Thirty Hikes in Thirty Days

Bailey and Chloe got quite the workout these last 30 days.

Along the trails up in Briones Regional Park

  Established a goal set on January, 15th to hike 30 long hikes of 5 miles or more each and every day. Here are just 7 pictures of adventures.

In the Mount Diablo foothills

 digging in the soft sand in Quartzsite, Arizona after a ground squirrel

hiking along the ocean beach in Ventura at the Channel Island Harbor

Enjoying a cool dip in the Castle Rock stream in Walnut Creek

viewing the hills ahead in Las Trampas Wilderness.

We made that goal on February, 14 and then some.  185 miles of trails in 30 days.  Dogs are getting in good shape.
  Doing this body good also.

Join us any time.  We almost always enjoy company.

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RED BIRD DOG WEBSITE

Overlooking the San Ramon Valley from Las Trampas

Getting Ready for a Hunt

Sunday morning was perfect weather for a late season pheasant hunt.  It had been six weeks since Bailey and I had hit the fields at Hastings Island Hunting Preserve.

Took a friend who had never been on a hunt before.  Jim grabbed this shot before the 7:30 opening of the field we started in.

We had a successful hunt and Bailey was in excellent form and my marksmanship has improved over the year.  We were done by 9:15 with four pheasants in the bag. 

 

Desert Days with Bailey and Chloe

On top of Mount Q there always is an American Flag flying proudly.

Sunrises in the Arizona sky on our 12-day sabbatical.

Vizslas are great RV partners.

 We "dry camped" (fully self-contained) in late January at the Las Posas Long-Term camping area. This is BLM area just south of Quartzite, Arizona.  $40 for two weeks or $160 for six months.

This is our fourth year coming out here.  It is truly something we enjoy.  Just books, music, hiking and being in the desert with Bailey and Chloe.  Once a day I would tour part of the desert or run into town for supplies on my trusty Honda Trail 90.

The sand and rocks are tough on Vizslas' pads as they run through the riverbeds and sage brush desert. The bushes and plants have plenty of thorns.  This is where quails, rabbits, and ground squirrels love to hide, so thorns in pads are common.  

After every time out, I would apply "Musher's Secret" to their pads to keep them from drying and cracking. I get the 200 gram size.

http://www.huntindawg.com/canine-first-aid-health-and-wellness.html

January is a great time to go to the Arizona desert. The sunrises and sunsets are great.  Maybe the highlight was the thunderstorm that blew in one late afternoon. 40 mph winds, lightning and thunder shaking the RV.  Glad we have a well-built unit.  As I lay in the back area with the BIG windows, the night became a light show, the rain came down in waves, and the wind rocked the Lazy Daze.

The next morning, the ground was only just moist and the sky was on fire.  I love the desert.