I honestly don’t remember how old the dogs were – it’s one of the details I have erased from my memory – but Cannon wasn’t yet a year old and I’m pretty sure it was winter. Katina and I got the idea to pack up the cars and head to Canaan Valley in West Virginia for some great hiking and a night of cabin “camping.”
The plan was sound and we were ambitious, including laptops and games in our gear – we were going to accomplish so much! Once at the cabin it must have taken us four trips each to unload our respective cars. We were prepared!
It should be stated that this was the first time the dogs were together for an extended period of time. It is also important to note that Cannon was sporting a bandage on his foot that was protecting an injury that needed to stay clean. Also important to share is that Katina and I were rookies even though we had owned dogs before.
The two intact males started to play upon our arrival and we were constantly trying to intervene (mistake). We would let them go for a while but when it escalated beyond the point we thought was appropriate, we reprimanded and separated (futile). Meanwhile Cannon’s bandage was constantly falling off causing Katina to take him back to the bedroom and try, try again to wrap his foot in just the right way. This, too, was unsuccessful.
At one point we built a fire in the large fireplace and though the flue was open, smoke filled the cabin. After some time we figured out how to position the fire in the fireplace so as to minimize the soot in the air, but only after we opened the doors and windows and put on a layer of fleece. The dogs were unfazed.
Then there was the time when in an effort to separate the dogs, Katina tied Cannon to a chair while Karma lay panting on the kitchen floor. Cannon drug the chair down the hall after Katina getting it caught and scaring himself. Clearly that didn’t work.
Somehow we managed to make dinner and of course drink the wine but no games were played and little work was accomplished. Karma was up all night sniffing at the door and moving about the small room hoping that any minute Cannon would appear and the wrestling match would resume. Not much sleep for me.
In the morning it must have taken us 45 minutes to make bacon and eggs. I think Katina re-bandaged Cannon a few times and Karma played the role of instigator. We tried to take the dogs for a walk but with Cannon’s bandage constantly sliding off, all we got in was a lap around the cabins. Needless to say we were exhausted and we made our eight trips to the car and stopped by the conference center on our way out. By my memory the smoothest part of the trip was when we stopped at Pizza Hut on our way home. Mmmmmm, pizza.
Thankfully, the next time the dogs met for a playdate – this time at my house – we let them have the run of the lower level and we went upstairs, letting them figure it out all on their own. Without our constant fretting and intervening, the dogs figured it out. Imagine that!
P.S. Cannon went to the vet on Monday for a follow up visit. Turns out the bandage could have come off over the weekend without hurting his foot. Great.
Shenandoah National Park – North District – Matthew’s Arm
Time: Overnight
Gear: Camping checklist!
Difficulty Level: 1 paw
Scenery: 3 paws
Pack: You and your dog or a whole pack
OK, maybe “horribly” is a slight exaggeration. But let’s just say our nerves were as frayed as the ends of the 12’ web leash that Karma snapped two minutes after our arrival to our camp site at Matthew’s Arm.
But I’m getting ahead of my story, and a proper story should be told correctly.
Katina and I had decided on a quick one-night camping excursion at a site that had treated us well last year. Matthew’s Arm is about 22 miles in from the north entrance to the park. It has full bathrooms, several nearby trails and the Elkwallow Wayside store is just a few miles away for our firewood run (remember, you can’t bring your own firewood into the park).
Our little group arrived to our campsite sometime between three and four on Saturday afternoon. Our chosen site – Katina made the reservations online – was next to a couple with two dogs, one of whom seemed particularly annoyed with us, barking aggressively. Hmmm, not a great start.
So I did what I usually do, I tied Karma to the (small) tree on our site and turned to unpack the car. And suddenly, guess who’s standing next to me? Karma effortlessly broke his cotton-web long line and was now grinning wildly in front of me. When I tried to put him back in the car, he had a little tantrum that coincided with the neighboring camper with the angry dog wanting to come over to have the dogs meet. Ugh. Katina thankfully shooed her away and I wrestled Karma into the car. Whew. I was tired already. Meanwhile Cannon was patiently but excitedly waiting in his car – good boy!
So we decided to take the dogs for a quick lap around the campground to try to get the edge off our excited dogs. This lap would later prove to be not enough as we spent a good bit of the evening and next morning breaking up aggressive play among the two BFFs.
We did switch sites when we returned from our walk. Because there were open sites around us, Katina went back to the ranger station and asked to switch to a site we had noticed was empty – no problem. Our new site was against the woods and a group of boys we dubbed “Lord of the Flies” kept walking through the corner of our site in their quest for firewood. At least it gave the dogs something to agree upon – they barked and lunged in their direction every time.
