Cruising

Ah, am I glad to be home! June is probably not the best month of the year to visit Florida and take a cruise to the Bahamas but I had a family gathering which I felt obligated to attend. My parent's who now live in Florida were celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary (congratulations Mom and Dad!) and they wanted our family and several of their friends to join them on a cruise. I am not a big fan of heat and even find summers in Vermont too hot. Along with my Siberians winter is my favorite time of the year. My first day in Florida it was 110 degrees and the next morning before the sun even came up it was already 90.

I had never been on a cruise ship before so it was a big learning experience for me. I have to admit it's not really my cup-O-Tea and it was likely a once in a life time trip for me. I'm much more comfortable with one or two people in the back woods of New England paddling my canoe than on a ship with 3,000 people on board.

This is a shot from the Nassau Harbor when we were coming back from our snorkel outing. There were four to five ships docked while we were there making for some very crowded streets.



Other than the heat, crowds and noise the cruise wasn't all bad. It was really nice to spend some quality time with my family who I don't get to see very often. The food was good with many choices at each meal. We spent one afternoon at a quiet beach in Freeport and went snorkeling one afternoon in Nassau. I enjoyed snorkeling other than the crowd and leaky snorkel mask. I had never seen a live coral reef and tropical fish in person before and it really was beautiful. I could have stayed there all afternoon watching the fish. I did get flippered in the head several times since there were so many people in the water. With five or six boats at the same location and each boat having forty or so people on it there wasn't a lot of room to move.



I really missed the dogs, especially our puppy Pacem. They were all very happy to see me when I got home but were well cared for by Lise while I was away. I did get some small doggy fixes at my brothers. He has a Black Labrador who loves to have her ears rubbed and I was happy to oblige.

Now I am back at home and working on my page long to do list as we count down the days to fall training. It was 55 degrees yesterday morning and I'm loving it. I'd be happy if it didn't get above 70 all summer but I don't say that too loud around here. Often coming home is the best part of going away; it really makes me appreciate how wonderful life here in Vermont is.

Spring Scooter Fun

It's almost summer now but we have had very nice cool spring weather for most of May which has allowed us to do a lot of scootering with the dogs. Lise often goes with me on Sunday or Monday mornings and we are able to get most of the 14 dogs we currently have out for a run. We haven't been doing a lot for distance; generally only two to four miles max. It really is a amazing way to learn more about each individual dog. When we run them in teams of eight or ten it is hard to tell exactly what each dog is doing. You can see the obvious like if one of them is not pulling at all but there are a lot of subtle things going on there that are very hard to detect. Running single dogs with the scooters leaves nothing hidden. You can tell right away if a dog is confused about what to do or exactly how much they are pulling and how fast they are comfortable running. Some of the dogs have really surprised me. Orion in particular. I have always run him in wheel (position at back of team directly in front of the sled or cart) and judging by his behavior in the dog yard thought that he wasn't all that bright. When I took him out with the scooter he responded to commands like a true lead dog! He is also showing me that he is one of the fastest dogs in the dog yard. I would have never found this out if it wasn't for running him with the scooter. He likely just earned himself some time in lead when we begin regular cart runs this coming fall.



The biggest benefit of running with the scooters is that it allows us to keep playing with the dogs long after the snow is gone. Typically we would have packed things up and been in summer vacation mode by now. This year we have been running at least twice a week. It is very relaxing working with the dogs on scooters. It's rare for me to be able to spend one on one time with each dog. Usually as I stated above they are working as a team and when I'm with them in the dog yard they are all together as a group. Having just one dog out at a time allows me to focus on their individual personality.





I have found the scooters to work well in a wide range of conditions. I've been running on everything from class three dirt roads to single track trails through the woods with stream bed like surfaces. It is amazing how much control you have with the scooters. Some of the trails I have been on I have mountain bike on in the past and I have found it to be more stable running these trails with a dog and the scooter than riding them with my mountain bike. The lower center of gravity with your weight being below the wheel axles makes a huge difference. It is also much easier to step off with one foot and give a kick to hop over a rough spot on the trail. All of the scooters I have been using have disk brakes which work very well. My newest mountain bike it about five years old and still have V brakes so this is my first experience with disk brakes. In a word, fantastic! Especially with running dogs where you have the brakes on 90% of the time. It only take a couple of fingers to keep things under control.




I hope we can continue to work the dogs with the scooters right through the summer. They do fine with two mile runs at temperatures in the low 60s so I expect most weeks I can find a morning or two here that are in that temperature range. No matter what the scooters have already allowed our season to expand greatly and provided all of us with a great dry land activity!

Spring Flowers

The snow is completely gone except for a few spots high up on the mountains. The mud has gone away due to a pretty dry April. It's the time of year where every new day brings a fresh batch of green to the landscape. I believe if you sat for the day and watched a tree or a fern you could actually see it growing. It is a short growing season here in northern Vermont so everything seems to be in a hurry. Our early spring flowers have been blooming here, crocuses and daffodils for cultivated plants and trillium, trout lillies and colts foot for the wild ones. Despite my love of winter and the onset of black fly season it is hard not to appreciate the beauty in everything coming to life around us.



Our not so little any more puppy Pacem is doing very well. She weighed in at 21 pounds a week ago. Just like the spring plants it amazes me how much she grows every day. I jump out of bed each morning to be greeted by her at the bedroom door and marvel at how much she grew overnight. She has been a real blessing this spring as I have been dealing with much loss and sadness. It really is impossible not be smile when she comes bounding across the yard so happy and full of life. It certainly feels like she came into my life at this point in time for a reason. As most proud parents will say; she is the smartest little dog I have ever known. She truly seems to be able to pick things up very quickly and has been a pleasure to work with.



Until next time take care and enjoy the new life and spring flowers in your neck of the woods.