{07june2011: serene part 2}

Here's where we left off. (If you missed part one of the hike, read it here.)
After hiking in for about 1.7 miles we got to a sign that pointed us in the direction of Bridal Veil Falls or Lake Serene.

We thought it would probably be better to take the .5 mile detour to the falls before doing the rest of the hike since it would be a short hike. I wouldn't say it was a mistake, but MAN what a detour!

These were about one of 50 flights of stairs (ok, not really 50, but A LOT).

These steps kept taking us higher and higher and over streams and waterfalls.

Very pretty waterfalls I must say. But we just kept climbing and climbing, I swear it was longer than half a mile, and finally got to some wooden walkways where you could see the spray from the waterfall.

It was amazing! It was hard to stand there too long as we were getting soaked and cold!



We still have the hike to the lake to go! Check back for the last part of our hike!

{03june2011: Serene}

Or not so much. Jason is no longer allowed to pick the hikes we go on. After last month's epic 9 mile hike I thought we had learned our lesson that we aren't epic hikers. I guess Jason forgot, because his pick for this months hike (one of my new year's resolutions is to go on at least one hike a month) was another epic uphill strenuous climb. 
The first part of the hike was pretty easy going. You follow a path through brushy areas and across little streams. It was a little tricky for Darwin to cross this bridge. The wood slats were about 4" wide with about 3" wide gaps between each one.

easy does it

oops! slipped through!

So green and lush!

There were a lot of little streams to cross over and for Darwin to splash in.

We also saw something I've never seen on a hike before.  Llamas!  Darwin was a little unsure of them at first as we approached them from behind

Jason's a quick walker and the llamas were moving at a slower pace so we found a wider spot on the path so we could pass them. As usual with anything that Darwin is unsure (scared) of she tried to walk pass them with the greatest distance between them as possible.

We ended up passing them three times (we took a detour to the falls where they passed us) so Darwin has been llama proofed! By the third time of passing them she could care less that they were there.

This first 1.7 miles was the easiest part of the hike stay tuned for the rest of the 2000ft ascent to Serene Lake!




A little over an hour's drive north east of Seattle, the hike to Lake Serene is a beautiful, but tough one.

View Larger Map

{27may2011: SLO}

Last month we spent the weekend in San Luis Obispo, CA for my cousin's wedding (that was when Darwin had her sleepover and her brother Boo's house).
I always find it hard being away from Darwin, even for the weekend. But there were a lot of other things to keep us distracted.
Things like:

In-n-out burgers animal style (that's Charlotte the chickpea in the background)

My cousin's dogs Kava and Pele. (Remember how small they were!) That's Kava giving me love.

One morning we woke up and the sidewalks outside the hotel were covered with these snails.

My uncle took Jason and I wine tasting at a couple wineries and this was the shop dog. So cute!

The winery also had peacocks! They said they had about 80 and it was mating season so they'd probably get 20 or so more babies. You could buy a bag of food and feed the peacocks. They said there were a few birds that would actually eat out of your hand... I didn't run into any.

And the cutest distraction, my nephew! 
As you can see there was lots to keep us entertained!

{23may2011: practice}

We took Darwin's new soccer ball to the park with us so she could get more practice in.

I think she could be an excellent mascot/team dog for the Seattle Sounders. 

I tried to get her to pose next to the ball, but the grass was too comfy and inviting she thought it'd be better to take a nap instead.

After soccer practice we walked around to the little pond so she could get a drink of water. She saw a stick floating under the surface of the water and made a move to get it out.

No such luck though and all she had to show for in the end was a wet face.

{18may2011: wordless Wednesday}

soccer edition:

{17may2011: Discovery}

When we know a walk just won't cut it for Darwin, and we don't feel like going to a dog park (it's hit or miss with Darwin playing with other dogs at dog parks), we'll often opt for Discovery Park where we can get her to run across the fields. 

During the winter they turn off the water fountains, so when they do get turned back on, Darwin HAS to make a pit stop at them.

After she's filled up, it's off to the fields.

As you can tell by Jason's lovely outfit, it still felt like winter though it should've felt like spring.

Darwin likes the chilly weather though because she can keep running without getting too hot!

Is it Darwin? Or a long armed kangaroo?!  hehehe

She's like the energizer bunny and can keep going and going and going.

With spring slow coming, the cherry blossoms were still blooming, which I love.

After all that running Darwin was just tired enough to stop and take in the view and do some posing.

Don't look too closely! Her Sirius Republic Tweet Tweet collar is on upside down and it bugs me! It's actually pretty dirty too!

After a good run through the park we can all go home and relax.

{13may2011: new park}

The other week I ran a bunch of errands and decided to take Darwin to a new park. We tend to go to the same parks so I thought I'd see if we could find a new one to add to our list. We stopped at Jose Rizal Park in the Beacon Hill neighborhood, just south of downtown Seattle. As I pulled up the park I pulled out my phone and read a review about how it's a nice park but seems underutilized and garbage from transients laying around. Uhhhhh.... I got a little nervous, because I'm a little scaredy cat sometimes and worry about being attacked, or mugged, or rapped. (I won't take Darwin on the trail near our house by myself even in the daytime because we've seen tents and know homeless people hang out there, even though I've seen other ladies walk/run their dog through that area.) Even though Darwin's a big dog and I'd assume most people would be wary of her size alone, she's a bigger scaredy cat than me and I think if someone ran out and jumped me, she'd run away barking. hahaha.

Anyway, back to the park. As I was sitting in the car contemplating I saw a girl and her dog walk in so I figured it had to be ok (it was the middle of the day, on a week day). We entered the gates and from there you have to walk down a curvy path to a smaller open grass area. It had been raining a lot that week so it was pretty muddy, but Darwin loves the mud so she had fun. She got a little playtime in with the dog we followed in and another pittie that showed up, but other than that there were no other dogs (or people) there. It's a smaller park just off the freeway, but it had a great view of the city.

It was fun to check out someplace new, but I don't think we'll be adding that park to our list of regular stops, just not enough activity or space for a big girl like Darwin.