When Karma busted his long line I was forced to loop three leashes together to create a decent tie out. Well – you guessed it – on one of the (last) times the Lord of the Flies crossed through the site, Karma busted another leash and met the kid at the wood’s exit. I give the kid credit, he just stood there while a hundred pounds of fur barked in his face. Ugh!
At some point before this we had opened the wine. We don’t usually drink that much, but the bottle was gone with the evening.
Oh but the fun doesn’t end there! The dogs continued to play too hard and we took turns breaking them up. They managed to break Cannon’s prong collar, at one point getting stuck together like two kids with braces. Finally, Cannon ended up in the car so we could have some peace. Oh, they also stole pieces of wood from each other, resulting in the line of the day from Katina: “It’s like buying your kid a 2×4 for Christmas.” She was right, sticks are not toys.
So finally after I ate my weight in marshmallows and Katina and I had enough, we crawled into our tents for the evening. Karma and I went quickly to sleep although some noisy campers partied late and loud into the night. Katina on the other hand ended up sleeping in her car because her sleeping bag and tent weren’t keeping them warm. Both she and Cannon (somehow) managed to curl up in the back seat of her Cavalier. She awoke to the Lord of the Flies boys staring right at her.
And so it was morning. Once Katina unfolded herself from the backseat, the dogs were ready to go – literally – and Karma drug me out of the tent after Cannon had poked his nose in to see if we were up. I was up!
At this point, Cannon is limping and Karma is pooping mulch (not kidding!) from all the wood he apparently ate the night before. A short walk nearly puts Katina in a rocky stream as Cannon decided to cross without warning. I still don’t know how she did it – in less than a second she bounded across athletically and was standing in front of me on the other side! Wow.
The dogs walked back to the site in an orderly fashion and Cannon went back into the car so as not to further injure his foot (he was fine by Monday). The original plan included a long hike this morning but that was now out of the question. Plus I had re-injured a rib so I was a mess, too. We ate one of Katina’s great breakfasts, packed and were out of the site at noon – check out time.
We survived!
As a result, we have some hints, suggestions, reminders:
- Bring extra dog tie outs! Same goes for anything else you can’t live without!
- Don’t forget you will have to buy firewood in the park because you can’t bring it in with you.
- Speaking of fire, bring newspaper or other fire starters to help the process along.
- Make campsite reservations but know that you probably can switch if your chosen site doesn’t have a tree or is next to a barking dog!
- Know that if you choose a site near a bathroom, you will get foot traffic – it’s a tradeoff so decide what’s more important to you.
- Your food must be locked up in your car if you leave your site. If you leave it out, the rangers will take your food and leave you with a note. You get the food back of course, but you have to go get it from them.
- Be nice to the rangers and all volunteers and staff you meet along the way – they make the park what it is! Say “thank you.”
- And remember, sticks aren’t toys! Bring something for your dog to do.
Shenandoah National Park – North District – Hogback Overlook
This past Saturday I had the good fortune to do my first hike of the year with two great friends, two cute dogs and on a gorgeous but windy day. I’m all about planning, so before the trek I carefully picked out a route that 1) I hadn’t done before so I could see some new sites and 2) would be just the right amount of time to scratch the outdoors itch but not leave me limping for the next three days. I made a list of gear to bring and an itinerary for the day, which I shared with my gal pals. All there was left to do was make it out to Shenandoah National Park and hit the trail.
The girls and I parked at the lot just past Hogback Overlook. The dogs were going crazy greeting each other and I just couldn’t wait to get going. Having thoroughly reviewed the map of the 5.2 mile loop and having read through the hike description several times we were off! Start at the cement marker at the south side of the parking lot, check. At the next trail marker take a right and follow the blue blazes down a wooded hillside, check. Pass by Mathew’s Arm campground… errr, wait, what? Ugh… Mathew’s Arm campground is not on the map and I should know cause I’m supposed to be the leader of this hiking party, the one who’s got all the details covered, right?
Fortunately it was a good time to stop and grab some lunch and let the dogs play. As I pulled out my map and directions and stared dumfounded I realize that there must have been a second cement marker at the south side of the parking lot, one that would take us across Skyline Drive and around our planned loop. How could I have missed this? My hiking partners were good sports about it all, though I’m sure I’m not gonna live this one down for a while (1 year, 2 years – only time will tell).
At the end of the day, we put in a good 3 hours of hiking and there’s the promise a do-over to conquer our originally planned trek. The dogs were tired. We felt somewhat accomplished and happily celebrated with some hike’s-end cupcakes :) Did I feel dumb? Yeah. Will I redeem myself next time? Definitely!!
