Back from Utah

Bella happily running WITHOUT her booties.

What a great trip! The weather began beautifully enough—low 70s during the day and sunny. Nights were in the 40s; stars amazing. For rides, I put Bella into some Ruff Wear booties and though she wasn't happy about it, she managed. The slickrock in that area is like sand paper and I knew, even if our ride was short, her paws would be raw. Two of them were lost by the end of the third day. Bum deal—and expensive.

She did do a run/ride on an old jeep, 4-wheel drive road that was a combination of rock and dirt. Her paws were okay at the end of that, but her muscles were sore from four days of running. Luckily, with a day of rest, she was ready to go again and I was able to locate a shop in town that carried the booties and get another pair. We won't be losing those again even if I have to staple them to her!

The last third of the trip, the weather turned cold. Days were no more than 50 degrees and nights in the low 20s. Sleeping for all of us was fitful and it took a while in the morning to warm up and be functional. We did a lot of hiking during this period in an area called Cedar Mesa. Incredible Anasazi ruins and petroglyphs everywhere. Not all trails allowed dogs, so we stuck to those that did.

Locals warned us that the coyotes could be quite opportunistic, so we were watchful when we let Bellie roam. Luckily, by nature, she stays close to the van and stakes out only a small perimeter. During the time we were gone, we only heard one coyote chorus, but it was thrilling. Just as the night sky began to lighten, several coyotes began yipping and howling. They sounded joyous and almost next to our van! Had they run into buddies they hadn't seen for a while or had they just completed a terrific hunt?

For Bella, the thrill was to be with us 24/7, off leash, in an environment of delicious new smells. I do think she's happy to be back home where meals come on time and the bed is cushy and warm. But a leash? Nope. She'd rather be back in Utah!

FOOTNOTE: I mentioned in my last post all the dog paraphernalia I was packing for her. Guess what I forgot? A brush! We were in dusty, dusty locations and she became a "Pigpen" with clouds of dust rising off her with each pat on her side. Bathing her was one of our priorities on return so she's now a clean machine!