anticipation when they saw their PFDs for the first time in 6 months. Maybe their doggy brains realize this means no more snow!

Spring hikes are always interesting…a bit of a hodge-podge, but the dogs are just happy to keep moving. Each hike lately brings a bit more green to be seen!

The Paddle Pups participated in some community service today. The first Saturday in May is “Green-Up” day in Vermont…where volunteers go out and clean up the debris, trash, and garbage left behind by mother nature, or inconsiderate litter pigs. We headed out to help clean up the Waterbury Reservoir, one of our frequently visited canoeing and camping spots. The newly activated Friends of the Waterbury Reservoir has coordinated with the Rozalia Project, to monitor and collect data on trash issues on this heavily used recreational waterway. Gryphon was our trash hauler, wearing his backpack so we didn’t have to carry the debris we found! We collected miscellaneous debris ( sandal, water bottle, lots of broken glass, foam, plastic, Skoal cans, etc….), and it will be interesting to see how much trash is collected there as we make return visits during the summer.

Look what we found!

Edgar found a stick..no,we did not collect that!

Griff with his Outward Hound trash pack!

So as the season draws closer, we make our plans. We have a trip to western Maine scheduled for the summer, remote camping reservations at Green River Reservoir SP, and lots of day trips in mind. We are formulating our seasonal goals, but in essence, they will include:

• Paddle At least 4 new bodies of water
• Climb at least 4 new mountains
• More solo paddling…in the Swift and in the Kayak
• A tippy canoe test –before our excursion to Maine. It was suggested to us that we not do this until the dogs are very comfortable in the canoe, as it may scare them, and make them skittish around the canoe.  We think they’re ready now!
• Try the new camera in underwater, and waterline photos…if it works, you’ll see the photos here!

Most of all, we plan for a safe, enjoyable, and exciting season of paddling!

Mud season is here with a vengeance! Even if we were willing to negotiate the treacherous back roads which lead to some of our favorite hiking spots, the conditions are such that many trails are closed until Memorial Day. Our local, lower elevation areas, have been rapidly losing the snowpack,which has led to some very wet hikes.

Edgar just splashes right on through the field water..he is part lab, after all!

The temperatures have been climbing, so sunny hikes have been very pleasant, though it is often a toss-up as to whether spikes or snowshoes are the best option.

With the trail closures, we have explored a few new areas…a trail network in a nearby county is below 2000 ft. elevation. We found lots of grey ice and snow at the lower area, but as we climbed, the woods became more brown and green—very little snow. We did have to scramble up a ravine in which snow had settled, but overall, I think the dogs enjoyed the feel of dirt,rock, and pine needles below their feet!

Our Khatoola MicroSpikes were essential on this hike….

Two other  “events”  occurred which have further flamed our anticipation for paddling season. We said good-bye to our faithful, reliable Old Town canoe. Last summer we came to the realization this canoe was too heavy for the car-topping and portaging.  We did not immediately sell the Old Town when we purchased the new Swift canoe, as it was towards the end of the season.  We posted the old canoe on Craigslist…well, if you ever have a canoe to sell, you will get MANY responses within moments of your posting. The canoe went off with the first person to respond; it sounds as though it will have a good home, and will continue to provide safe rides to dogs!

Goodbye, faithful old canoe!

And…our dogs are famous (well, within the Vermont outdoor sports community). Our Gryphon was selected as the cover dog in an Outdoor Dogs Photo Contest. Edgar also had his picture in the magazine (in a photo-bomb pose). The prize was a token, but the real prize is the pride we feel when we see our Paddle Pup on the local new stands!

MORE SPLASHINGLY GREAT HIKES!

Griff at one of our canoe launch sites…may be a while yet!

  Jump..why? water is great!

I’ll just take a flying leap over this run-off on the trail!