Leader of the Pack

The Adventure Pack
There were a lot of panting tongues on the trails today.  We hiked up the Amphitheatre Trail, starting at the Chautauqua trailhead.  It was pretty easy going until the last stretch when it gets to be a fairly steep hike.  Coco and Toskey were taking turns leading the way.  When we got to the top, Coco, Toskey, Rucksack, and Mogul were all happy to have a drink of water (so was I).  The way down was much easier and Mogul and Rucksack had the luxury to do a bit more off-trail exploring than their packmates did on the way up because they didn't have to save their energy for making their way uphill.  When we neared the trailhead on our way back and the trees were more sparse, Rucksack trotted from shady tree to shady tree, plopping down for brief, 30-second rests in between.

The Play Pack

Benny was very excited to be picked up from Cottonwood Kennels and go out with his packmates today.  When he first hopped into the car I couldn't stop him from wiggling up to the front seat and lying down in my lap.  It took a little while before he settled in and we were able to leave.  Mogul took an interest in a young yellow Lab at the park today.  He kept going and standing in front of the pup and then slowly lying his head over the young one's shoulders to test him.  They did some hopping around together.  Every so often, Mogul tried to mount him and succeeded whenever the pup was distracted by other dogs playing nearby.  Coco and Brady raced for some tennis balls.  Coco and Benny were back to their usual wrestling over the tennis ball whenever Coco brought it back.  Brady met a Pomeranian mix when we first arrived with whom he had a long greeting.  The Pomeranian followed him around for a bit afterwards.